Following this week's revelation of numerous hardware figures, Nintendo has added yet another to the list, detailing that the Nintendo DS has sold 19.6 million units in the United States since it launched in late 2004.

Given this new information, we can now add Nintendo DS to the Shacknews-compiled list of known United States and worldwide hardware figures.

Lifetime United States Hardware Sales as of May 14, 2008:

1. PlayStation 2 - 42 million (Sony PR)
2. Nintendo DS - 19.6 million units
3. PSP - 11.42 million
4. Xbox 360 - 10 million units
5. Wii - 9.5 million units
6. PlayStation 3 - 4.15 million units

Lifetime Worldwide Hardware Sales as of March 31, 2008... Read more

Following NPD's unveiling of April's U.S. console game and hardware sales, Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony have all checked in with their take on the data that saw Nintendo's Wii and DS top the hardware charts and the Xbox 360 outsell the PlayStation 3 by a mere 900 units.

With a whopping 1.85 million copies sold, the Xbox 360 edition of Grand Theft Auto IV was the month's top-selling console title, followed by 1.12 million units of Mario Kart Wii and 1 million copies of Grand Theft Auto IV for PlayStation 3.

Sony Computer Entertainment America president and CEO Jack Tretton claimed that "PS3 momentum is fueled by enthusiasm for Blu-ray" and "PS3 remains on pace for a breakthrough year."

"The tremendous legacy of Grand Theft Auto on PlayStation, combined... Read more

Sales-tracking firm NPD Group has released its U.S. sales figures for April, showing Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV as the month's top-selling console title and the Wii as the month's best-selling hardware.

While the Xbox 360 version of GTA 4 sold 850,000 more copies than the PlayStation 3 edition, the hardware race between the two consoles was far closer--the 360 outsold its shiny black competitor by a mere 900 units.

April hardware sales in the United States were as follows:

1. Wii - 714,200
2. Nintendo DS - 414,800
3. PSP - 192,700
4. Xbox 360 - 188,000
5. PlayStation 3 - 187,100
6. PlayStation 2 - 124,400

Meanwhile, April's best-selling console games in the U.S. were:

1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar, X360) - 1,850,000
2. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo, Wii) - 1,120,000
3. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar, PS3) - 1,000,000
4. Wii Play (Nintendo, Wii) - 360,000
5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo, Wii) - 326,000
6. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (Polyphony Digital, PS3) - 224,000
7. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (Chunsoft, NDS) - 202,000
8. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time (Chunsoft, NDS) - 202,000
9. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Vicarious Visions, Wii) - 152,000
10. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Infinity Ward, X360) - 141,000

"It's unusual for three games to exceed the 1-million mark in a non-holiday month which just goes to prove that great content can succeed regardless of when it is launched," noted NPD analyst Anita Frazier.

Update: Microsoft has confirmed to Shacknews that it did not take the Wii into account when it claimed the Xbox 360 as worldwide console leader.

"Xbox 360 has the largest global install base of any current gen. high definition gaming console, Wii excluded," the company clarified when asked how Xbox 360 could lead worldwide with 19 million when the Wii has sold 24.45 million.

Original Post: In a carefully worded press release, Microsoft today announced that the Xbox 360 is the first console of this hardware generation to sell over 10 million units in the United States.

"History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle," boasted Microsoft senior VP Don Mattrick. "We are uniquely positioned to set a new benchmark for the industry."

Despite Nintendo's Wii selling over 24.45 million units worldwide, Microsoft stated that Xbox 360 leads worldwide with sales of over 19 million units, which it... Read more

Sony Computer Entertainment president Kazuo "Kaz" Hirai claims that the PlayStation 3 will surpass the Wii and Xbox 360 within the system's 10-year life cycle.

"We've only really begun to scratch the surface with PlayStation 3 but I am confident that given the long life cycle we have planned for the machine we are going to have a very good install base in all of the major territories," Hirai told the BBC. "I am very confident that after the 10-year life cycle we will have the install base that we are looking for."

PS3 sales were recently announced to have surpassed the Xbox 360 in Europe, where it still trails behind Nintendo's Wii. Hirai noted that the PlayStation 3's 2008 software line-up would aid in driving sales of the console for the year.

"If you look at line-up coming out this year--Metal Gear Solid 4, Resistance 2, [Motorstorm sequel] Motorstorm: Pacific Rift, LittleBigPlanet--there is a whole raft of titles between now and the end of the year which will really help fuel growth of the install base."

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe president David Reeves said that Sony's PlayStation 3 has outsold Microsoft's Xbox 360 in Europe, having moved more than 5 million consoles since launch, Eurogamer reports.

Speaking at the PlayStation Day event today, Reeves added that the PlayStation 3 managed to surpass the Xbox 360 despite the rival console's 16 month head start, and outselling its competitor on a month-by-month basis since October of 2007.

"We are particularly proud of this as it has been achieved in a similar time frame as PlayStation 2 which retailed, if you remember, at a significantly lower price," Reeves noted.

Among other sales figures divulged in the press conference were a total of 12 million PSPs and 48 million PlayStation 2s units moved in lifetime sales in the European territory.

Rental agency Blockbuster has announced several efforts to expand its presence in the video game sector, beginning with the placement of high-profile video games such as Mario Kart Wii and Grand Theft Auto IV in the formerly movies-only "New Releases" section.

