Big in Japan Dec. 26-Jan. 1: Mario Kart 7

2011 ended with a thud for Sony, with the publisher's newly released portable system, the PlayStation Vita, sagging in sales on the Japanese software and hardware charts for the week of December 26 to January 1. Conversely, Nintendo's 3DS and the just-released Mario Kart 7 were the top earners for the week, according to the latest Media Creates sales update.

The PS Vita numbers continued to drop in its third week, from 72,479 to 42,648 units, with no Vita titles in the top 20 sales list. Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational was the handheld's best seller, finishing in 28th place for the week, one spot ahead of Uncharted: Golden Abyss. On the flip side, Sony's other consoles continued to do well in Japan--the PlayStation 3 held second place, with 67,199 units sold, while the PSP was just behind with 62,746 units sold.

Meanwhile, Nintendo sold 197,952 units of the 3DS for the week. Mario Kart 7 was in first place, with 109,463 units sold. The racing title edged out the 3DS iteration of Monster Hunter, with 100,042 units sold. Super Mario 3D Land was in fourth place, with 68,483 units sold, while Inazuma Eleven Go was in sixth place, with 47,938 units sold.

The only new release among the top 20 was Idolmaster Anime & G4U Pack Vol.3 for the PS3. The virtual idol simulator bundle sold 18,992 units in its debut week. Other noteworthy highlights include the recent Musou Orochi 2 for the PS3 (third place, with 73,526 units sold) and the PS3 version of Final Fantasy XIII-2 staying strong at fifth place (61,202 units sold).

Japan game sales week of December 26-January 1

Software
Rank/Title/Publisher/Platform/Unit sales
1. Mario Kart 7 / Nintendo / 3DS / 109,463
2. Monster Hunter 3G / Capcom / 3DS / 100,042
3. Musou Orochi 2 / Tecmo Koei / PS3 / 73,526
4. Super Mario 3D Land / Nintendo / 3DS / 68,483
5. Final Fantasy XIII-2 / Square Enix / PS3 / 61,202
6. Inazuma Eleven Go / Level-5 / 3DS / 47,938
7. Just Dance Wii / Nintendo / Wii / 33,347
8. Kirby's Return to Dream Land / Nintendo / Wii / 24,067
9. Wii Party / Nintendo / Wii / 22,932
10. SD Gundam G Generation 3D / Namco Bandai / 3DS / 20,427

Hardware
3DS – 197,952
PS3 – 67,199
PSP – 62,746
PSV – 42,648
Wii – 33,208
DSi XL – 3,356
Xbox 360 – 2,453
DSi – 2,418
PS2 – 1,659
DS Lite -28