copy-pasted from the mtv blog post. this guy has been doing this for close to a year now. i really enjoy looking at them every month. anyway, here it is...

You’re looking at a screenshot of a Wii game that was in heavier rotation last month than just about anything else on the system. That’s “Call of Duty: World at War” for the Wii, which was played more than six hours per player in March. Think on that and look below for MTV Multiplayer’s newest listing of Wii game usage. We’re tracking more than 50 games as played by a pool of over two million Wii owners. Forget sales for a moment and find out just how much people actually play these games.

WII SOFTWARE USAGE AS OF APRIL 1, 2009

The following statistics are pulled from the Wii’s Nintendo Channel, which allows users to persistently share their play history for any disc or downloadable games played on the Wii. These numbers do not reflect overall usage of these games on the Wii but instead reflect usage of the more than 2.1 million Americans who are sharing info with the channel (up from 2 million last month). We think that’s a pretty healthy sample size!

Games are ranked in order of average play time. The game we’re tracking that has been played the longest by its average user is at the top of this list.

If there are more games you want us to track, let me know!

Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Released March 2008)
Current Rank: #1 Last Month’s Rank: #1

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 65 hours, 42 minutes (up 61 minutes)
As of 3/1: 64 hours, 41 minutes
As of 2/1: 64 hours, 17 minutes
As of 1/1: 64 hours, 51 minutes
As of 12/1: 64 hours, 10 minutes
As of 11/2: 62 hours, 44 minutes
As of 10/5: 61 hours, 24 minutes
As of 9/1: 59 hours 59 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 29.04 sessions (up .71 sessions )
As of 3/1: 28.33 sessions
As of 2/1: 27.96 sessions
As of 1/1: 27.97 sessions
As of 12/1: 27.38 sessions
As of 11/2: 26.40 sessions
As of 10/5: 25.54 sessions
As of 9/1: 24.65 sessions

Analysis:”Smash” stays on top. No game gets played more per person who owns or rents it. But look below and you’ll see that “Animal Crossing” has a shot of catching it. It will be a while, but it’s possible.

***

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Released October 2007)
Current Rank: #2 Last Month’s Rank: #2

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 57 hours, 35 minutes (down 4 minutes)
As of 3/1: 57 hours, 39 minutes
As of 2/1: 57 hours, 51 minutes
As of 1/1: 58 hours, 41 minutes
As of 12/1: 58 hours, 31 minutes
As of 11/2: 57 hours, 46 minutes
As of 10/5: 57 hours, 7 minutes
As of 9/1: 56 hours, 30 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 34.01 sessions (up .13 sessions )
As of 3/1: 33.88 sessions
As of 2/1: 33.86 sessions
As of 1/1: 34.20 sessions
As of 12/1: 33.89 sessions
As of 11/2: 33.20 sessions
As of 10/5: 32.65 sessions
As of 9/1: 32 (est.)

Analysis: The playing time numbers for this game continue to drift downward, while the figures for its sequel, “Guitar Hero: World Tour” continue to rise.

***

The Legend OF Zelda: Twilight Princess (Released November 2006)
Current Rank: #3 Last Month’s Rank: #3

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 45 hours, 55 minutes (down 2 minutes)
As of 3/1: 45 hours, 57 minutes
As of 2/1: 46 hours, 5 minutes
As of 1/1: 46 hours, 29 minutes
As of 12/1: 46 hours, 38 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 19.68 sessions (down .03 sessions )
As of 3/1: 19.71 sessions
As of 2/1: 19.77 sessions
As of 1/1: 19.98 sessions
As of 12/1: 20.05 sessions

Analysis:This game holds steady, which means that the two below it have a good shot at passing it soon.

***

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn (November 2007)
Current Rank: #4 Last Month’s Rank: #4

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 44 hours, 59 minutes (up 35 minutes)
As of 3/1: 44 hours, 24 minutes
As of 2/1: 43 hours, 58 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 16.38 sessions (up .22 sessions )
As of 3/1: 16.16 sessions
As of 2/1: 16.0 sessions

Analysis: I own this game. I beat this game. It does take more than 40 hours to complete. But I’ve also never gone back to playing it since I finished it.  So why do people keep pushing the average playing time of this one up?

