I feel dumber after reading this thread.
Nintendo wanted to squash any articles about HD gaming scoring a big "victory" over Wii. They are going to have the 3-5 spots in the NPDs (Mario Kart, Smash Bros, Wii Play).
The post-NPD articles are going to be titled "Gaming continues record sales year driven by Grand Theft Auto and Mario Kart" or even "Games market soars with record Wii and Grand Theft Auto sales."
That's why they wanted a million-selling launch and record hardware sales. They aren't going to kill GTA's press, but if they still win the press battle during HD gaming's biggest moment, that's a victory.
"[Our former customers] are unable to find software which they WANT to play."
"The way to solve this problem lies in how to communicate what kind of games [they CAN play]."
Satoru Iwata, Nintendo President. Only slightly paraphrased.
