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Your support makes all the difference.In a financial report delivered earlier in May, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata revealed the top 30 best-selling video games of 2010 in the USA and Europe for all consoles, and though Nintendo titles took places 1 and 2, Sony and Microsoft were hot on their heels.
Nintendo series stalwarts headed the charge: New Super Mario Bros on the Wii was the USA's best-selling game over the three-month period, and Pokemon SoulSilver was second. God of War III on the PlayStation 3 and Modern Warfare 2 on the Xbox 360 were third and fourth placed respectively.
Mr Iwata also took time to talk about the Wii game Just Dance, made by French developer and publisher Ubisoft, using its consistent sales to illustrate a point that the success of a game is not always immediately apparent.
Nintendo is especially interested in titles that appeal to a wide audience and those that have a long shelf life. Only 2 of the 14 Nintendo DS and Wii games appearing in the top 30 were released in 2010 (the two Pokemon games), and 8 others were out in the second half of 2009.
The DS and Wii titles with the best longevity were also the oldest games in the top 30 overall: Mario Kart DS was released in November 2005, and Wii Play (which comes packaged with a spare Wii controller) dates back to February 2007.
Best-selling games on 360 and PS3 were more recent, with none stretching back further than November 2009 and most released in 2010.
Wii Play, Mario Kart Wii, and Mario Kart DS also appeared in the USA's top 30 best selling games of January to March 2009. No others managed to do that, though the previous versions of MLB, Pokemon, Wii Fit and Call of Duty games were all present.
Top 30 best-selling video games in the USA, January-March 2010
1. New Super Mario Bros Wii (Wii) - released November 2009
2. Pokemon SoulSilver (DS) - March 2010
3. God of War III (PS3) - March 2010
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (360) - November 2009
5. Wii Sports Resort (Wii) - July 2009
6. Wii Fit Plus with Balance Board (Wii) - October 2009
7. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3) - March 2010
8. Battlefield Bad Company 2 (360) - March 2010
9. Mass Effect 2 (360) - January 2010
10. Pokemon HeartGold (DS) - March 2010
11. Just Dance (Wii) - November 2009
12. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3) - November 2009
13. Mario Kart Wii (Wii) - April 2008
14. Bioshock 2 (360) - February 2010
15. Final Fantasy XIII (360) - March 2010
16. New Super Mario Bros Wii (Wii) - May 2006
17. Battlefield Bad Company 2 (PS3) - March 2010
18. Wii Fit Plus without Balance Board (Wii) - October 2009
19. Army of Two: The 40th Day (360) - January 2010
20. MAG (PS3) - January 2010
21. MLB 10: The Show (PS3) - March 2010
22. Heavy Rain (PS3) - February 2010
23. Mario Kart DS (DS) - November 2005
24. God of War I & II Collection (PS3) - November 2009
25. Dante's Inferno: Divine Edition (PS3) - February 2010
26. Dante's Inferno (360) - Feburary 2010
27. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Wii) - October 2009
28. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (DS) - October 2009
29. Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Insider Story (DS) - September 2009
30. Wii Play (Wii) - February 2007
Source: Nintendo of Japan's Financial Results Briefing FY 2010
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