The company further boasted that all of its corporate-owned branches in the United States are now stocking and selling software, hardware and accessories for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS.

To celebrate, the Blockbluster revealed an exclusive PlayStation 3 bundle--containing a 40GB PS3, HDMI cable, Traveller's Tales Transformers: The Game, Blu-ray Remote Control, Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray disc, and 12-week PS3/Blu-ray rental card--is now selling for $499.99.

The retailer had previously attempted to get into the retail games business through the opening of GameRush stores within select Blockbuster locations, which allowed gamers to buy and trade gaming paraphernalia for new and used games and hardware.

The New York Times reports that owners of Nintendo's Wii console purchase roughly 20% less games than PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 owners, owing to the system's expansive install base.

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter says that the average Wii owner buys only 3.7 games a year, compared with 4.7 for the Xbox 360 and 4.6 for the PlayStation 3.

"It reflects the broadening of the demographic," Pachter said. "Nintendo's market doesn't feel the same sense of urgency to buy every game that's coming out."

Additionally, the sales of Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl dropped 90% month following its release, indicating that the base of hardcore gamers anticipating the title' had been depleted. Smash Bros. Brawl sold more than 1.4 million... Read more

Console manufacturers Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have all chimed in on NPD's sales figures for March, which saw Nintendo's Wii once again outsell both Sony's PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 in North America, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl taking the top spot in software sales with 2.7M units sold.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 broke the PlayStation 3's two-month winning streak for the #2 spot in hardware sales, moving 262,000 consoles in March. Microsoft again suggested that shortages played a hand in the total numbers for the month.

"Going into March, some key U.S. retailers were still experiencing the trickle down effect of Xbox 360 console shortages," a Microsoft representative said. "By the end of March, supply issues had improved and we expect retailers to be fully stocked with Xbox 360 consoles in time for the Grand Theft Auto IV launch."

The company went on to tout a 7.5 software attach rate for the Xbox 360 in March, describing the data as "a record for any game console".

In its response to the data, hardware manufacturer Sony noted that the 257,100 PlayStation 3s sold in March represent a 98% year-over-year growth in sales, while 1.9M software units sold marked a 139% increase over... Read more

Sales-tracking firm The NPD Group today revealed that Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl has topped the North American software sales charts for the month of March with a staggering 2.7M units sold, knocking Infinity Ward's Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare off a four-month reign at number one.

In terms of hardware, the Wii outsold the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, followed by the Nintendo DS in close second. March hardware sales for the North American market were as follows:

1. Wii - 721,000
2. Nintendo DS - 698,000
3. PSP - 297,000
4. Xbox 360 - 262,000
5. PlayStation 3 - 257,000
6. PlayStation 2 - 216,000

"Nintendo systems represented 58 percent of all video game hardware sold in March in the United States," said Nintendo marketing VP Cammie Dunaway. "We expect our momentum to continue with big upcoming game launches like Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit."

North America's top-selling console titles during March were:... Read more

Console manufacturers Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have all chimed in on NPD's sales figures for February, which saw Nintendo's Wii once again outsell both Sony's PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 in North America.

As in January, the PlayStation 3 outsold the Xbox 360, which Microsoft again attributed to supply issues. Both Sony and Microsoft expressed high expectations for Rockstar North's Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3, X360), which arrives on April 29.

"Xbox 360 remained in a supply constrained situation," stated a Microsoft representative, who once again reaffirmed that Microsoft is not in talks to bring Blu-ray movie playback to the Xbox 360.

"The [supply] situation is improving," Microsoft continued, "and we are confident consumers will soon be able to find the Xbox 360 SKU they seek, in time for the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV, which we expect to be one of the biggest titles of the year with huge impact on the Xbox 360 platform."

Referring to 2008 as "the year for PS3," Sony Computer Entertainment America president and CEO Jack Tretton trumpeted the PlayStation 3's Blu-ray... Read more

Sales-tracking firm The NPD Group today revealed that the Xbox 360 edition of Infinity Ward's Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare has topped the North American sales charts for the fourth month in a row, ranking as the best-selling console title in February.

In terms of hardware, the Wii outsold the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with the Nintendo DS reigning as the month's best-selling system. February hardware sales for the North American market were as follows:

1. Nintendo DS - 587,600
2. Wii - 432,000
3. PlayStation 2 - 351,800
4. PlayStation 3 - 280,800
5. Xbox 360 - 254,600
6. PSP - 243,100

"Xbox 360 remained in a supply constrained situation [during February]," Microsoft stated. "The situation is improving and we are confident consumers will soon be able to find the Xbox 360 SKU they seek...we expect [Grand Theft Auto IV] to be one of the biggest titles of the year with huge impact on the Xbox 360 platform."

North America's top-selling console titles during February were: ... Read more

The latest weekly hardware sales out of Japan show that Sony's PSP outsold the Wii and Nintendo DS platforms, Gamasutra reports.

According to figures released by sales research firm Media Create, Japanese sales of the PSP saw a boost of over 20,000 units sold to a standing total of 73,706 for the week ending March 2nd. The Wii, meanwhile, rose just around 1,000 units to a total of 64,535, while the Nintendo DS numbers grew only slightly to a final tally of 51,922.

Curiously, the PSP's surprise leap to first place in the Japanese hardware market was not accompanied by any new release, and only two of the top 20 games in software sales were PSP titles.