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Nintendo: Nearly 3.5 Million Copies Of Mario Kart 8 Sold In First Four Months
Nintendo has provided supplementary material following its second quarter financial report yesterday. The data include new sales figures for Mario Kart 8 and Pokémon X and Y.
Nintendo has now sold 3.49 million copies of Mario Kart 8. This includes downloaded and bundled copies, putting the attach rate for the title at 47.8 percent, up from 42 percent calculated based on June 30, 2014 sales of the game and Wii U consoles.
Pokémon continues to attach well, with Pokémon X and Y hitting 13.29 million units sold. With 45.42 million 3DS-family consoles in circulation, that’s an attach rate of 29.3 percent.
A statement from managing director Tatsumi Kimishima, it’s clear the company is leaning on Pokémon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby to push flagging handheld sells in the holiday season. He also points to Super Smash Bros. on Wii U and Amiibo figures to motivate Wii U consoles sales.
Nintendo has also released an updated release schedule. Currently, there are no titles committed for the company’s fourth quarter, ending on March 31, 2015. Four titles are identified with targeted release in “first half 2015,” though. They are Mario Maker (name not final), Project Giant Robot (name not final), Splatoon, and Yoshi’s Woolly World.
Other titles slated for 2015 are Code Name: S.T.E.A.M., Fossil Fighters Frontier, Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, Mario Party 10, Mario vs. Donkey Kong (name not final), Project Guard (name not final), Star Fox (name not final), Xenoblade Chronicles X, The Legend of Zelda (name not final), and Devil’s Third. Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem is still listed as “to be determined.”
Our Take
As stated yesterday, Nintendo needs to reveal an aggressive holiday strategy that further capitalizes on Mario Kart 8 and links it directly to the timing of Super Smash Bros. Wii U’s release. The clock is ticking as we enter November though, and Nintendo would be making a mistake not to approach this quarter with its best offers.
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