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DS sells 30 million in Japan

Nintendo's popular portable reaches new milestone in home nation nearly six years after launch; New Super Mario Bros. tops software chart with 5.77 million domestic units.

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Nintendo may be poised to release the DSi XL on Sunday, but that didn't stop it from announcing the 3D "successor" to the DS series yesterday. According to Japanese reports, one reason for Nintendo's timing was to divert attention away from slipping software sales for the current-generation DS, which fell by some 42 million units during the first nine months of the publisher's in-progress fiscal year.

The DS remains a best-seller.
The DS remains a best-seller.

Still, the DS remains a potent portable. Japanese publisher and game-industry tracker Enterbrain reports this week that Nintendo's DS series has combined to sell more than 30 million units in Japan alone. Famitsu reports that Nintendo achieved the milestone on March 21, 2010, having launched the system's original iteration in December 2004. Nintendo rolled out the DS Lite in Japan in March 2006, with the DSi following in November 2008 and the DSi XL (known as LL in Japan) in November 2009.

Enterbrain also revealed the top-selling games for the DS in Japan. Leading the way is New Super Mario Bros., which has sold 5,767,262 units in Japan since its May 2006 release. Pokemon Diamond/Pearl, which landed in Japan in September 2006, nipped closely at Mario's heels in second with 5,766,571 units sold. Animal Crossing: Wild World slipped into third with 5,133,862 units sold since November 2005.

Through December 2009, Nintendo had sold more than 125 million DS units worldwide. Software sales stood at 688.29 million globally through the end of the year.

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Avatar image for peewizzle
peewizzle

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my girlfriend has a DS (thanks to me) and she is on it all day everyday work breaks in between classes and even when we are watching tv...thanks nintendo i FINALLY have time to play my PS3 and 360 in peace :D

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Avatar image for deactivated-5cd05fa50bb7d
deactivated-5cd05fa50bb7d

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I keep wanting to buy a DS but I feel I would never play it. Only games I think I would enjoy are Pokemon, and pokemon.

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M3ran

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@KuRf - true true,i agree with you,you got agree that nintendo just doesnt have a good strategy,their just climbing ladders after ladders just to keep up,we all know what happened to SEGA trying to compete they ended up making dreamcast,the last ever console made by them, nintendo has to come up with a great strategy other wise,they are gonna fall.

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pokemondude2012

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thats a shocker. they only made 4 versions of the ds. ds ds light dsi dsi xl, and soon to be 3ds

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Avatar image for KuRf
KuRf

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@m3ran - tats why nintendo keep releasing more ds....its not even been 5 years since the first came out....so they keep making new ones and add just a bits and keep ppl who already got it want it more....they should do like sony making new consoles every 5 or 10 years...but probably because of lack of funding....mind you they were hit pretty bad aswell when ps1 was out...

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M3ran

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nintendo is doing it all,its all to do with the advertising. why is nintendo always taking steps backwards, think about it,ok i agree nintendo DSi XL is selling like hell,but what is the point the graphics is just like advanced GBA, plus the more they sell the worst its gonna get for nintendo, they are doing it wrong,this is gonna lead to the stay of wii & DS.while other companies such as sony is already thinking about its next gen. byby nintendo ur digging a hole.

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Avatar image for jimbo102671
jimbo102671

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Congrats to Nintendo for this milestone. Despite the news of the "3DS", the current DS market shows little (if any) signs of slowing down.

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Avatar image for bigM10231
bigM10231

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so everyone that has a ps2 should have a ds and everyone with a psp should have a wii. sales nearly equal each other

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Avatar image for Flipyap28
Flipyap28

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DS isnt the best handheld console ever... It will however take over the gameboy color when Pokemon Soul Silver is released here in the UK tommorow :P

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Avatar image for Flint247
Flint247

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And congrats, Nintendo. The DS was definitely a fun experience. :)

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Blaketoberfest

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Congrats, Nintendo! :)

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Orasion_Seiz

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nice another milestone!

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ejay_kain

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are there still people without a DS? :P wowawiwa!!! thats a lot!

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im-a-roustabout

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@ deadlysilence82 I love how you answer me about your lame comment but you have no rebuttal for being called a "little girl". Is there anything you need to address these forums, were pretty understanding over here ;) lol See you in the funny papers, tool.

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seacowphil

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Im not surprised that the ds has sold so much!

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Sasuga

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Congratulations to Nintendo on this latest sales milestone! As a long-time gamer, I'm also happy to see how well the New Super Mario Bros. games have sold; after all these years Mario still kicks serious turtleshell! Go Nintendo!

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deadlysilence82

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@im-a-roustabout I'll speak how ever i want and i'll type how ever i pleased, these are just forums of articles posted on this website lol . get over it , i'm not here to make friends . i'm just here to give my 2 cents about the article.

