VGC data for the week ending December 18, 2010 has arrived for Japan. With the data update, Nintendo's New Super Mario Bros. Wii is now larger than every home console game released in Japan, save for the original Super Mario Bros. on the Famicom. Sales stand at 4.13m in Japan, putting it just above Dragon Quest VII for the Playstation 1. Nintendo's title however still sells rather well, particularly over the holidays in Japan, and should continue climbing towards 5 million units. Thus it is the largest home console title released over the last 25 years.
The original Super Mario Bros., the killer app of killer apps, sold a staggering 6.81m units in Japan - figures which remain even to this day all but unreachable for a home console title. Portable software is a different beast entirely though, as 11 portable games have sold more than New Super Mario Bros. Wii in Japan, in addition to Super Mario Bros. Capcom's recently released Monster Hunter Portable 3 for the PSP also looks like it will top New Super Mario Bros. Wii fairly soon, given the astronomical pace of recent weeks.
As of the December 18 week, the biggest home console games in Japan to date are as follows:
Game / System / Publisher / Japan Release Date / Lifetime Figures (for Dec 18 2010)
1) Super Mario Bros. / Famicom / Nintendo / 1985 / 6.81m
2) New Super Mario Bros. Wii / Wii / Nintendo / 2009 / 4.13m
3) Dragon Quest VII / PS1 / Square-Enix* / 2000 / 4.12m
4) Final Fantasy VII / PS1 / Square-Enix* / 1997 / 3.93m
5) Super Mario Bros. 3 / Famicom / Nintendo / 1988 / 3.84m
6) Super Mario Kart / Super Famicom / Nintendo / 1992 / 3.82m
7) Dragon Quest III / Famicom / Square-Enix* / 1988 / 3.77m
8) Wii Sports / Wii / Nintendo / 2006 / 3.75m
9) Dragon Quest VIII / PS2 / Square-Enix / 2004 / 3.68m
10) Final Fantasy VIII / PS2 / Square-Enix* / 1999 / 3.64m
* Released before the merger of Square and Enix.
Several Wii titles lurk below the top ten, although Wii Fit at 3.59m does not really sell anymore with Wii Fit Plus on the market. Mario Kart Wii, at almost 3m, and the eventual Dragon Quest X for Wii are the only titles in the near future with a shot at reaching this list, as publishers besides Nintendo and Square-Enix have never been able to crack 3m units in Japan for home consoles. Once Dragon Quest X launches and if Mario Kart Wii can somehow climb to 3.65m, this list will be set for years, as most of the big games in Japan are on portables now. It will take years for the Wii 2, PS4 and X720 bases to grow large enough to support titles of such magnitude. More importantly, beyond the possibilities of Dragon Quest X and Mario Kart Wii, nothing else in the current round of Japanese home consoles is likely to crack the all-time top ten.