It's well known that the 3DS family of systems had a strong year in 2013 in various territories, and in terms of the UK there'd been various positive headlines throughout the 12 months. A steady stream of high-profile games — such as Pokémon X & Y, Animal Crossing: New Leaf and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds — enabled impressive sales throughout the year, with the 2DS also providing a boost from October onwards.
Trade publication MCV has now confirmed that the 3DS family of systems were the top-selling game devices — when treated as one range — over the course of the whole year. No figures are given for the 3DS, but the number will be above the PS4, which secured the home console crown for 2013 in its five weeks on the market — Sony's new console sold over 530,000 consoles. That certainly represents an impressive overall year for Nintendo's handheld in the UK, though as we've previously reported the Wii U's disappointing life-to-date sales in the country have already been surpassed by the Xbox One and PS4.
We'll learn more about the latest sales of both systems in various territories in the upcoming NPD results, while Nintendo will give firm figures for multiple regions in its Q3 financial reports at the end of January.
[source mcvuk.com]
Comments 43
Doooommmmeeedd!!!
Double doomed!
I really can't see how 530,000 people bought PS4, even with all the marketing, it has no games yet! Poor old MS, if they'd launched at the same price I think their games would have edged it and they'd be the one with 500,000 units in the UK.
I'm curious as to why people have been so eager to buy the ps4 and xbox one when it has no games and basically (upscaled ports) of last gen games. The same people were whining about Wii U having no games and (ports) of last gen games and didn't buy it so what's the difference.
The difference has come with the advertising each system has received so far, basically.
I don't get what Nintendo is doing... What are they waiting for??
What's there to get? its a games console it plays games. Surely the xbox one and ps4 are more confusing as they do a lot more.....
What I really don't understand is, how people say I don't understand wii u. No one told me what I had to do, and it's not bloody rocket science, how many people watch tv or a film while playing on a tablet? We all do it so what's the difference. I don't have the wii u game pad there to give me something to do all the time.
Sometimes I do gaming sessions without even looking at it. It's not always vital to me, But it's nice to have. What it does do well is make combersome menus and typing infinitely superior to anything on the other 2 consoles. When I have log into my account on my mates xbox 360 it takes forever to move my joypad back and fourth to type anything. That is when I notice it, and yes before anyone asks it bugged me before I started using the game pad, it's just now that more noticable. I'm sorry but the wii u is not a confusing console. It's people moaning for the sake of moaning.
@Nintenjoe64 Think Microsoft are quite happy with a 2 horse race for a bit longer. (When they are not any longer then you will see something like EA giving a 3 month exclusive to them followed by some trick by them that destroys EA whilst they buy the pieces for nothing).
Sadly the WiiU needs three things to sell better:
Mario 3D World is really fun but it doesn't sell the console to regular young adult/adult gamers. Nor does it The Wonderful 101, DK Tropical Freeze, Lego City...
And you might say that Wii did it but it had the wiimote and Wii Sports. If it hadn't it wouldn't have sold as it did.
Nintendo has to show something that shows the possibilities of the WiiU because in the console market they've lost most of the regular gamers. You only need to see the sales of Batman Origins or AC IV, they are laughable. I don't think WB and UbiSoft are going to support it beyond Lego and Watch_Dogs. And that's very bad.
Don't get me wrong, I like it and I like "the Nintendo way" but as a new owner of a WiiU is disheartening how things are looking. I want to play Tomb Raider, Thief, Castlevania LoS 2 and Dark Souls II (among others) on my console but I can't and never will.
I think it is doomed. It will be lucky if it sells as much as GameCube :__(
Great news Glad my two 3ds's contributed to this lol! Seriously, this is fantastic news and i hope it will continue this year.
As for the Wii U, they need to focus on it now more than ever. With MK8, Bayonetta 2, Smash bros, Zelda and X things are looking up. I predict this year it'll do very well and will make a comeback like the 3ds has done. All it needs are the right games, tons of promotions and lots of adverts like the 3ds had and it'll be back in the game. I predict that by the end of this year, the Wii U will be doing just as well as the 3ds. I just hope now they don't abandon the 3ds...
