Nintendo leading pack in US hardware race

The industry-tracking NPD Group may have stopped doling out hardware sales figures, but that's not stopping the data from finding its way into public. Today at a BMO Capitals Market presentation in New York, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime used the firm's figures to underscore the success of the Wii and DS and show just how far behind the competition was in the US.

Citing NPD data, Fils-Aime had the DS and Wii in first and second place as far as US installed base goes, with 43.1 million and 30.4 million systems sold, respectively. The next best-selling hardware was the Xbox 360 (21.9 million), followed by the PSP (17.7), and PlayStation 3 (13.5 million). Later in his presentation, Fils-Aime noted that the Wii Balance Board alone has sold more than 12 million units since its debut in 2008 alongside Wii Fit.

The executive then shifted his sights to the upcoming holiday season. While the end of the year is a crucial time for the industry as a whole, Fils-Aime said, "The holidays are more important to Nintendo than to other manufacturers." In 2009, nearly half of all hardware sales for the company came during the last two months of the year. He also said that 44 percent of Nintendo software sales for the entire year came during these months (compared to the rest of the industry's 33 percent).

For this holiday season, Fils-Aime said Nintendo has a number of big brands lined up to bolster sales, including the Mario Anniversary bundles and Donkey Kong Country Returns, which will be released on Nov. 21.