PlayStation 3 Outsells Everything Else In Japan Thanks To Yakuza Influence

The PlayStation 3 outsold the Wii and Xbox 360 in Japan this week. It also outsold the Nintendo DSi, PSP, DS Lite and PlayStation 2, not something we've seen happen too often...

...The bestselling hardware in Japan for the week of February 22nd to March 1st is...

* PlayStation 3 - 36,513
* Nintendo DSi - 35,827
* PSP - 35,588
* Wii - 17,876
* Xbox 360 - 11,795
* Nintendo DS Lite - 11,774
* PlayStation 2 - 5,099

[Cajun Chicken]

Not bad at all.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

I agree, not bad at all. Good for Sony!

On the other hand, this is one of those MS biased articles posted by Kotaku again! /sarcasm

[vhero]

great news for Sony and terrible news for MS who thought they finally broke Japan with Star Ocean IV but not even an exclusive JRPG could save them in the land of the rising sun.. They really should give up...

[theEnemy]

like what MGS4 did to the PS3 last June.

It almost took more than 50% of all sales!

The PS3 is very well alive with these kind of exclusives!

But for now, bring it to other regions Sega!

[FarEastOrient]

$400 PS3s outselling everything, that is surprising and the Yakuza 3 Special Edition PS3 is more than that too! I can't blame them, I'm a sucker for buying new consoles myself even though my old ones still work except for my three dead Xbox 360s.

[SiLeNt KNighT]

i thought the wii would start dying out a little sooner but we're starting see all those "The Wii is on pace to pass the PS2" articles fade along with the wiis sales numbers. excellent news for the ps3 and psp. those numbers are ridiculous! the 360 is doing ok...considering. but overall sony must feel pretty d@mn good right now. especially seeing the wii on top for so long. ps3 is set to dominate now. the numbers are going to start shifting in the US also. even with a lower install base of ps3's, Kz2 is going to shift A LOT of units over here and europe already knows whats up and ps3's dominate over there. i claimed it a while ago but ill say it again, by the end of '09 the big three gaming companies are going to shift roles dramatically! at least thats what my common sense crystal ball tells me.

[CobraKai]

Finally, some heat for Sony oughta put pressure on the other guys to really ramp up their game.

[Naucious]

I mean at first it was Nintendo dominating japan in the beginning and then Sony. Now this generation Nintendo again is back on top, and now it will soon be Sony, but this is only one week, im sure nintendo will come back on top again but for how long? Still amazing numbers for sony's PS3 outselling everything including handhelds, im not expecting it to happen another week though, but that would be great if it happens again. THis should bring some fire with Nintendo and MS and step up their game like quest crew did with beat freaks on ABDC lol yeah i watch that show all the time....

[Shaka2K6]

.

[Shadow Man]

.

[taco_tom237]

take that b!tches

[GWAVE]

Nice. Let's see if the sales last. Remember, one of the biggest (and most valid) criticisms of all those "OMG! 360 SOLD SO MANY UNITS IN JAPAN!!!!" articles is that the sales drop back down to zero just a few short weeks. The PS3 has been selling better, but let's only start celebrating when it can consistently sell better than the Wii.

[lalalala]

I agree, I hope it does. But personally I see PS3 outselling the Wii for atleast 3 weeks (inlcuding this week). Cos of Yakuza 3, RE5, also when FFVII: ACC hits (with FF13) demo, I wouldn't be surprised if it outsold the Wii.

Just wondering, do Japan get the Special Edition FF7 PS3, when the movie is released on blu-ray?

[Naucious]

if they were to recieve monster hunter from capcom then it would be for sure dominate but since its coming to the wii im sure wii will sky rocket again, look at what the psp version of monster hunter 2nd G did? amazing and only sold in japan... FF13 should come with a demo of vs. 13 so that way PS3 owners will know what they are expecting after the experience of FF13... that would be a smart idea just like they are doing with FF7:ACC and the demo of FF13...

[frayer]

bu bu but theflop box is $199.99

[Shadow Man]

a flop box outsold everything in Japan last week.

[arika]

you made yourself an idiot twice. first on the gamer zone and now on the open zone. xbox 360 was third place last week in japan behind dsi and psp. ps3 on the other hand beat everybody even the dsi and psp. get your facts straight before you post. ok.

[Max Power]

proof shadow?

[thereapersson]

Except for the fact that Yakuza has outsold SO4 almost 2:1 in Japan, so the game is obviously more popular

[Abash]

Yakuza 3 is a success, bring it to other regions

[PS3Freak]

I'm sure that we will get it, just not anytime soon.

[Narutone66]

with English subtitles. Demon's Soul is being released in Asia with a English subtitles and I'm thinking of getting it later on. I just got KZ2 and I think I'm going to be busy for a long time.

[lalalala]

@Narutone - Just fyi, Demon's Souls has apparently got English Voice acting in the Asian version of the game.

[patterson]

I'm certain it will come to NA and EU but when I wonder.

[RememberThe357]

that every report of japanese sales have completely different numbers.