@bouncer0304 They don't need to focus on the Wii U if they do then there will be nothing on the 3DS. They just need a reasonable amount of releases across both systems across diverse genres and lots of them.
The 3DS has set its own bar now. Its got a solid 3-4 more years of support and major titles to be released no question. The Wii U needs to continue its strong end to 2013. But we're running out of Nintendo franchises to release games on. A new Mario platformer anytime soon will over-saturate things. A new Zelda is what needs to be worked on, the MK8 and DKC's of the world will bide time.
That's all well and good but it had better be over 2 mill for Nintendo to even have q chance at their fiscal projection. What was it 18 million units sold by the end of March? If they're at 10 million now I'd be surprised.
Certainly puts paid to some of the bizarre theories that the Wii U is tanking because of the UK not liking Nintendo.
@PinkSpider
To quote a mate of mine who bought one "it'll get all the games for the next 5-6 years. FIFA, GTA, Uncharted, Just Dance for parties, Lego for the kids, loads of quirky stuff like Journey".
That's a promise Nintendo for all their strengths can't and indeed don't try to make.
The 3DS/2DS had a fantastic year of solid releases. I'd be surprised if it wasn't the best selling system. Nintendo's focus should be to replicate that success this year for the WiiU.
Heh. I'm hearing that the UK hates Nintendo games for it be the "supposed" reasons why the WiiU ain't selling well in that place and yet the 3DS is the best-selling in the UK. Well that rumor is dispelled.
But UK HATES Nintendo !
Glad to hear that. Got a 3DS for christmas but don't factor in this as I'm German(Y U NO GIVE ME ALL EU SALES? =) ).
I wanted a 3DS because it got good games not because I wanted the newest console like all those people buying PS4 and Xbone. Do hope it will continue and be supported for quite a while.
@originaljohn
"a fantastic year of solid releases"
Perfectly summed up. The 3DS has a fantastic catalogue and its success is well-deserved.
But the Nintendo Life community told me the UK is horribly biased against Nintendo! Surely they weren't wrong...?
@DarkCoolEdge why does a game need good realistic graphics?
@Peach64 Hehe, I'm guessing younger people all over the world are following Japan and buying handhelds instead of home consoles now.
We will see how Sony and MS's systems sell by mid to late this year, if numbers are down for their systems (which I just know they will be, they will sell more than the Wii U as we know now, but how much more...), I guess the 3DS will keep selling well as long as the Vita keeps charging more for that system and MANDITORY memory cards, if Sony change the price to €160 with 32gb card included, then 3DS might be in trouble.
I'm explaining myself wrong, but you get the idea
It keeps being said over and over again, and I can see how it makes no difference at this point, but if they had just changed the name to "Wii 2" instead of "Wii U", I firmly believe it would have made a genuine difference.
@PinkSpider
I don't think a lack of big games at launch would stop people from buying a PS4 or Xbox One now. They know that the games they want will come. I'm sure an awful lot of people here bought a 3DS at launch despite it apparently having "no big games" at launch (I thought it did, but the general consenus was that it didn't). Most consoles don't have amazing launch line-ups, but people still go out and buy them on launch because a new console is exciting in itself (and there's bound to be something at launch that they want).
I can't get enough of my 3DS. This handheld is now my favorite ever! Even more than GBA or DS! (GBA was my favorite before) Now I just need to finish all of the games I have. Can you guys believe I'm still need to finish Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon, Pokémon X and ALBW? Being an adult sucks...
@AdanVC Same. I gotta finish Luigi Mansion Dark Moon too.
Say what to the people that said UK people don't play nintendo systems or game !
Ive gamed sicne 8bit nes and game & watch uk people do love nintendo it's just that dam microsoft that gets into kids living rooms.
@BinaryFragger
Fanboys are never rational.
@Nintenjoe64
Well I bought one! But yeah, it doesn't really have any games. It was Knack that did it for me.
