Aussie game charts: December 22-28, 2008

The days leading up to Christmas combined with Boxing Day sales in Australia are enough to make even seasoned retail therapists quiver in their boots. Nintendo had a stellar week for December 22 to 28 in 2008, with 7 out of the possible 10 games appearing on a Nintendo console. Out of those seven, five were first-party Nintendo games. The most common game to appear under Christmas trees around Australia last year was Wii Play, according to data trackers GfK Australia. Wii Play conveniently comes bundled with a Wii Remote--a great gift to accompany any Wii console that was given as a present.

The second best-selling game for the week was Wii Fit, with Mario Kart Wii right behind in third place. Sega's Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games received a Christmas boost, reappearing at number four after a break from the charts. Animal Crossing's first outing on the Wii, Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City, continued to sell strongly three weeks after its initial release, taking out the fifth spot. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old Is Your Brain claimed the sixth position. Two of the season's biggest shooters, Gears of War 2 for the Xbox 360 and Resistance 2 for the PlayStation 3, took out the seventh and eighth places respectively. Curiously, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock for the PlayStation 2 managed to sneak its way into the ninth position, whereas its sequel Guitar Hero World Tour is missing from the chart. The final game to make it into the top 10 best-sellers over Christmas was Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.

All sales stats, including console-by-console breakdowns, can be found below:

Top 10 Full-Priced Games
1. Wii Play bundle, Wii
2. Wii Fit, Wii
3. Mario Kart Wii, Wii
4. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, Wii
5. Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City, Wii
6. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old Is Your Brain?, Nintendo DS
7. Gears of War 2, Xbox 360
8. Resistance 2, PlayStation 3
9. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock bundle, PlayStation 2
10. Sonic Unleashed, Wii

Top 10 PS3 Games (over A$60)
1. Resistance 2
2. Call of Duty: World at War
3. Need for Speed Undercover
4. Little Big Planet
5. MotorStorm: Pacific Rift
6. FIFA Soccer 09
7. Guitar Hero World Tour super bundle
8. Far Cry 2
9. SingStar ABBA bundle
10. James Bond: Quantum of Solace

Top 10 Xbox 360 Games (over A$50)
1. Gears of War 2
2. Lips bundle
3. Need for Speed Undercover
4. Fable II
5. FIFA Soccer 09
6. Guitar Hero World Tour bundle
7. Saints Row 2
8. Fallout 3
9. Halo 3
10. Far Cry 2

Top 10 Wii Games (over A$50)
1. Wii Play bundle
2. Wii Fit
3. Mario Kart Wii
4. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
5. Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City
6. Sonic Unleashed
7. Smash Bros. Brawl
8. Guitar Hero World Tour bundle
9. Guitar Hero World Tour super bundle
10. Wii Music

Top 10 PC Games (over A$20)
1. Call of Duty: World at War
2. World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
3. Grand Theft Auto IV
4. The Sims 2: Apartment Life
5. Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
6. Fallout 3
7. Spore
8. The Sims 2: Double Deluxe
9. The Sims 2: Free Time
10. World of Warcraft Battlechest

Top 10 Nintendo DS Games (over A$40)
1. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old Is Your Brain
2. Nintendogs: Dachshund and Friends
3. Littlest Pet Shop: Jungle
4. Littlest Pet Shop: Winter
5. New Super Mario Bros.
6. Littlest Pet Shop: Garden
7. Nintendogs: Dalmation and Friends
8. Nintendogs: Chihuahua and Friends
9. Mario Kart DS
10. Nintendogs: Labrador and Friends

Top 10 PS2 Games (over A$50)
1. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock bundle
2. Need for Speed Undercover
3. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009
4. High School Musical 3: Senior Year DANCE!
5. SingStar Amped bundle
6. Guitar Hero World Tour super bundle
7. Sonic Unleashed
8. FIFA Soccer 09
9. Guitar Hero World Tour bundle
10. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

Top 10 PSP games (over A$40)
1. Need for Speed Undercover
2. FIFA Soccer 09
3. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009
4. The Simpsons Game
5. Ben 10: Alien Force The Game
6. Midnight Club: Los Angeles Remix
7. Lego Batman
8. NBA Live 09
9. Buzz! Brain Bender
10. Crash Bandicoot: Mind Over Mutant

All data supplied by GfK Australia.