***

Animal Crossing: City Folk (Released November 2008)
Current Rank: #5 Last Month’s Rank: #5

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 42 hours, 51 minutes (up 484 minutes)
As of 3/1: 34 hours, 47 minutes
As of 2/1: 27 hours, 50 minutes
As of 1/1: 24 hours, 59 minutes
As of 12/1: 15 hours, 22 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 18.91 sessions (up 4.03 sessions)
As of 3/1: 14.88 sessions
As of 2/1: 11.56 sessions
As of 1/1: 9.91 sessions
As of 12/1: 5.3 sessions

Analysis: Another month. Another extraordinary jump in average playing time. No game gets its hooks in its owners like “Animal Crossing.”

***

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga (November 2007)
Current Rank: #6 Last Month’s Rank: #6

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 35 hours, 11 minutes (up 55 minutes)
As of 3/1: 34 hours, 16 minutes
As of 2/1: 33 hours, 38 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 15.49 sessions (up .43 sessions )
As of 3/1: 15.06 sessions
As of 2/1: 14.76 sessions

Analysis: People are playing this game for far longer than it takes to complete it. Credit the family-friendly design that keeps people coming back.

***

Wii Sports (Released November 2006)
Current Rank: #7 Last Month’s Rank: #7

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 34 hours, 32 minutes (up 24 minutes)
As of 3/1: 34 hours, 8 minutes
As of 2/1: 33 hours, 59 minutes
As of 1/1: 34 hours, 47 minutes
As of 12/1: 35 hours, 23 minutes
As of 11/2: 35 hours, 4 minutes
As of 10/5: 34 hours, 45 minutes
As of 9/1: 34 hours, 25 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 27.60 sessions (up .22 sessions)
As of 3/1: 27.38 sessions
As of 2/1: 27.40 sessions
As of 1/1: 28.38 sessions
As of 12/1: 29.04 sessions
As of 11/2: 28.9 sessions
As of 10/5: 28.72 sessions
As of 9/1: 28.56

Analysis: No matter how many Wiis people buy — all of which come with “Wii Sports” — people keep playing this game more. As of April 1, the 2.1 million Wii owners contributing stats to the Nintendo Channel (from where I draw all this data) had played “Wii Sports” for more than 74 million hours.

***

Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World (November 2008)
Current Rank: #8 Last Month’s Rank: #8

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 33 hours, 31 minutes (up 114 minutes)
As of 3/1: 31 hours, 37 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 10.64 sessions (up.86 sessions)
As of 3/1: 9.78 sessions

Analysis: A big jump in playing time for one of the few dedicated single-player releases of the fall of 2008.

***

Call of Duty: World At War (Released November 2008)
Current Rank: #9 Last Month’s Rank: #13

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 31 hours, 9 minutes (up 382 minutes)
As of 3/1: 24 hours, 47 minutes
As of 2/1: 19 hours, 40 minutes
As of 1/1: 19 hours, 15 minutes
As of 12/1: 14 hours, 30 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 13.19 sessions (up 2.81 sessions)
As of 3/1: 10.28 sessions
As of 2/1: 7.98 sessions
As of 1/1: 7.40 sessions
As of 12/1: 5.22 sessions

Analysis: Study this one, folks. Most of the attention for the “Call of Duty: World at War” brand was on the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions. But the Wii game, thanks assumedly to its multiplayer modes, more relevant month after month for its owners than any other game this side of “Animal Crossing.”

***

*NEW ENTRY* Rock Band 2 (Released December 2008)
Current Rank: #10 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 29 hours, 36 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 13.27 sessions

Analysis: How’s this for a debut? “Rock Band 2″ players are already spending more time with the game than they did with “Rock Band.” Either that’s a misprint or “Rock Band 2″ is proving to be a lot more interesting to the people who buy and rent the game than the first one did.

***

Mario Kart Wii (Released April 2008)
Current Rank: #11 Last Month’s Rank: #10

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 29 hours, 1 minutes (up 69 minutes)
As of 3/1: 27 hours, 52 minutes
As of 2/1: 27 hours, 8 minutes
As of 1/1: 27 hours, 17 minutes
As of 12/1: 26 hours, 49 minutes
As of 11/2: 25 hours, 47 minutes
As of 10/5: 24 hours, 48 minutes
As of 9/1: 23 hours 42 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 17.29 sessions (up .81 sessions)
As of 3/1: 16.48 sessions
As of 2/1: 15.95 sessions
As of 1/1: 15.90 sessions
As of 12/1: 15.44 sessions
As of 11/2: 14.61 sessions
As of 10/5: 13.86 sessions
As of 9/1: 13.1 sessions

Analysis: “Mario Kart” falls one notch in the rankings this month, thanks to “Rock Band 2″ finally charting.

