Nintendo's new Wii console has its first million-seller. In an interview with IGN Wii on Thursday, NOA's VP of marketing and corporate affairs, Perrin Kaplan, said that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has sold more than one million copies "in the Americas alone." Kaplan also said that Nintendo is well on target to sell through six million Wii systems around the world by the end of March.
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With only 332 days left until 2008 comes charging through the door, we can reveal that the game that bagged the most 'Game of the Year' accolades for 2006 was The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Taking the results from 13 different multi-format Game of the Year awards, Nintendo's dungeon doozy was honoured five times, while three gaming sources chose Xbox 360's heavy booted alien squisher, Gears of War, as their game of the year. Check out the list below to see who voted for what as their ...
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It's the end of another great year for gamers. Two new systems launched. Two handhelds waged bloody battle. And next gen gaming got a big kick in the pants - thanks to a year of lonely rule by the Xbox 360. PC gaming fought fire with nukes, waging its battle against the console-based onslaught. In short, it ruled. How do we handle this? We're handing out our gleaming Platinum Chalice to those games and systems which gave us the business. No boring list of 37 different strategy games, divided ...
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Nintendo has announced that the Wii console has sold out in Europe, with 325,000 units snapped up in the two days following last Friday's launch.

That means the Wii now holds the title of fastest-selling home console in history across Europe - and not just in the UK.

First-party launch title The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was a big hit with consumers, shifting 240,000 copies over the launch weekend - meaning 74 per cent of those buying a console also bought the game.

Mini-game collection Wii Play, which comes bundled with a remote controller, was bought by more than 50 per cent of Wii purchasers

"Wii has become an overnight success in Europe with people of all ages rushing out to get their hands on the console," said Nintendo Europe marketing director Laurent Fischer.

"Even at this early stage it is clear that Wii is delivering on its promise to expand the gaming market, with a uniquely diverse audience all keen to experience the sensation for themselves."

Due to high demand for the console shop shelves remain empty at present, but Fischer pledged, "For those who were unable to buy Wii during the launch weekend, rest assured more stock is already on its way.

"We are doing everything possible to ensure that a steady supply of Wii units is shipped to stores across Europe throughout December and into 2007."

The arrival of the Wii was heralded with a launch event at HMV's flagship branch last week.

"The demand for Wii has been truly amazing, and the official launch at our Oxford Street store was one of the biggest events we've ever staged there," said Tim Ellis, head of games for HMV.

"HMV has received a huge amount of customer pre-orders - beyond anything we've ever seen before, including from family shoppers as well as dedicated Nintendo gamers.

"This sug...
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Next-Gen's European media partner reports that some UK retailers are opting out of a pre-order release scheme and selling off all launch allocation on day one; customers lining up for tomorrow's launch.
As the Wii is launching in Europe tomorrow morning, retailers are just as anxious to rack up some sales.

A games buyer at Asda Sanjay Kapoor told trade site MCV, "As we've decided to sell from day one rather than using a pre-order system, we're going to see just how manic customers are for Wii on launch day. From what they've told us, we could easily sell ten times more than our allocation."

Independent local retailers also said that by foregoing pre-orders, the most loyal customers are more likely to snag a Wii. A retailer in London said, "If we ran a pre-order system, we'd not only run the risk of letting our best customers down, but we'd miss out on the local publicity that comes from the massive queues we'll see at midnight."

Over 20 titles will be available for the Wii at its December 8 European launch, including games from third-parties Electronic Arts, Activision, Midway, THQ and Ubisoft. As with North America, Nintendo is including Wii Sports with the system and will have The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess available at launch.
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Famitsu reports that early Wii software sales in Japan put Wii Sports and Wii Play ahead of Zelda.

Everyone expected The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess to clean up in the Wii sales chart for the launch period, and this has been the case in North America. However, Japanese gamers had other ideas.

According to figures released by Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, the top selling Wii launch title was not Zelda, but Wii Sports with sales of 176,800 over the launch weekend. In Japan the game is not bundled with the console as it is in North America and Europe, but this hasn't stopped the game reaching 47% of Japanese Wii owners.

Behind Wii Sports comes Wii Play, a collection of nine mini-games designed to highlight the different uses of the Wii remote, and shifted an impressive 171,888 units. Zelda finally makes an appearance in third place with sales of 145,068 units.
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Enterbrain has revealed software sales figures for the Nintendo Wii in Japan, with first-party developed titles leading the pack on the first weekend of release.

Wii Sports was the best-selling game, racking up sales of 176,880 units, with Wii Play reaching 171,888 units.

Fan-favourite The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was the third best-selling game, shifting 145,068 copies, way ahead of the number four game, WarioWare: Smooth Moves, which reached 63,086 sales.

Tecmo's Super Swing Golf was the only third-party title in the top five, selling 12,673 copies, while Ubisoft's Red Steel, a title receiving a lot of press in the US and Europe, sold just under 9000 units to become the eighth most popular launch game.

The software tie-in ratio for the home console stands at 1.69, with Enterbrain reporting over 372,000 Wii's were sold over the first weekend in the region.
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So Twilight Princess has only been out for one day and you're already stuck? Or perhaps you're just getting your eager hands on it today and want to tear through it as fast as humanly possible? Either way, we've got a video treat for you, a perfect way to get started on the game without revealing too much. Below you can download videos that will walk you through the Goron Mines and the nefarious Lakebed Temple, the latter of which could take something like four hours to best without help. Why ...
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Call it overkill, but this particular cinema from Twilight Princess was so cool we wanted to post it. It occurs just before the third temple, so if you're afraid of spoilers, well, you're still missing out. You'll see how and why there are two planes of existence in this Hyrule and even catch a glimpse of a power that might corrupt even Link... ooh, ...
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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was released yesterday along with the Nintendo Wii and here is a round up of all the reviews for one of the most highly anticipated games this year. As you can see it is an essential purchase for anyone considering buying a Wii.
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