Do We Have A Wiiner? Wii Beats PS3 in November

Sony sold only 197.000 units in November. PlayStation 3 was launched in United States in November 17, and Nintendo Wii in November 19. During November, Microsoft sold 511,000 units of its Xbox 360, according to NPD.

NPD said overall video game-related sales were $1.7 billion in November. Sales of games that run on consoles and portable players were $804 million. Microsoft sold 1 million units of its "Gears of War" title during November, for $61.5 million total including the collector''s edition. Behind second-place "Final Fantasy XII," for the PS2, from Japanese developer Square Enix, Nintendo''s "Legend of Zelda" for the Wii sold the third-highest number of units, at 412,000. Hardware sales were $771 million, fueled by consoles and Nintendo's DS hand-held device, which sold 918,000 units in November.

Due to some technical problems with its Blu-Ray units, Sony was not able to respect either its launch dates or the promised number of units. The initial launch date promised by Sony for PlayStation3, March 2006, was postponed to November 2006. Instead of 2 million PS 3 flooding the planet, Sony only launched 100,000 in Japan and promised another 400,000 units for the US (which turned out to be no more that 200,000).

There's no doubt about the PS3's technical chops - it's actually a mini supercomputer with a new multicore cell chip that is 40 times more powerful than the ultra-successful PS2 that it supersedes. With its internet access, built-in wi-fi and ability to play movies, music and other digital formats, Sony is hoping the PS3 will be the household media centre of the not-too distant future and at the heart of our entertainment world.

But for most, the PS3 is just a games machine, and the question is whether consumers will pay top dollar for a device that does not yet offer a quantum leap in functionality over previous technologies. Many hardcore gamers willing to pay almost anything to get the best action possible and Sony insists it will sell 6 million of the consoles by March 2007. But analysts believe that it’s almost impossible for Sony to reach its target.

“There's no way that Sony will make its forecast for 1 million units in the U.S. this calendar year,'' said Evan Wilson, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities in Portland, Oregon, for Bloomberg. “They will face supply constraints at least through March.”

Nintendo hopes to achieve its target of 4 million units sold until the end of the year and 6 million consoles until March 2007. Microsoft's Xbox 360 is also bidding to be the control hub of home entertainment. It already has a year's head start and by March 2007 will have sold 10 million units.

The main focus of the Wii (pronounced We) in on user-friendly playability that appeals to gamers of all levels - including aging "greygamers" as they are called - and not just wealthy supergeeks in need of a real life. The system also is succeeding in its stated mission of reinvigorating current players, while attracting new ones. Every Wii system includes the five-game Wii Sports software, which is the talk of the Internet, featuring countless reports on how previously devout non-gamers have suddenly been converted via the amazing new way games are experienced using the system's remarkable controller.

On Thursday 7, Wii landed in Europe, the last of the major territories to receive Nintendo's console. According to media reports in the first 12 hours alone, some 50,000 units were sold. It's not yet clear how many Wii units were allocated for all of Europe, but regardless, high demand means that shortages are expected throughout Christmas and until the beginning of 2007.