***

Rock Band (Released June 2008)
Current Rank: #12 Last Month’s Rank: #9

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 28 hours, 53 minutes (up 38 minutes)
As of 3/1: 28 hours, 15 minutes
As of 2/1: 27 hours, 52 minutes
As of 1/1: 28 hours, 55 minutes
As of 12/1: 28 hours, 34 minutes
As of 11/2: 26 hours, 40 minutes
As of 10/5: 24 hours, 43 minutes
As of 9/1: 22 hours 37 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 16.13 sessions (up .64 sessions)
As of 3/1: 15.49 sessions
As of 2/1: 15.04 sessions
As of 1/1: 15.41 sessions
As of 12/1: 14.94 sessions
As of 11/2: 13.46 sessions
As of 10/5: 12.05 sessions
As of 9/1: 10.52 sessions

Analysis: Already passed in average playing time by its sequel.

***

Madden NFL 08 (Released August 2007)
Current Rank: #13 Last Month’s Rank: #11

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 27 hours, 28 minutes (up 12 minutes)
As of 3/1: 27 hours, 16 minutes
As of 2/1: 27 hours, 0 minutes
As of 1/1: 26 hours, 49 minutes
As of 12/1: 26 hours, 27 minutes
As of 11/2: 26 hours, 1 minute

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 15.34 sessions (up .16 sessions)
As of 3/1: 15.18 sessions
As of 2/1: 15.01 sessions
As of 1/1: 14.85 sessions
As of 12/1: 14.6 sessions
As of 11/2: 14.33 sessions

Analysis: Still getting more playing time, and still one of the few sports games I’m tracking (think I’m missing anything that would be performing better?).

***

Super Mario Galaxy (Released November 2007)
Current Rank: #14 Last Month’s Rank:#12

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 26 hours, 55 minutes (up 15 minutes)
As of 3/1: 26 hours, 40 minutes
As of 2/1: 26 hours, 31 minutes
As of 1/1: 26 hours, 35 minutes
As of 12/1: 26 hours, 25 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 13.92 sessions (up .15 sessions)
As of 3/1: 13.77 sessions
As of 2/1: 13.68 sessions
As of 1/1: 13.69 sessions
As of 12/1: 13.57 sessions

Analysis: Here’s a thought. Look at the stagnation of the average playing time here, which is similar to that of “The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess.” Compare that to the still-healthy increases in playing time for “Lego Star Wars.” What’s that tell you?

***

Guitar Hero: World Tour (Released October 2008)
Current Rank: #15 Last Month’s Rank: #16

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 26 hours, 34 minutes (up 191 minutes)
As of 3/1: 23 hours, 23 minutes
As of 2/1: 20 hours, 14 minutes
As of 1/1: 19 hours, 46 minutes
As of 12/1: 19 hours, 55 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 12.96 sessions (up 2.12 sessions)
As of 3/1: 10.84 sessions
As of 2/1: 8.91 sessions
As of 1/1: 8.43 sessions
As of 12/1: 7.86 sessions

Analysis: In time, this game may catch its predecessor, “Guitar Hero III,” but it’s not even halfway there yet.

***

MySims (September 2007)
Current Rank: #16 Last Month’s Rank: #14

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 24 hours, 23 minutes (up 13 minutes)
As of 3/1: 24 hours, 10 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 10.27 sessions (up .12 sessions)
As of 3/1: 10.15 sessions

Analysis:A small boost in playing time doesn’t prevent “My Sims” from dropping a couple of notches on this list.

***

Super Paper Mario (April 2007)
Current Rank: #17 Last Month’s Rank: #15

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1:23 hours, 59 minutes (up 3 minutes)
As of 3/1: 23 hours, 56 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 11.02 sessions (up .03 sessions)
As of 3/1: 10.99 sessions

Analysis: Stagnant.

