Big in Japan September 19-25: Dark Souls

While the rest of the world is still waiting for From Software's Dark Souls, plenty of gamers in Japan have been enjoying the punishing experience for more than a week. According to Media Create's sales chart update for the week of September 19 to September 25, Dark Souls sold 279,567 units on the PlayStation 3. (The game is exclusive to Sony's system in Japan.)

A spiritual successor to 2009's critically acclaimed Demon's Souls, Dark Souls has gamers once again thrown into a fantasy world with little in the way of preparation. The game also introduces a humanity system, which grants different benefits upon players depending on their in-game actions. For more details, check out GameSpot's recent column on the title, due out in North America on October 4 and in Europe on October 7.

Finishing behind Dark Souls was the limited edition of the ICO & Shadow of the Colossus collection. The bundle, which was remastered in HD by Bluepoint Games, sold 91,902 units on its debut week. The games were also sold separately; Shadow of the Colossus placed 14th, with 13,420 units sold, while ICO was at 20th place, with 7,941 units sold.

The week's sales chart also saw an Xbox 360 title breaking into the top 10. Gears of War 3 debuted at fourth place, with 56,113 units sold. For more information on Epic Games' third installment of the franchise, check out GameSpot's recent review of the title.

The new action title from Marvelous for the 3DS, Senran Kagura, was at sixth place, with 52,206 units sold. The title is known for its depiction of women and features like clothes that tear away as each of the five playable ninjas takes damage. The game itself is a 2D action platformer where players perform dashes and aerial combos to defeat enemies.

On the hardware side, the 3DS was still on the top spot in sales despite the huge representation of PS3 titles on the software charts. Nintendo's portable sold 70,159 units for the week, while the PS3 sold 39,452 units. The PSP was in third place, with 28,533 units sold, while the Wii trailed behind, with 14,034 units sold.

JAPANESE SALES FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 19-25

Software:
Rank/title/publisher/platform/unit sales
1. Dark Souls/From Software/PS3/279,567
2. ICO & Shadow of the Colossus Collection/SCE/PS3/91,902
3. Yu-gi-oh 5D's Tag Force 6/Konami/PSP/64,350
4. Gears of War 3/Microsoft/Xbox 360/56,113
5. Dragon Quest Collection/Square Enix/Wii/54,775
6. Senran Kagura/Marvelous/3DS/52,206
7. Busou Shinki Battle Masters Mk.2/Konami/PSP/32,318
8. ToHeart2 DX Plus/Aqua Plus/PS3/24,429
9. Tales of Xillia/Namco Bandai/PS3/22,484
10. Champion Jockey Gallop Racer & G1 Jockey/Tecmo Koei/PS3/18,281

Hardware:
3DS - 70,159
PS3 - 39,452
PSP - 28,533
Wii - 14,034
Xbox 360 - 3,897
DSi XL - 2,991
DSi - 2,351
PS2 - 1,517
DS Lite - 86
PSP Go - 15