I'm surprised that the Wii U hasn't launched higher than the Wii. Considering the Wii U is coming off a much stronger previous console than the Wii did.

Also, what's up with people using this thread to say the Wii U isn't dead? Aside from the usual trolls who shouldn't be taking seriously, I haven't seen anyone seriously claiming the Wii U is dying. Am I missing something? I think you guys really put too much significance in the opinion of vocal minority who's opinions shouldn't be taken with any significance.

Beating the PS2 lifetime confirmed!

On a serious note though, we should start to see a massive difference in the Wii U vs Wii numbers as the weeks go on, the Wii was unstopable in the first 2-3 years on the market.

This is not a particularly big surprise. If you look at the sales figures, it's clear there is a demand in the US, at least currently. It's whether or not it can maintain this post-holiday. For that, it needs Mario, Zelda, Metroid etc. Pikmin is good, as is Monster Hunter, and Dragon Quest, but those last two will only help in Japan.

It's the EU sales which have me surprised, and that's why it has to be a supply thing. No console can ever launch that low and be sold out in most areas.

Mummelmann said: Beating the PS2 lifetime confirmed! On a serious note though, we should start to see a massive difference in the Wii U vs Wii numbers as the weeks go on, the Wii was unstopable in the first 2-3 years on the market.

After the launch period I expect the Wii U to sell about halfway between the HD consoles and the Wii, in the launch period it could potentially outsell the Wii though (in the USA at least); primarily because the Wii's supply did not come close to keeping up with demand.

Personally, I think that is a pretty good position to work from because Nintendo has to focus on improving demand rather than creating it; and is sort of the kind of position the Nintendo DS started out with. A few big game releases, some new features, improvements to services like Miiverse, and (potentially) a price reduction to $300 for the next holiday season could (in aggregate) improve demand to the level of the Wii; especially if Microsoft and/or Sony make a large mistake.

EDIT: Nevermind, I'm an idiot. Those are totals.

Sounds good. But where are your weekly US numbers from? They don't seem right.

Pretty good considering the lack of awareness and advertising.
The only commercial I have seen is from Wall Mart, someone bringing a Furby and a WiiU home for christmas. It only shows the WiiU basic, doesn't even say it's new. Walk in a store and you might think the wiiU pad is simply a fancy store prop to advertise games.

I'm stuck in a dilemma, deciding on whether this is a good thing or a bad thing.

Maybe Nintendo should rely on word of mouth for now, and ramp up the ads and such when there is supply to sell and a major game to promote.

Whats the point of making ads at the moment when you are selling at capacity? People who want one cannot get one.. Those who do buy the stock available (most likely the basic bundle) would provide and extra few thousand sales...but I wouldn't spend ad money just for that.

If this IS true, then yeah you're right. But if it's not at capacity...it doesn't hurt to advertise, especially at (and before) the launch of the system.

Thanks for the chart... hope you keep it updated for us!