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mariokart64fan

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well guys, i have a coffin ready for my psp games now! im certainly on a hard decision , replace a dated psp or wait til 2011 and get a better console with double battery life with gamecube graphics, oh and it plays ds games to ! so ya um , , sony good bye good riddins your funeral shouldnt be far away

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KittenNipples

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@ Mr_Alexander Well played sir. Well played.

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darkraiders

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I remember a few years ago before they released the DS and WII when nintendo was talking about becoming like sega if there new gen consoles wouldn't have sold a lot well i wonder how they r doing now XD

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metal_militia89

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the XL iteration is definitely not needed, but the DS overall has managed to achieve a lot. Games are good (not all of course) and sales have been ridiculous.

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-Squirrel-

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Congrats Ninty. The DS has been my favorite system for quite some time, and the game selection is just ridiculously good and amazingly diverse. I was actually contemplating DSi XL purchase, but now I guess I'll wait for the 3DS *hopes that's a code name*. I guess they didn't want millions of American DSi XL owners feeling sore at them when they launch the 3DS so they told them about it in advance. May have costs them XL sales, but helped to not piss off a lot of costumers.

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UnknownForm

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And the sales number are released on the same day Sony's PSP turns 5...concidence??o_O

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Chico_Azteca

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best hand held ever, not for sales, it has a lot of games i love

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chibi-acer

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I agree with comments that the DSi XL isn't "necessary", but I still want one. I play most of my DS games at home, so I'm all for a bigger screen to enjoy the great DS games on. I'll still keep my DS Lite for those times when I'm on travel or know I'll be waiting in line for something Plus I could see my parents using one. They're still on the original DS. And Mother's/Father's day is just a few months away...

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FuryX-4

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Get rid of the DSi XL because its unnecessary, and it's way too expensive and work on the new handheld system, the 3DS. DS is the awesome handheld ever.

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Mr_Alexander

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1.3 miles? That doesn't sound right 5.85 inches x 30,000,000 = 175500000inch = 2769.88636 miles But that would be if they were stacked on the side, which I guess would be hard, now from top to bottom would be 1.13inch x 30million = 33900000 inches = 535.037879 miles That's more like it

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Avatar image for Flint247
Flint247

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I won't be surprised if DSi XL doesn't sell well, because it wasn't really needed in the first place. I think they should have stopped at DSi and then worked on 3DS. I consider DSi XL a "bonus" system.

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Adam_the_Nerd

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That's weird. Odd that they're going to release the 3DS so soon then. Not that I'm complaining; it'll mean cheaper DSes for everyone and it won't be surprising if a delay hits

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KittenNipples

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30,000,000 DS's. Thats about... 1.358938 miles All stacked up together.. Japan could make a building out of them!!! :)

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ErgoZelda

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The DSi is a great handheld system with a excellent library of games. I just can't wait for the DSi Xl this coming weekend.

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KittenNipples

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They keep tricking people into thinking a new DS has come out and they buy it for their kids. Best marketing scam ever.

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Avatar image for Flint247
Flint247

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DS... best system I ever had.

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Avatar image for im-a-roustabout
im-a-roustabout

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@ kavadias1981 Ohhhh, I thought it was just a DS but with 3d. Thanks for clearing that up.

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Zanoh

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Now that's a lot of DSes sold.

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Quietpower09

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30 million? That means around 1/4 of Japan have a Nintendo DS!

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yugiohfan99

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That's like almost everybody in Canada owning one, and it won't stop selling anytime soon.

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Avatar image for deactivated-5ef5237164119
deactivated-5ef5237164119

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Amazing Job Nintendo. :)

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mariostar0001

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Is anyone really surprised?

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Avatar image for deactivated-57fce817a4cf5
deactivated-57fce817a4cf5

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@im-a-roustabout The XL is a DS. The "3DS" is a new handheld.

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im-a-roustabout

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@deadlysilence82 I'm not a big Ninty fan either but is talk like that really necessary in these forums? This gives people more ammo as to why they should hate 360 and ps3 fanboys.

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uberjannie

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I think a congratulation to Nintendo is in order =)

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Avatar image for im-a-roustabout
im-a-roustabout

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Curious as to why people in the forums insist on calling the DS a console. A console is stationary and does not move. This is a "hand held". Semantics I know, but anyways I'm surprised they would announce the DS XL and the 3DS so soon because with the announcement of the 3DS wouldn't that take away from sales of the DS XL?

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Jaggermaster

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Nintendo is the KING yall go cry now !!!

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ahadj

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@deadlysilence82 The question is which one is you. I bet both. "Baby Girl"

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DaGamingDude

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yeah DS is very close to the PS2..Way to go Nintendo!

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Kbs64

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:) Amazing :)

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TheArcade

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The DS is just 15 million shy of the PS2 in total sales unit.

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F3l1P3

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It's surprising how much time it has passed and how it still sellling this nintendo.

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Charization

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DS = Best handheld console ever made... Period.

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