Nintendo DS sells 500,000 in US launch week

By Games Industry.biz Published 1 December, 2004

Latest handheld proves an early hit, with around 90 per cent of stock sold out.

The first sales figures from Nintendo's latest hardware launch are expected to be announced today, with half a million units of the Nintendo DS handheld sold in North America in the launch week.

That represents around 90 per cent of the stock which Nintendo shipped to retail stores across North America for the launch, and indeed many retailers have reported that the console has sold out at their stores.

Online auction site eBay has seen an upside from the early popularity of the console, with some bidders paying over twice the standard retail price of the DS in order to get their hands on one last week.

The 500,000 unit launch week puts Nintendo well on track to meet its target of selling a million units of the console in North America by the end of the calendar year, along with two million units in Japan - where the DS launches this week.

For the full calendar year, which runs through to March, the firm recently raised its shipment target for the DS to five million units worldwide, a figure which includes the European launch in Q1 2005.

According to the Seattle Times, which reported the half-million sell through figure this morning, Nintendo also sold some 800,000 units of the Game Boy Advance SP hardware last week, making it into the single biggest sales week for handheld consoles ever.

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Comments (32) Latest comment 7 years ago

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  • steven #1 7 years ago

    Great news for nintendo i'd say. Dispels the 'DS will overshadow' the GBAsp too 800,000 units for the SP is MAD. But is that the record? I remember the GBA selling 1 M units during thanksgiving week of 2003???

  • ssuellid #2 7 years ago

    Thats is impressive. I still think the second screen is mostly a waste of time but the games are looking good and I'll probably get one as an upgrade from the non sp GBA I have.

  • Kiigan #3 7 years ago

    And of those 500,000, only a mere 499,999 of them were bought for the purposes of being put on eBay for 200 quid (plus 20 quid shipping of course).

  • steven #4 7 years ago

    "Are these "Actual" consumer slaes figures or the amount Nintendo has managed to shift to retailers? "

    Didn't you hear that most shipments were sold out??? Ninty sold out 90% of what they shipped its in the article.

  • Shinji #5 7 years ago

    But is that the record? I remember the GBA selling 1 M units during thanksgiving week of 2003???

    Yeah - but GBA and DS combined have now sold 1.3 million in a week, so that's the record...

  • steven #6 7 years ago

    "Yeah - but GBA and DS combined have now sold 1.3 million in a week, so that's the record..."

    Ok. Funny that despite the DS fever, the GBA SP was in fact outselling the DS but we all know it's due to shipments.
    Edited by 1 at 01/12/04 @ 11:43

  • kincaide #7 7 years ago

    Finally got mine today. Must admit I am impressed with the Metroid demo - graphics are better than I thought, and the touch pad is rather responsive.
    Screens are good, and the general impression among my work friends is one of surprised positivity

    ImportMadness have yet to deliver Mario 64DS, so can't comment on that yet.... BOOOO

  • Shinji #8 7 years ago

    Thanksgiving, I guess.

  • martynmac #9 7 years ago

    kincaide wrote:
    "ImportMadness have yet to deliver Mario 64DS, so can't comment on that yet.... BOOOO "

    After a couple of email complaints to ImportMadness, I finally got mine delivered today too. I also never received Mario 64DS even though it was part of the order I made in early november; bit of a coincidence that. Grrrrr!

  • steven #10 7 years ago

    "That GBA SP figure seems very large - what suddenly triggered the uptake in the US?"

    The GBA sp has outsold everything throughout this year so its sales have been good (They were 70% up from last year since the price cut) but yes the thanksgiving always lifts up sales of every console around in the US.

  • Royal Fool #11 7 years ago

    So, about that PSP thing, eh...?

  • Blerk #12 7 years ago

    Well.... well done, Nintendo! Still can't figure out why people are buying them given the miniscule range of very unexciting software so far, but there you go.

    /sits on the fence
    /waits
    /sings about gold

  • steven #13 7 years ago

    "Well.... well done, Nintendo! Still can't figure out why people are buying them given the miniscule range of very unexciting software so far, but there you go. "

    Probably the unique hardware is proving to good to resist? Super Mario 64 DS? Free Demo of Metroid Prime Hunters? and the instant messaging? The US love gadgets regardless of the mediocre line-up so far i'd say.

