Japan: Nintendo 3DS Goes Up, Vita Goes Down

The Nintendo 3DS handheld has managed to see a solid increase in sales during the so-called Golden Week in Japan, a period when sales usually increase significantly as customers navigate a series of free days that always tend to involve gift giving.

The 3DS has sold 91,868 units during the week that ended on May 6, which is a big growth when compared to the 74,282 it managed during the previous seven-day period.

Second place in the Japanese hardware chart was once again occupied by the PlayStation 3 home console from Sony, which has also seen sales go up to 23,478 coming from 21,114.

The older version of the PlayStation Portable handheld has seen a decline, hovering just above 20,000 after previously posting sales of 22,457.

The Nintendo Wii has also had a good week and increased its own sales from 9,200 to an impressive 15,789.

The newer PlayStation Vita fared much worse and has seen another decline, with just 10,583 devices moved to players during the week.

In order to boost sales of the device Sony has recently announced that it plans to introduce a Crystal White version of the handheld, which might not arrive in Europe and in North America.

The older versions of the DS have outsold the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox 360.

Mario Party 9 for the Nintendo Wii has been the bestselling title of the week ending on May 6, keeping the position it has captured during the launch period, with sales of 144,585.

The PlayStation 3 version of Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City from Capcom is in second place in Japan, moving 52,428 copies to players while Fire Emblem: Awakening from Nintendo is in third place with sales of 42,347.

The rest of the top ten is dominated by Nintendo 3DS titles and includes: Super Mario Land 3D, Mario Kart 7, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Monster Hunter 3 G, Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, Conception: Please Have My Children! and Wii Sports Resort.