Analyst predicts 3-4M Wii Fit Americans in '08

Upon release in Japan last December, Wii Fit was greeted by the reception Nintendo was hoping for, with more than 1 million units of the game being sold in its first week on the market. More than just an opening-week sensation, Nintendo's fitness simulation has proven to have legs of its own, having sold more than 1.75 million units in Japan through March 27, according to Japanese stat trackers Media Create. Not a bad tally, considering roughly 5 million Wiis are in Japanese consumers' living rooms, as of January.

With Nintendo's fitness craze having taken firm hold in the publisher's home turf, industry watchers are now turning their eyes to the game's debut in larger markets, namely the US, where more than 9 million Wiis have been sold. Speaking to the New York Post, pervasive Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter said that Wii Fit sales in 2008 could rank alongside 2007 top sellers such as Microsoft's Halo 3 and Activision's Call of Duty 4.

"Wii Fit will sell 3 million to 4 million in the US if they market aggressively," said Pachter to the Post. Pachter also reiterated statements he made in an investor's note early this month, saying that sources have told him that Nintendo is gearing up for its most aggressive marketing campaign ever, with a budget that could top out at $40 million. In comparison, Microsoft's much-hyped Halo 3 reportedly carried a $10 million marketing price tag.