Fils-Aime: Wii games must sell 1M to turn profit

While the gaming industry continues to rake in record revenues despite the recession, publishers are routinely posting losses in their quarterly reports. This week, an article in The New York Times gave voice to analysts and executives alike about the reasons behind the losses and found Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime offering an interesting perspective on the problem.

Fils-Aime told the paper that development costs were one reason publishers had difficulty turning a profit. The executive said that developing for the Wii was cheaper than developing for other consoles, but publishers on its system typically need to sell a million copies to turn a profit.

Citing NPD Group figures, the Times reported that only 16 Wii games had reached that threshold as of March 1, with nine of those being first-party titles. That number could be higher, as it is unclear which regions are being discussed. Inquiries to the article's author and NPD for specifics were not fruitful as of press time.