Earlier today I reported on the Media Create numbers for Japan this week, showcasing the top ten software titles and hardware sales for the week. Super Mario 3D World debuted at a respectable number 2, but a NeoGAF forum member has compiled data on all 3D Mario games in the past and the results are kind of shocking.
Even launch titles on the Nintendo 64 and the Nintendo DS had better launch weeks than the current launch for Super Mario 3D World. It should be noted however that none of these systems with the exception of the GameCube have had such low sales month-to-month as the Wii U, and we are moving into a holiday season that will have a long tail for both the Wii U and Super Mario 3D World. Still, these Japanese sales numbers are disappointing, to say the least.
3D Mario Week One Sales:
1) Super Mario Galaxy 2 – 337,569 (1,032,853 total)
2) Super Mario 3D Land – 344,698 (1,861,023 total)
3) Super Mario Sunshine – 280,610 (789,989 total)
4) Super Mario Galaxy – 256,341 (1,025,664 total)
5) Super Mario 64* – 162,113 (1,639,914 total)
6) Super Mario 64 DS* – 120,062 (1,231,535 total)
7) Super Mario 3D World – 106,967
Edit: A few more interesting stats have been brought up in the NeoGAF thread, which help shed some light on console sales after major Mario releases. It seems the games just aren’t system sellers for the first week in Japan period and that’s been true over several console cycles. Here’s a look at hardware numbers in the week before and the week after a Mario game launches for previous consoles:
GCN before Sunshine: 8.242
GCN Sunshine Launch: 31.750
Wii before Galaxy: 34.766
Wii Galaxy Launch: 40.836
Wii before Galaxy 2: 17.870
Wii Galaxy 2 Launch: 21.304
Wii U before 3D World: 14.006
Wii U 3D World Launch: 20.177
Overall, it looks like Super Mario 3D World is on track to be a great long tail title for Nintendo, which is probably what the brass expects. What do you think?