***

LEGO Indiana Jones (June 2008)
Current Rank: #18 Last Month’s Rank: #17

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 22 hours, 48 minutes (up 34 minutes)
As of 3/1: 22 hours, 14 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 9.39 sessions (up .33 sessions)
As of 3/1: 9.06 sessions

Analysis: As seen with “Star Wars,” the “Lego” design keeps people playing long-term.

***

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Released August 2007)
Current Rank: #19 Last Month’s Rank: #18

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 21 hours, 23 minutes (up 3 minutes)
As of 3/1: 21 hours, 20 minutes
As of 2/1: 21 hours, 19 minutes
As of 1/1: 21 hours, 23 minutes
As of 12/1: 21 hours, 23 minutes
As of 11/2: 21 hours, 17 minutes
As of 10/5: 21 hours, 14 minutes
As of 9/1: 21 hours, 11 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 9.94 sessions (up .03 sessions)
As of 3/1: 9.91 sessions
As of 2/1: 9.90 sessions
As of 1/1: 9.94 sessions
As of 12/1: 9.92 sessions
As of 11/2: 9.88 sessions
As of 10/5: 9.84 sessions
As of 9/1: 9.82 sessions

Analysis: No movement.

***

Madden All-Play (Released August 2008)
Current Rank: #20 Last Month’s Rank: #21

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 20 hours, 33 minutes (up 60 minutes)
As of 3/1: 19 hours, 33 minutes
As of 2/1: 18 hours, 38 minutes
As of 1/1: 19 hours, 31 minutes
As of 12/1: 18 hours, 14 minutes
As of 11/2: 15 hours, 18 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 10.58 sessions (up .67 sessions)
As of 3/1: 9.91 sessions
As of 2/1: 9.33 sessions
As of 1/1: 9.58 sessions
As of 12/1: 8.86 sessions
As of 11/2: 7.3 sessions

Analysis: “Madden 09 All-Play” hasn’t caught its predecessor but is still racking up a nice amount of play time per owner each month. Clearly, the people who have this game like the “All-Play” format.

***

Okami (Released April 2008)
Current Rank: #21 Last Month’s Rank: #19

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 20 hours, 25 minutes (up 25 minutes)
As of 3/1: 20 hours, 00 minutes
As of 2/1: 19 hours, 44 minutes
As of 1/1: 19 hours, 43 minutes
As of 12/1: 19 hours, 31 minutes
As of 11/2: 18 hours, 56 minutes
As of 10/5: 18 hours, 28 minutes
As of 9/1: 17 hours, 51 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 7.94 sessions (up .18 sessions)
As of 3/1: 7.76 sessions
As of 2/1: 7.64 sessions
As of 1/1: 7.64 sessions
As of 12/1: 7.54 sessions
As of 11/2: 7.32 sessions
As of 10/5: 7.12 sessions
As of 9/1: 6.9 sessions

Analysis:Getting higher, bit by bit. This game isn’t stuck yet.

***

*NEW ENTRY* Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution 2 (October 2008)
Current Rank: #22 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 20 hours, 21 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 9.9 sessions

Analysis: A new entry added at a reader’s request. Not a bad average playing time.

***

Mario Party 8 (May 2007)
Current Rank: #23 Last Month’s Rank: #20

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 20 hours, 10 minutes (up 11 minutes)
As of 3/1: 19 hours, 59 minutes
As of 2/1: 19 hours, 52 minutes
As of 1/1: 19 hours, 52 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 11.46 sessions (up .11 sessions)
As of 3/1: 11.35 sessions
As of 2/1: 11.28 sessions
As of 1/1: 11.27 sessions

Analysis: Are these good numbers for a party game? Or are they bad, considering that “Guitar Hero” and “Wii Sports” might be the standards for games that do get played at parties.

***

Pokemon Battle Revolution (June 2007)
Current Rank: #24 Last Month’s Rank: #22

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 19 hours, 30 minutes (up 9 minutes)
As of 3/1: 19 hours, 21 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 11.89 sessions (up .13 sessions)
As of 3/1: 11.76 sessions

Analysis: Minor movement here.

***

*NEW ENTRY* Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution (October 2007)
Current Rank: #25 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 18 hours, 32 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 11.46 sessions

Analysis:Another new entry due to reader request and another game, like “Rock Band,” that has already seen its average playing time surpassed by its recent sequel.