[PirateThom]

It's because there's two main trackers in Japan - Famitsu and Media Crate.

[ps92117]

let me say it again 360 is dead in japan, the only reason it is still selling is because RE5 else it would be under ps2.

[Aclay]

The only reason the 360 is still selling is because of the JRPG's.... that's pretty much the only thing keeping the 360 alive in Japan.

After Final Fantasy XIII and Versus XIII comes out in Japan, I don't think we'll be hearing much about the 360 in the Far East for quite some time... or at least until another major JRPG comes out... like Lost Odyssey 2 or some other JRPG.

[soxfan2005]

The 360 is hardly dead in Japan. It is actually quite impressive that after 3 years on the market, it can still, on occasion, be the top selling console. 10,000+ sales per week in a small country like Japan is nothing to be ashamed of. ANYTHING that Microsoft gets from 360 in Japan is just a bonus - they are playing with house money there.

[2Negativecool]

Spin it sox SPIN IT!!

Yeaaaaaah!

[White-Sharingan]

@2Negativecool - I actually lol'ed in real life with your comment

bubbles

[macalatus]

@2Negativecool,

Ssssshh!!!

You don't want Sox to be puking all over N4G from too much spinnng, right? ;)

[Argento-Nox]

@soxfan2005

You know what's really amazing, the 360 hasn't reached a million units in Japan, even though it's going into it's 4th year.

[JOEdANGEL]

The 360 isn't dead any more than the PS3 is in Japan. Sure PS3 has a couple million more sales there, but the 360 continues to sell in small increments. I think microsoft already realizes they're not going to win Japan, but until that console starts selling less than a thousand a week, I wouldn't say it's dead.

edit: @above

Actually what's really amazing is that the PS3 is only two million ahead.

[soxfan2005]

I must have learned it from reading all the PS3 numbers spin that happens on this site.

[randomwiz]

Wasn't there an article like this before also?

[infekt]

Would you buy a Ford or a BMW? Quality wins. History proves it!

[Max Power]

that analogy has been beaten dead three or four times.

[cryymoar]

the question should be, which one would you rather have?
because most cannot afford a BMW.

[Shnazzyone]

Okay... japan sales do not matter.

These numbers serve as little more then a worthless pat on the back for sony kids.

[PirateThom]

US sales don't matter either, because I don't live there.

Sales don't matter in general anyway, be they Japanese or US.

[arika]

to me SALES doesn't matter it's the QUALITY of games that matter.

[RememberThe357]

Japan is the third largest market behind the UK. Thats pretty important. If Japan didn't matter people would do business there.

But you go ahead and think that the US is the only market on earth...

[Aclay]

"Okay... japan sales do not matter"

Japanese sales don't matter? That's ridiculous. The PS3 has sold over 2.5 Million consoles in Japan, and obviously those numbers play a part in overall sales.

Console Sales in Japan may not look like U.S. or European sales on a weekly or monthly basis, but they do add up.

If you think Japanese sales don't matter, just wait until FFXIII is released, then you'll be a believer.

[arika]

reality check. we are all gamers here and not sales analyst that get paid the big bucks. i do have something to say to SEGA and SQUARE though....give us YAKUZA 3 and FF13 NOW we demand it!

[PS3Freak]

Americans.... oh so ignorant. Too bad us canadians have to live right next door to them.

[raptorjacob]

thats not nice to make fun of other countries, especially since people could find numerous ways to make fun of canada

[boodybandit]

Your response is the definition of ignorance. One could also say you are a hypocrite as well. Or even find it ironic. See what I did there?

[PS3Freak]

Go ahead make fun of canada everyone knows that we suck. At least we aren't like American and beleive that we own the damn world.

I fail to see how my post was in any way ignorant.

[Monkey521]

Please stop arguing over this crap. It's true that there are many ignorant Americans, but to generalize ignorance to one country is beyond childish. Get over yourselves.

[Britney Spears]

damage control,japan does matter. even if it's a small market it does matter and can make a difference. no one market is important,it has to be multiple markets. i see ps3 outselling wii next week too due to re5 and the week after that i also see it winning over wii.

[Erotic Sheep]

Now that you're becoming hot again.... will you marry me? >_>

[Chubear]

JPN will EXPLODE!

... actually, if GT5 comes out this year.. damn, it'll be bloody on the streets.

[SpitFireAce85]

PS3 starting to gain some ground over the wii.And no price
cut yet wait till we see 100$ price cut.299$ for a PS3 or less
thats when you will see the PS3 start to pull some PS2 NPDs.

[ChickeyCantor]

Actually im also scared of Monster hunter and DragonQuest for the Wii.
It will be one epic battle between the two.

[spunnups]

Games = Sales...imagine what a price drop would do....

[TheHater]

wrong.
Final Fantasy, insert any random JRPG's, GT, Gundam, RE, and Yakuza + Price = pure chaos in Japan

[Lawliet]

You think the name of Yakuza, FinalFantasy, ResidentEvil are the only big titles in japan? Your mistaken. 1 title rule them all, and that's GUNDAM! Gundam = Halo in Japan. Any crap games with Gundam sells.

