Founding Fathers of Video Games, SEGA and Nintendo, Find Winning Formula with First-Ever Pairing of Famous Mascots
TOKYO (MARCH 5, 2008) – SEGA® Corporation today announced that its history-making video game title, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games™, has sold five million copies worldwide in just over three months. Developed by SEGA for the Wii™ video game system and the Nintendo DS™ system, with creative input and executive milestone approvals by Nintendo’s developers, the title brought together for the first time the two most beloved icons in the entertainment industry. In the spirit of the Olympic Games, the legendary mascots also brought friends from their storied franchises along, including Luigi™, Knuckles™, Yoshi® and Tails™, to compete in a variety of Olympic events.
"With adored icons and fun game play, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games has shot to the top of the sales charts and is clearly resonating with the growing audience of casual gamers that want an engaging and accessible gaming experience," said Simon Jeffery, President and COO, SEGA of America.
Published by SEGA across Europe and North America, and by Nintendo in Japan, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games made its worldwide debut on November 6, 2007, when the Wii version hit store shelves in the United States. According to the NPD Group, which tracks sales data in the United States, the game was one of the top-ten best-sellers in the United States – across all platforms – in the critical holiday sales month of December.
When Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games launched in Europe just days later, it was an immediate hit, rising rapidly to the top of sales charts. Mario & Sonic became the best-ever performing Wii game over the seven-day period that ended on December 11, 2007. In January, Mario & Sonic was the best-selling video game in England across all formats.
"The market for entertaining games that everyone can enjoy is growing faster than any other segment in the industry, thanks in part to the explosive popularity of Wii and Nintendo DS," continued Jeffery. "A key element of our growth strategy at SEGA is to develop and publish games that appeal to this expanding market."
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is licensed through a worldwide partnership with International Sports Multimedia (ISM), the exclusive Interactive Entertainment Software licensee of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Hell while 5 mil is no small number Brawl probably has a chance of beating it.
Hell while 5 mil is no small number Brawl probably has a chance of beating it.
Sega can actually release their games worldwide in a timely manner.
Uh yeah, Brawl is gonna EASILY beat 5 million.
Uh yeah, Brawl is gonna EASILY beat 5 million.
Melee sold over 6 million and that was on the GameCube. I don't think there's much chance of Brawl selling less than 5 million.
Melee sold over 6 million and that was on the GameCube. I don't think there's much chance of Brawl selling less than 5 million.
I'm skeptical about the Wii userbase getting behind Brawl. It started out as a fighting game and, despite the efforts to make it more accessible, remains a fighting game.
Sure, every hardcore gamer and his dog are talking about it, but I see Mario Kart selling better than Brawl. I just don't think it's going to sell well with the casual gamers.
I'm skeptical about the Wii userbase getting behind Brawl. It started out as a fighting game and, despite the efforts to make it more accessible, remains a fighting game.
Sure, every hardcore gamer and his dog are talking about it, but I see Mario Kart selling better than Brawl. I just don't think it's going to sell well with the casual gamers.
Yeah the Japanese userbase has rejected it, I mean only 1.2 million units? Give me a break!
I hope your joking, I seriously hope your joking. The Smash Bros serious is popular because it's the only fighting series casuals can get into. The reason fighters like Street Fighter died out is because with each new installment the companies focused only on the hardcore fans and as a result the average arcade goer had no idea how to play the games anymore because of how complicated they became and got killed by the hardcore.
Not only am I confident that Brawl will sell over 5 million worldwide, I say it'll sell over 5 million copies worldwide by this time next year.
Faster doesn't mean better.
And this isn't about sales momentum, something Brawl doesn't need as it'll be selling consistently until the end of the Wii's lifespan.
Not only am I confident that Brawl will sell over 5 million worldwide, I say it'll sell over 5 million copies worldwide by this time next year.
Somebody didn't read the original article. Why not show some chutzpah and say how it'll go over three months? There's a good chance Brawl won't be available worldwide in the three months since it was released in Japan. Still so sure?
Melee sold over 6 million and that was on the GameCube. I don't think there's much chance of Brawl selling less than 5 million.
I'm skeptical about the Wii userbase getting behind Brawl. It started out as a fighting game and, despite the efforts to make it more accessible, remains a fighting game.
Sure, every hardcore gamer and his dog are talking about it, but I see Mario Kart selling better than Brawl. I just don't think it's going to sell well with the casual gamers.
And Melee was big seller because it was CHEAP.For values of CHEAP approaching 55€...