***

Wii Fit (Released May 2008)
Current Rank: #26 Last Month’s Rank: #23

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 16 hours, 52 minutes (up 37 minutes)
As of 3/1: 16 hours, 15 minutes
As of 2/1: 15 hours, 52 minutes
As of 1/1: 16 hours, 15 minutes
As of 12/1: 16 hours, 16 minutes
As of 11/2: 15 hours, 41 minutes
As of 10/5: 15 hours, 26 minutes
As of 9/1: 14 hours, 26 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 13.61 sessions (up .65 sessions)
As of 3/1: 12.96 sessions
As of 2/1: 12.61 sessions
As of 1/1: 13.0 sessions
As of 12/1: 12.84 sessions
As of 11/2: 12.09 sessions
As of 10/5: 11.33 sessions
As of 9/1: 10.59 sessions

Analysis: This is a better increase in playing time than I’ve seen for a while. Could it be that people are finally committing to using this game long-term? Maybe the New Year’s Resolution people have that kind of dedication.

***

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Released September 2008)
Current Rank: #27 Last Month’s Rank: #24

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 13 hours, 48 minutes (up 21 minutes)
As of 3/1: 13 hours, 27 minutes
As of 2/1: 13 hours, 9 minutes
As of 1/1: 13 hours, 33 minutes
As of 12/1: 13 hours, 30 minutes
As of 11/2: 12 hours, 33 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.42 sessions (up .27 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.15 sessions
As of 2/1: 5.92 sessions
As of 1/1: 5.97 sessions
As of 12/1: 5.82 sessions
As of 11/2: 5.17 sessions

Analysis: Some movement. Nothing noteworthy.

***

Sonic Unleashed (Released November 2008)
Current Rank: #28 Last Month’s Rank: #26

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 13 hours, 15 minutes (up 47 minutes)
As of 3/1: 12 hours, 28 minutes
As of 2/1: 11 hours, 24 minutes
As of 12/1: 11 hours, 4 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.70 sessions (up .63 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.07 sessions
As of 2/1: 5.25 sessions
As of 12/1: 4.61 sessions

Analysis: This game’s stats continue to puzzle me. Not having played “Sonic Unleashed,” I can’t tell you why people would continue to inch this game’s average play time up. Is the game longer than the numbers indicate? Or does this game have some replay value that keeps gamers coming back?

***

Boom Blox (Released May 2008)
Current Rank: #29 Last Month’s Rank: #25

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 12 hours, 56 minutes (up 17 minutes)
As of 3/1: 12 hours, 39 minutes
As of 2/1: 12 hours, 26 minutes
As of 1/1: 12 hours, 25 minutes
As of 12/1: 12 hours, 15 minutes
As of 11/2: 11 hours, 53 minutes
As of 10/5: 11 hours, 32 minutes
As of 9/1: 11 hours, 8 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.49 sessions (up .22 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.27 sessions
As of 2/1: 6.11 sessions
As of 1/1: 6.04 sessions
As of 12/1: 5.9 sessions
As of 11/2: 5.65 sessions
As of 10/5: 5.41 sessions
As of 9/1: 5.16 sessions

Analysis: Almost a year since this game’s release, its had slow and steady playing time growth. It’s a solid performer.

***

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith (Released June 2008)
Current Rank: #30 Last Month’s Rank: #27

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 12 hours, 31 minutes (up 9 minutes)
As of 3/1: 12 hours, 22 minutes
As of 2/1: 12 hours, 15 minutes
As of 1/1: 12 hours, 31 minutes
As of 12/1: 12 hours, 24 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 8.31 sessions (up .22 sessions)
As of 3/1: 8.09 sessions
As of 2/1: 7.93 sessions
As of 1/1: 8.00 sessions
As of 12/1: 7.79 sessions

Analysis: For a “Guitar Hero” spin-off, this game has some good numbers.

***

Skate It (November 2008)
Current Rank: #31 Last Month’s Rank: #30

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 12 hours, 6 minutes (up 83 minutes)
As of 3/1: 10 hours, 43 minutes
As of 2/1: 9 hours, 19 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.92 sessions (up 1.0 sessions)
As of 3/1: 5.92 sessions
As of 2/1: 4.9 sessions

Analysis:This game, which garnered little attention by the press, posted a nice increase in average play time for March. It appears that people who have this game like playing it a lot.