  • Blerk #14 7 years ago

    Unique hardware's no good whatsoever if there's nothing good to use it with.

    Ignore me - I'm anti-early-adopter. :-)

  • gizmo #15 7 years ago

    And 3 of the 500,000 purchasers have reported that they have finally got used to the control scheme.

  • Machiavel #16 7 years ago

    I'm looking forward to the discount SPs when it comes out here.

    /dreams on

    Heck, might even be able to afford to play Crystal Chronicles properly...
    Edited by 1 at 01/12/04 @ 13:49

  • Ted Cuntablast #17 7 years ago

    Blerk stop spreading your hate propaganda!

  • Blerk #18 7 years ago

    Blerk stop spreading your hate propaganda!

    /distributes Spectrum leaflets

  • dadrester #19 7 years ago

    If they made Elite for it I'd have one like a shot. Yep. Elite, Animal Crossing and Mario Kart is what it'll take.

    do you have a gba. get one of these, then go here and get <a href="http://roms.consolemul.com/8/Elit e%20-%20The%20New%20Kind%20V1.3%20%28PD%29.zip"> this.</A> also. dear moderators i'm not linking to illegal roms or rom sites just a homebrew project site. please don't be angry.

  • Blerk #20 7 years ago

    Bear in mind that although it looks the business, controlling Elite via the GBA controls is akin to tying your fingers in knots and asking someone to whack them with a hammer.

  • dadrester #21 7 years ago

    i think the bloke who's rebuilt it has done a pretty good job on the controls. they're even configurable. but that aside. imagine it on sp. perfect. i think frontier developments are working on a handheld version of elite four anyway, and they have said they are keen on exploiting the gba so if the ds shifts enough units (as it is at the moment) we might well see a next gen elite game on the little blighter. possibly even a multiplayer one.
    /wanks

  • Blerk #22 7 years ago

    Curiously it's the Nintendo D-pad which I find completely unweildy for Elite rather than the dozens of other controls (which end up on a nice menu thing). I just don't seem to be able to get the hang of it, which is a shame 'cos otherwise it's really nice.

  • dadrester #23 7 years ago

    i think you can map the pitch buttons to [L] and [R] so it doesn't interfere with the up down motion, but don't quote me on it, my gba has been bust for a while.

  • ruttyboy #24 7 years ago

    Wow! A broken GBA? 0_o I thought those things were indestructable! I've done thing to my (original) GBA that should have completely stopped it in its tracks but it just keeps on trucking! \o/

  • dadrester #25 7 years ago

    well i installed an afterburner which put a bit of pressure on the lcd but it was fine for ages. until i got very drunk and rowdy with my mates one night when it was in my back pocket. i don't think the concrete on my back and pile-on on top didn't help it one bit. no siree. not a bit.

  • dadrester #26 7 years ago

    functionally it's fine. it just 90% of the screen is black and cracked. but i do have to say it must have taken a real battering. just like i did at that particular moment.

  • Pirotic #27 7 years ago

    the second screen is useless, the main reason they have it is because having only one touch-screen means the screen would be obscured to much by your hand.

  • #28 7 years ago

    I'm sure I've heard someone else say that the 2nd screen is useless. Surely on a handheld console doing 3D games, the 2nd screen is essential? Otherwise, you're squinting at a tiny map on the main screen?

    What do other EG readers think?

  • Dagon #29 7 years ago

    Those are nice sales. I remember the GBA debuting at 500,000 units in the first week, and that was a sales record then. For the DS, the next few weeks will be a bit more crucial.

  • Destria #30 7 years ago

    I think the second screen justifies itself purely by virtue of it being able to be used as a touch-pad as an analogue control method. Plus it can be used as a touch-screen directly for menu/game manipulation (WarioWare DS!). Plus it can display information without interfering with the top screen

    So what if you can't look at both at the same time? If you can't see the bottom screen, the chances are you're using it as control for the top screen!

    I've probably explained myself badly... but lets just say I don't think having the second screen is *bad*, but can only be *good*

  • Dagon #31 7 years ago

    Haven't you heard? Good is the new bad!

  • Pirotic #32 7 years ago

    Balfa, the screen and the touch-screen are two seperate components, having a screen on the bottom is simply to make the touch screen easier to use, as you can underlay interfaces and buttons so you know where to press.