@PinkSpider
Well, in my case I knew I'd be buying one eventually, and while I'm by no means rich, I do have quite a bit of disposable income at any given time. I can pretty much afford whatever I want within a reasonable means. And at $400, I figured the price was already as low as it's going to get for a number of years, so why not.
Most people who bought one either did so because of the reasons I did, or because they got too caught up in the hype. I bought it knowing I probably wouldn't be getting any play out of it for the first year or so. That was understood at time of purchase. Unfortunately, the folks who bought one because they got caught up in the hype (the guys who bought into the crazy notion that the console was gonna be poppin right at launch) and the guys who just want to brag to their friends that they own one, well, I think they already realize they jumped the gun. I've heard of QUITE a few people who have said they think they got carried away a bit, and now they have a $400 console they don't even play.
@BinaryFragger
I buy most of my consoles at launch too. Wii, PS3, 3DS, Vita, Wii U and PS4... all day one.
Actually though, when Wii U launched there was an onslaught of criticism from Sony and MS fans. Everywhere you turned people were mocking Wii U owners for not having many games. I remember it very clearly, because I was one of the people who was ridiculed on a regular basis.
The reason people (well, I speak for Nintendo fans here, I can't speak for anyone else) are being tough on the PS4 fans is because you reap what you sow. These are the same people who were laughing at us for the Wii U library at launch. We said, "Give it time, the games are coming" and their response was "Stop making excuses, stop damage controlling". Now that the tables are turned, those people are saying the same thing we said. That's hypocrisy. What goes around comes around.
@PinkSpider It doesn't but that's what many people think/want and if Nintendo wants to sell them consoles... they will need them. Sadly.
Is there anywhere the 3DS actually ISN'T the best-selling dedicated games machine?
While people worry about the "home console wars" as if it were still the '90s, 3DS is quietly sweeping the board everywhere.
That's why Nintendo isn't worried!
This is strange if the UK hates Nintendo and has bad taste in games like I have been told on this site by people then why is the 3DS sellng so well.
Because nobody in their right mind would buy a PSVita
Who the loveywuvy cares about the uk butter tooth sales? This is nintendolife.com a us web site not nintendolife.uk
Honestly if I wanted to see what over sea's sales were in a place that doesn't matter I would go to foreign web sites.
Watch the language -LZ
Uh - actually it is a British site. But us foreigners are welcome too. Nice folks, aren't they? They don't cuss out other countries and I believe they even serve tea at 4pm.
@kolz: This site is based in the UK
@kolz So ironic
@JaxonH Yes that's very "mature" of you so rather ignoring these immature idiot "Sony fanboys/MS fanboys" you speak of you and the Nintendo community do the same immature crap (as usual) "oh PS4/XB1 has no gamez" to others that isn't probably giving a damn of what you say just because you want to feel good to use some peer pressure vendetta to defend the Wii U LOL this comment was so pathetic I sadly had to comment. So if you send me a comment I won't reply because I just want to give my formal middle opinion.
@kolz Oh man have you just made yourself look incredibly dumb good job promoting the ignorant American stereotype makes me embarrassed to be half american.
@GunstarHero234
Didn't say I did anything. I was simply explaining why others might.
Don't shoot the messenger. And don't get mad when you dish it but can't take it either.
Love when people try to reduce me to a fanboy in THEIR mind, so they can feel justified about attacking rational logic. Yeah, I'm a Sony-hating fanboy that ya know, just owned every Sony console ever made and bought a Vita and PS4 at LAUNCH because I hate them SO much. The mere fact I own a Wii U negates everything else, and I'm automatically a Nintendo fanboy now. Fact is, I'm right. People are cutting PS4 no slack because people cut the Wii U no slack. That's what it is, like it or not. Maybe if you cared more about having fun and playing games, and stopped worrying what OTHER people think, you wouldn't rant against members every time you post.
***And for the record, you sure do throw a lot of insults against Nintendo fans (eg fanboys, immature "as always", etc.) You're lucky Nintendo fans are a tolerant group, cause I guarantee if you tried spewing half the crap you say on this site against Sony, on a Sony fan-site, you'd have been excommunicated long ago.
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