Release an exclusive Gundam Dynasty Warrior. That should wipe the floor clean in Japan. Then release a Gundam RPG. That should finish off the competition once and for all. It's that obvious...

[Arkham]

Agreed -- I would expect 360 sales to drastically spike when that XBLA Virutal-On is released.

[deckard579]

going on 10yrs now and ps2 is still selling...now that is amazing.

[thereapersson]

It even outsold the Nintendo DSi. That's quite impressive!

[Zeus Lee]

Outselling all Nintendo consoles isn't something you see too often.

Sony,please take note of this temporary victory;More G-A-M-E-S=More Console sales.

Cut the price,M-A-R-K-E-T your games,and you're going to give Nintendo something to be concerned about.

[Traveler]

Wow, that's impressive. Beating the Wii AND the DSi...

The PS3 deserves to sell well; it is an amazing console.

[Traveler]

The PS3 more than doubled the sales of the Wii. Now that's impressive!

[MmaFanQc]

beat the dsi NAD the wii......DAYUM!!!

[ApocalypseShadow]

"sony outsold nintendo in japan by almost 2:1?

nope.

"sony outsold microsoft in japan by 3:1?

nope.

but yes....YES!!.let's all laugh at square for f#cking up this gen.all that money lost by supporting 360.the revenue they could have generated could have been astonishing.

supporting 360 to create a more even race has not helped them.they had better be happy that there are those that are still waiting for ffxiii demo next month.but....

f#ck square.and.... awsome job sony and sega.awsome job.

apocalypse...............

[N4G_Dude]

good 4 sony

[Argento-Nox]

This is just going to be followed up by RE5 and FF Advent Children. Sony seems to be on a decent sales streak of late, which is a good sign for core gamers.

[Superduper09]

I totally agree with you. RE5 will push both PS3 and 360 hardware sales whereas FFVII Advent Children Complete will push the pS3 hardware sales around April.

Anyway this is good news for Sony.

[Obama]

Why is the 360 full of fail???

[-x.Red.x-]

bu buh but... 3fixmes win in teh Us!101

and most xbots don't know they're something outside of the us....

[ssumpy]

xbox sold over 11 thousand how many of them were bought due to the machine
failing on them
GO SONY GO

[Power_Of_Flops_]

But but but... the 360 has Too Human, Banjo and Halo Barbie Girl :'(

[demoneyeslaharl]

Sony are nothing but a bunch of criminals! They were outsold by the 360 because of Star OCean, now they try and bully consumers to getting PS3s using criminal elements! Yes, Yakuza! I'm looking at you!

Oh, and dead people too... though 360 uses them too.

(Can't wait for Yakuza 3 in the US)

[miamikid]

Good news for sony but i hear the footsteps of stampeeding exbots coming in!

[maspi]

wow!great numbers for ps3.Yes! sony was right!ps3 is future proof.and now ps3 sells are increasing,thanks to yakuza too.Now Ps3 outsell Wii and DSi.Ps3 and yakuza overwhelm xbox360 and StarOcean4 jap sells.RE5 jap ps3 4:1 xbox360.and when Fumito Ueda San will show his masterpiece... boom!

[creeping judas]

with Japan being such a populated country (so much more then the Americas), why aren't the sales for all consoles higher then in the States and Canada??

or am I wrong thinking that North American sales are higher then Japan sales?

[pilotpistolpete]

Japan has a pop. of around 127M. US is around 300M and Canada 33M.

[creeping judas]

Wow, I don't know why I was under the impression that they had a population larger then North America??

Thanks for the clarification, + bubbles.

[Th3 Chr0nic]

Like a million times so whats the big deal.....

[jrsenkbe]

By the end of the year will have taken over M$ on WW sales and be closing the gap on the Wii now that people realize its a fad.

[Zool 08]

I'd like to see what damage KZ2 has done, I know its destroyed everything in europe thus far.

[bigjclassic]

Momentum is sony's best friend in japan right now. Soon FFVII Advent children will be coming to PS3 in Japan and that's is going to spike sales for PS3.

Dont worry Nintendo fans, MH3, DQIX and X will keep the Wii well ahead of the japanese competition. As MH and DQ rival FF in japan.

[nothere413]

Wow...

Those Japanese certainly love games where you can F**k people, don't they?

[MmaFanQc]

now, all you need is make FF13 exclusive on the 360.

square-enix know how to run their buisness.

/sarcasm

[eagle21]

PERIOD.

[Th3 Chr0nic]

lol the 360 has a couple good weeks in Japan and all the PS3 fans start freaking out...so of course now this is huge news all of the sudden. its ok guys you can stop shaking in your littlebigPants

[ChickeyCantor]

Once FF13VS+FF13/FF:CC:CB(Wii) And DragonQuest are released in japan...i wonder what would happen to MS...Seriously im not hating here...lets be honest XD

[seansteel31metal]

THE DAY IS COMING WHEN THE PS3 WILL BE OUT SELLING EVERYTHING JUST GIVE IT SOME TIME