Based on this site, which lists references (many of which were cited earlier in this thread), but has alot of easy to notice errors and contradictions as well, the best I can come up with for NES shipments is this:
| Americas | Japan Shipm. | Total | Others | ||||
| Shipped | Total | 83' | 500k by Sep? | Shipped | WWTotal | ||
| 84' | |||||||
| 85' | .2? | ||||||
| 86' | .8? | 1 | 6.5 | ||||
| 87' | 3 | 4 | |||||
| 88' | 7 | 11 | ** | ||||
| 89' | 9.2* | 20.2 | |||||
| 90' | 7.3 | 27.5 | 40 | ||||
| 91' |
4.2? | 31.7? | 48 | ||||
| 92' | 3.5? |
** My research sugggests 13m NES sold in Japan by 1988
I have some reservations about much of the data, but he does cite the sources I used that said NES was at 40m shipped worldwide in March 1990, and 48m shipped worldwide March 1991.
My main reservations are that he cites a book claiming NES sold or shipped (not specified) 6.5m in Japan in 1986. I really doubt that - thats one third of its Japan total in one year. It would be like if PS2 had sold 15m one year in the USA. Multiple sources have NES at 13m in Japan by some point in 1988 so it seems like it was more a slow burner with a peak in the four million range ala SNES, PS1, PS2. There is a factoid in there that says NES did 3.5m shipped in Others which looks dubious to me too - but since its after the end of the cold war, it could be possible I guess.
The 9.2m in the Americas is *ed because I really can't see that being a USA figure, but it would make sense as the peak shipment figure of NES worldwide...NES was a beast but 9.2m is as good as the PS2 peak in the Americas and only a bit off Wii pace in the Americas. All the same, to ship 34m in the Americas, NES clearly had at least three years over 5m so 7.3m strikes me as fine for a shipment number...
ioi has the correct shipment data for Nintendo on hw shipments section from 93' on so the challenge is assembling 83' to 92' NES shipments.
People are difficult to govern because they have too much knowledge.
When there are more laws, there are more criminals.
- Lao Tzu