***

No More Heroes (Released January 2008)
Current Rank: #32 Last Month’s Rank: #28

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 11 hours, 35 minutes (up 3 minutes)
As of 3/1: 11 hours, 32 minutes
As of 2/1: 11 hours, 32 minutes
As of 1/1: 11 hours, 35 minutes
As of 12/1: 11 hours, 35 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 5.52 sessions (up .04 sessions)
As of 3/1: 5.48 sessions
As of 2/1: 5.46 sessions
As of 1/1: 5.47 sessions
As of 12/1: 5.46 sessions

Analysis: Frozen.

***

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games (January 2008)
Current Rank: #33 Last Month’s Rank: #29

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 11 hours, 3 minutes (up 10 minutes)
As of 3/1: 10 hours, 53 minutes
As of 2/1: 10 hours, 46 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 8.35 sessions (up .16 sessions)
As of 3/1: 8.19 sessions
As of 2/1: 8.09 sessions

Analysis: Not showing much replay value.

***

*NEW ENTRY* Zack and Wiki: The quest for Barbaros’ Treasure (October 2007)
Current Rank: #34 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 10 hours, 50 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 5.91 sessions

Analysis: Here’s a new entry of everyone’s favorite neglected Wii game. Hey, at least the people who bought it played it a bit. I finished it and think that the playing time here seems about the right amount to get throug it. Unless I’m remembering wrong. It’s been a while.

***

Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 (Released November 2007)
Current Rank: #35 Last Month’s Rank: #31

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 10 hours, 46 minutes (up 9 minutes)
As of 3/1: 10 hours, 37 minutes
As of 2/1: 10 hours, 30 minutes
As of 1/1: 10 hours, 23 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.95 sessions (up .12 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.83 sessions
As of 2/1: 6.74 sessions
As of 1/1: 6.65 sessions

Analysis:Another party game with static numbers. That’s no good.

***

Sonic and the Secret Rings (February 2007)
Current Rank: #36 Last Month’s Rank: #32

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 10 hours, 11 minutes (up 5 minutes)
As of 3/1: 10 hours, 6 minutes
As of 2/1: 10 hours, 5 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.97 sessions (up .06 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.91 sessions
As of 2/1: 6.88 sessions

Analysis: Sonic’s not moving here. And what’s that right below this entry?

***

*NEW ENTRY* Sonic and the Black Knight (March 2009)
Current Rank: #37 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 10 hours, 6 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 4.41 sessions

Analysis: Look at this. Our newest Sonic game is already clocking in at just five minutes less playing time than its predecessor. Interesting.

***

Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles (Released November 2007)
Current Rank: #38 Last Month’s Rank: #33

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 9 hours, 56 minutes (up 4 minutes)
As of 3/1: 9 hours, 52 minutes
As of 2/1: 9 hours, 50 minutes
As of 1/1: 9 hours, 50 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.32 sessions (up .04 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.28 sessions
As of 2/1: 6.25 sessions
As of 1/1: 6.25 sessions

Analysis: Light-gun games never get better numbers on this list.

***

Wii Play (Released February 2007)
Current Rank: #39 Last Month’s Rank: #34

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 9 hours, 41 minutes (up 8 minutes)
As of 3/1: 9 hours, 33 minutes
As of 2/1: 9 hours, 30 minutes
As of 1/1: 9 hours, 44 minutes
As of 12/1: 9 hours, 45 minutes
As of 11/2: 9 hours, 36 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 10.29 sessions (up .12 sessions)
As of 3/1: 10.17 sessions
As of 2/1: 10.13 sessions
As of 1/1: 10.38 sessions
As of 12/1: 10.42 sessions
As of 11/2: 10.28 sessions

Analysis: Inching back up to the numbers it used to have.

***

*NEW ENTRY* Endless Ocean (January 2008)
Current Rank: #40 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 9 hours, 24 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 5.32 sessions

Analysis: I added this personal favorite of mine to these monthly stats, just to see how it fares. Based on the average play time compared to the average sessions, it looks like people were playing this game for almost two hours per sitting. Because they treated it like a hardcore game? Or because they were mesmerized by diving amid virtual sea life? I could buy either explanation.

