Big in Japan Mar. 8-14: Pokemon Ranger returns
Nintendo's creature-battler reprises its finish atop Media Create's weekly sales chart, as trio of new PSP releases lift Sony's handheld.
Nintendo's Pokemon Ranger spin-off titles may not enjoy the same level of popularity as the full-fledged gotta-catch-'em-up games, but, well, they're still Pokemon. Into its second week on Media Create's Japanese sales chart, Pokemon Ranger: Hikari no Kiseki sold 65,355 units during the March 8-14 reporting period, securing it back-to-back top-place finishes.
Fully half of Media Create's chart toppers for the week can be counted as new releases. Leading the pack is What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord!? 3D (formerly known as the Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman series), which landed in fourth with 33,920 units sold. Koei's latest beat-'em-up Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce 2 secured fifth place with 31,674 units. Rounding out the PSP trio, Nippon Ichi's Zettai Hero: Modification Plan debuted in sixth, selling 31,447 units.
EA's latest shooter Battlefield: Bad Company 2 managed to crack Japan's sales charts during the second week of March, as the PlayStation 3 edition sold 28,353 units. The final new release, Enterbrain's RPG Maker DS, sold 23,766 units. The remainder of the chart was filled out by the familiar names of Tomodachi Collection, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Dragon Quest IX, and Wii Fit Plus.
The trio of strong PSP debuts again elevated Sony's portable to the top of the hardware charts with 39,125 units sold--though its UMD-less counterpart remained dead last with 1,191 systems. The Wii and PS3 sparred for silver and bronze, selling 31,460 units and 26,481 units, respectively. Nintendo's DS trifecta again remained bunched, as the DSi LL sold 21,604 units, the DSi hit 13,581 systems, and the DS Lite trailed with 3,920. Still, the DS's earliest revision managed to outsell the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 2, which clocked in at 2,668 units and 1,825 units, respectively.
JAPAN GAME SALES WEEK OF MARCH 8-14, 2010
Software:
Rank / Title / Publisher / Platform / Unit sales
1) Pokemon Ranger: Hikari no Kiseki / Nintendo / DS / 65,355
2) Tomodachi Collection / Nintendo / DS / 35,993
3) New Super Mario Bros. Wii / Nintendo / Wii / 34,795
4) What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord!? 3D / SCE / PSP / 33,920
5) Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce 2 / Koei / PSP / 31,674
6) Zettai Hero: Modification Plan / Nippon Ichi Software / PSP / 31,447
7) Battlefield: Bad Company 2 / Electronic Arts / PS3 / 28,353
8) RPG Maker DS / Enterbrain / DS / 23,766
9) Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (Ultimate Hits) / DS / Square Enix / 22,013
10) Wii Fit Plus / Nintendo / Wii / 21,085
Hardware:
PSP - 39,125
Wii - 31,460
PS3 - 26,481
DSi LL - 21,604
DSi - 13,581
DS Lite - 3,920
Xbox 360 - 2,668
PS2 - 1,825
PSP Go - 1,191
Hot Stories
Newsmakers
-
Biden: No legal problem with taxing violent games
United States Vice President Joe Biden believes there is no legal restriction on ability to tax violent media. Full Story
- Posted May 14, 2013 3:50 am SST
-
Just Cause dev promises 'holy f**king sh**' moments in future games
Avalanche Studios co-founder says developer's ambition is for action, not moments that make players cry; steampunk-style game on hold. Full Story
- Posted May 15, 2013 9:33 pm SST
Featured Stories
-
Bungie shoots down Destiny for PS Vita rumor
Developer confirms image suggesting version of upcoming shared-world shooter in development for Sony's latest portable is a fake. Full Story
- Posted May 16, 2013 8:08 pm SST
-
Ubisoft planning to release games more frequently
Assassin's Creed and Far Cry publisher says its network of 26 studios and over 7,000 developers will allow company to ship major franchises more regularly. Full Story
- Posted May 16, 2013 7:42 pm SST
-
Metro: Last Light dev responds to workplace conditions claims
4A Games creative director Andrew Prokhorov thanks Jason Rubin for telling the studio's story, but says, "We deserve the ratings we get." Full Story
- Posted May 17, 2013 3:44 am SST
-
EA opens DICE LA to make Star Wars games
DICE head would also like to poach top talent from rivals Infinity Ward and Treyarch. Full Story
- Posted May 15, 2013 6:28 pm SST
-
EA dropping Online Passes - Report
Future EA games won't require Online Passes; the service is being scrapped after tepid player response. Full Story
- Posted May 16, 2013 11:28 am SST






