What is in Wii Sports are FAR more games than what a lot of people who play videogames think are games.  A LOT of things branded as games are more interactive fiction (or puzzles) than they are games.  Games, before videogames, consisted of things you played against someone else, or a group of people, that had rules, and winners and losers.  There was no story, and no narrative.  It was you, playing under rules, trying to best someone else.  Now, you get individuals such as yourself, who end up saying stuff like you did, which implies that the only things that are games are things with story, and plot points, that you complete.  You turn interactive fiction into the only thing you consider a game, which totally does a disservice to REAL games, and what have been traditionally been games.  These are NOT puzzles, nor are they stories, but they are things you compete at other people and try to defeat on a battlefield of a sort.

Super Mario Bros is the game that made the NES so popular and Wii Sports is the game that makes the Wii so popular, two games that changed the face of gaming.

Of course, people will turn this into something crappy...

"But, its bundled with the system so it doesn't count!"

"Of course its the best selling videogame ever, its the ONLY worthy title on the Wii"

"Heh, when the only ones buying the Wiis are grandmas and fat soccer moms OF COURSE Wii Sports is the best selling game ever..."

Bet on it.

Okay that was my arugment about the game for the longest time. I'm not saying the game is horrible or anything. To this day I still play Wii Sports, not for because it was free but because it keeps me active meaning moving around and being able to play it with your friends is more than a reason to call it a game of its own.

Its absolutely amazing. I never thought I would see a game surpass Super Mario Bros and continue to sell between 200 to 300k weekly and that's just in US. This is a historic moment in gaming.

Wow!
What a response!

Happy Monday all. I never thought this would spark such a heated debate (but then again, I'm pretty dense)

OK, so I read through the posts, and I will give some thoughts just to help out.
I've read some arguments, and there are plenty of valid points, but for the sake of the traditional list of #1 SOLD videogame of all time, WiiSports is still #1 in my opinion. Here are my points...

1) THE SMB Factor

a)"If you accept SMB as the #1 sold game of all time, you must now accept WiiSports as the #1 sold game of all time"

I would say this is true seeing as how SMB was bundled with approx. half of all NES purchases.

b) "SMB has sold over 47 Mil, if you combine other systems, and that doesn't include the VC."

This is true, but we are counting sales on a distinct console. Going this route would skew all numbers, and you would have to combine. That would dictate a new list entirely, and if someone is willing to make it, I'd love to see it!

2) The Pokemon Factor
"Pokemon (1) has sold over 55 mil with sales combined from its dif versions"

This is true, but this also falls under the "combined sales" argument. Again, if we are talking SINGLE skus, it doesn't hold up. If we are talking "combined" it definately is in there.

3) The Solitaire / Minesweeper Factor
"These titles are in hundreds of millions of computers amd should be considered number 1."

This is true, if you accept that a computer is a videogame console. Traditionally a Videogame console is a distinct piece of hardware, that connects to a TV, and is only used to play games, orrr is a stand alone device with its own screen that plays games. That line has become blurred over the years. One could also make the argument that "WINDOWS" is the number one selling "game" of all time, as you get those games with the OS.
( I dont think anyone here would dispute that WINDOWS has sold a shiton.)
This goes strictly by your definition of what you consider a videogame.
Also, there is no sales data.
My opinion still is based on traditional videogame consoles, so while I will include individual PC games, I think WINDOWS should be isolated to a class by itself. (That's just my opinion, take it for what you want)

4) "WiiSports is a tech demo, minigame, shallow and should not be considered"

This is a weak argument.
IS chess a game? YES... IS Tic Tac Toe a game? YES...
IS HALO a game? YES... IS SMB a game? YES
These are all games whether you like it or not.
You can play against a computer, or sometimes you can play a human opponent. There is still a competition involved in all scenarios.
When you break a game like "Madden" down, it comes to one simple fundamental... "WHO WON?"
Sometimes that goal is loose. Sometimes you play for personal pride rather then score (Ala WiiMusic)
but to say WiiSports isn't a game, is foolish.
You can hate it all you want... Still a game...

5) "I was forced to buy it" It shouldn't count.

This is true in the UK and the USA. (Japan, it has sold fantastically well).
I, like most of you, also believe that it would not sold as much if not bundled
BUT
a) I 'll never know how much it would have sold unbundled...
(Like the rest of you, I can only assume)
b) Who here thought when the Wii came out that it would sell better then the GC, N64, SNES???? I sure as hell didn't. Just going by the figures of N64,.. If it would have sold that much and included WiiSports it still would have never touched SMB.

6) "I dont count bundled software"

That's cool, then Super Mario Land or GTA: SA are your most likely choices as the number one contenders, unless you count combined sales... =)

Happy Monday.
Congrats WiiSports, and I think that data will be in soon!

I still agree with those who say Wii Sports is more of a Demo than a game.

1. No Score.
2. No Rewards.
3. No real competition.
4. No story line.

I could probably keep going, but you get my point.

A game has substance: scoring, records, rewards, etc.

Demos = The Games of the Future. /sarcasm

Funny, I coulda sworn I got a score awarded for beating opponents, got medals for clearing certain events, and competed both against the CPU and local multiplayer...........guess I must have imagined all that........silly me.

The thing is, the rewards and score means essentially nothing in WiiSports.

At least, I never noticed anything new when I got a certain score other than a "Title".  No new levels, no new anything really.

To me, it's a Demo.  Something unfinished, that could be more.