***

Carnival Games (Released August 2007)
Current Rank: #41 Last Month’s Rank: #35

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 9 hours, 7 minutes (up 6 minutes)
As of 3/1: 9 hours, 1 minutes
As of 2/1: 8 hours, 56 minutes
As of 1/1: 8 hours, 55 minutes
As of 12/1: 8 hours, 48 minutes
As of 11/2: 8 hours, 37 minutes
As of 10/5: 8 hours, 30 minutes
As of 9/1: 8 hours, 21 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.83 sessions (up .10 sessions)
As of 3/1: 6.73 sessions
As of 2/1: 6.64 sessions
As of 1/1: 6.59 sessions
As of 12/1: 6.48 sessions
As of 11/2: 6.31 sessions
As of 10/5: 6.19 sessions
As of 9/1: 6.07 sessions

Analysis: No movement.

***

Wii Music (Released October 2008)
Current Rank: #42 Last Month’s Rank: #36

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 8 hours, 15 minutes (up 37 minutes)
As of 3/1: 7 hours, 38 minutes
As of 2/1: 6 hours, 58
As of 1/1: 7 hours, 3 minutes
As of 12/1: 7 hours, 28 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 5.68 sessions (up .64 sessions)
As of 3/1: 5.04 sessions
As of 2/1: 4.38 sessions
As of 1/1: 4.08 sessions
As of 12/1: 4.05 sessions

Analysis:Poor “Wii Music,” hanging out near the bottom of this list. But at least it is still getting a decent amount of playing time per month.

***

Wario Land: Shake It (Released September 2008)
Current Rank: #43 Last Month’s Rank: #37

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 8 hours, 4 minutes (up 41 minutes)
As of 3/1: 7 hours, 23 minutes
As of 2/1: 6 hours, 49 minutes
As of 1/1: 6 hours, 49 minutes
As of 12/1: 6 hours, 45 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 4.61 sessions (up .33 sessions)
As of 3/1: 4.28 sessions
As of 2/1: 4.0 sessions
As of 1/1: 3.95 sessions
As of 12/1: 3.9 sessions

Analysis: Can anyone explain the sudden surge in this game’s numbers over the last two months?

***

*NEW ENTRY* de Blob (September 2008)
Current Rank: #44 Last Month’s Rank: NA

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 7 hours, 31 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 3.93 sessions

Analysis: A new entry with some less than wonderful playing time numbers. I played it for several hours, but haven’t gone back in months. I’m not sure how long it takes to finish it and can’t say how far it seems that people are getting in it.

***

Cooking Mama Cook Off (Released March 2007)
Current Rank: #45 Last Month’s Rank: #38

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 6 hours, 59 minutes (up 4 minutes)
As of 3/1: 6 hours, 55 minutes
As of 2/1: 6 hours, 53 minutes
As of 1/1: 6 hours, 56 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 6.01 sessions (up .08 sessions)
As of 3/1: 5.93 sessions
As of 2/1: 5.88 sessions
As of 1/1: 5.89 sessions

Analysis: I thought “Cooking Mama” was popular, but not enough for people to play it a lot once they have it, I guess.

***

Ghost Squad (Released October 2007)
Current Rank: #46 Last Month’s Rank: #39

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 6 hours, 37 minutes (up 3 minutes)
As of 3/1: 6 hours, 34 minutes
As of 2/1: 6 hours, 30 minutes
As of 1/1: 6 hours, 28 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 5.28 sessions (up .05 sessions)
As of 3/1: 5.23 sessions
As of 2/1: 5.18 sessions
As of 1/1: 5.16 sessions

Analysis:Light-gun games don’t move their numbers.

***

Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party (November 2008)
Current Rank: #47 Last Month’s Rank: #40

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 6 hours, 25 minutes (up 28 minutes)
As of 3/1: 5 hours, 57 minutes
As of 2/1: 5 hours, 25 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 4.01 sessions (up .37 sessions)
As of 3/1: 3.64 sessions
As of 2/1: 3.2 sessions

Analysis:An okay increase, but another party game that doesn’t seem to get a ton of play.

***

House of the Dead 2 and 3: The Return (Released March 2008)
Current Rank: #48 Last Month’s Rank: #41

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 5 hours, 37 minutes (up 7 minutes)
As of 3/1: 5 hours, 30 minutes
As of 2/1: 5 hours, 23 minutes
As of 12/1: 5 hours, 18 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 4.65 sessions (up .11 sessions)
As of 3/1: 4.54 sessions
As of 2/1: 4.45 sessions
As of 12/1: 4.38 sessions

Analysis: What has me worried is that its fun and profane 2009 sequel, “The House of the Dead: Overkill” still doesn’t have any stats listed on the Nintendo Channel for me to pull — often a sign of a game not getting much play from its owners yet.

***

Link’s Crossbow Training (Released November 2007)
Current Rank: #49 Last Month’s Rank: #42

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 4 hours, 47 minutes (up 5 minutes)
As of 3/1: 4 hours, 42 minutes
As of 2/1: 4 hours, 39 minutes
As of 1/1: 4 hours, 38 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 4.49 sessions (up .06 sessions)
As of 3/1: 4.43 sessions
As of 2/1: 4.38 sessions
As of 1/1: 4.38 sessions

Analysis: Zapper games don’t grow their numbers.

***

NERF N-Strike (October 2008)
Current Rank: #50 Last Month’s Rank: #43

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 4 hours, 36 minutes (up 26 minutes)
As of 3/1: 4 hours, 10 minutes
As of 2/1: 3 hours, 40 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 3.75 sessions (up .39 sessions)
As of 3/1: 3.36 sessions
As of 2/1: 2.89 sessions

Analysis: Decent increase if you consider where the numbers started.

***

Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip (November 2008)
Current Rank: #51 Last Month’s Rank: #44

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 4 hours, 29 minutes (up 25 minutes)
As of 3/1: 4 hours, 4 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 3.74 sessions (up .39 sessions)
As of 3/1: 3.35 sessions

Analysis: Ubisoft claims this game was popular, so how come it garners so much less average playing time than its only extreme sports Balance Board competiton, “Skate It”?

***

GAME PARTY 2 (October 2008)
Current Rank: #52 Last Month’s Rank: #45

Average time played per player:
As of 4/1: 4 hours, 7 minutes (up 19 minutes)
As of 3/1: 3 hours, 48 minutes

Average number of sessions per player:
As of 4/1: 3.38 sessions (up .27 sessions)
As of 3/1: 3.11 sessions

Analysis: Still at the bottom.

***

Games I wanted to track that do not have usage data listed on the Nintendo Channel yet: Celebrity Sports Showdown, Blastworks, Madworld, House of the Dead: Overkill, Cooking Mama World Kitchen, New Play Control Pikmin, New Play Control Mario Power Tennis, Deadly Creatures, Rune Factory Frontier

Games I wanted to track that are not listed on the Nintendo Channel: Resident Evil 4, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Game Party

CONCLUSION

Your headline this month is the surge of “Call of Duty: World at War.” Your reason to worry, Wii owners, is that most of the significant February and March Wii releases still haven’t been played enough to chart on the Nintendo Channel and therefore on this list.

I think next month Animal Crossing is going to be third.

Thanks for posting this.

I always thought the average time played per player is the most interesting number on the Nintendo Channel. This number shows how long people play their games and therefore how much they like them.

For example:
- Wii Sports is played longer than most people would have thought
- Skate It owners seem to be way more content with their game than people who own Shaun White SB
- MySims and Lego Indiana Jones have surprising high average play times
- People play the hell out of Animal Crossing, whereas Wii Music seems to have disappointed quite a few of its buyers

I need to put my stats on there. It will definitely skew WaW numbers, I'll tell you that XD

How does one acquire these stats from the Nintendo Channel?

If anyone wishes to know any PAL figures.... PM me if you want me to email you a file, or ask on here if you want info for the odd game (like RE4 seems to be missing on the American chart, but PAL has it.

Go onto the Nintendo Channel.... search for a game, click on it, then near the bottom of the page (or the clock on the pop-in menu)

The data will be specific for your region of course.... so the stats that this thread are about are for the USA, but there are seperate ones for Canada and Mexico, and I collect data for the PAL regions too.

That's.... very insightful, and thorough.
Interesting, to say the least. Looks like nothing'll beat Brawl anytime soon. :p

Can you judge any sales from these numbers?

 I want it, may you post it?