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1.2 Million Mario Kart 8 Copies Sold in Its First Weekend

by Zack Kaplan - June 2, 2014, 11:44 am EDT
Total comments: 19 Source: Press Release

This game is selling...fast.

1.2 million copies of Mario Kart 8 have been sold worldwide.

A press release brought this news along with the following statement from Reggie Fils-Aime, President and COO of Nintendo of America:

"The early response to Mario Kart 8 demonstrates that the best days for Wii U are still ahead...This year’s E3 is just days away, and it will be all about the future games for Nintendo platforms. This milestone is a great place to start!"

Additionally, Mario Kart 8's Club Nintendo offer of a free game with each Mario Kart purchase managed to crash the Club Nintendo servers, with many consumers attempting to take advantage of the deal.

A total of 100 million Mario Kart game units have been sold to date, the highest selling of which being the previous console entry, Mario Kart Wii.

Talkback

SorenJune 02, 2014

The key number will be how many bundles they sold.

KITT 10KJune 02, 2014

This is a good sign, but it doesn't mean Nintendo can breath easy.

MythtendoJune 02, 2014

Excellent news, the game is already off to a fantastic start (probably near the top of the NPDs) and should help the Wii U

Nile Boogie ReturnsJune 02, 2014

phe·nom·e·nal numbers  for an outstanding game. Really is well deserved.




Luigi's Death Stare In full bloom!

xcwarriorJune 02, 2014

Quote from: KITT

This is a good sign, but it doesn't mean Nintendo can breath easy.

I don't think they will, it's already been announced they have 4 announced games to unleash at E3.

But since they are now selling WiiU at a profit, they are pretty much in the clear. They just need WiiU to tread water like Gamecube did, and 3DS can make them the money. I think they will try for better than that, but this pretty much cancels out the "DOOOOOMED" nonsense and comparing it to Virtual Boy. Because Virtual Boy had no weekend like this past weekend, and Smash is still coming in 2015.

AdrockJune 02, 2014

Quote from: xcwarrior

But since they are now selling WiiU at a profit, they are pretty much in the clear.

Whoa, they are? Do you have a link?

BlkPaladinJune 02, 2014

Well IGN is report that sales of the Wii U rose over 666%, and 82% of that is attributed to the bundle.

Luigi DudeJune 02, 2014

Quote from: BlkPaladin

Well IGN is report that sales of the Wii U rose over 666%, and 82% of that is attributed to the bundle.

That was actually for the UK only.  Which is a pretty good sign for Nintendo because the UK has been the Wii U's weakest major territory.  If sales rose that high in the UK, that points pretty heavily to sales being even higher in France and Germany for Europe, and even higher in America and Japan.

KITT 10KJune 02, 2014

If they can make a game for the Wii U and for the 3DS that get the consoles and games to interact with each other, (like they thought about when the Wii u was still being developed), I can't see how it wouldn't help boost the sales more.

Ian SaneJune 02, 2014

With Nintendo's online track record crashing the Club Nintendo servers probably isn't as much of an accomplishment as it sounds. ;)

I'm curious to see how it affects the sales of the console itself.  You had to figure this game would be popular with existing Wii U owners but the Wii U's future relies more on how many consoles this can move.  Hopefully Nintendo can keep momentum going with a good E3 showing.

BlackNMild2k1June 02, 2014

Quote from: BlkPaladin

Well IGN is report that sales of the Wii U rose over 666%, and 82% of that is attributed to the bundle.

So the rumor about Iwata making a deal with a suspicious/shady looking character in the "crossroads" over the fate of the Wii U wasn't bullshit.

I wonder what he gave up in return....?

KhushrenadaJune 02, 2014

He didn't make the deal. Hiroshi Yamauchi did...........

BlackNMild2k1June 02, 2014

Ohhh... well then he must be PISSED right now.

unless he said "I would die right now to see Iwata fail hard after the Wii"

MythtendoJune 02, 2014

Quote from: Adrock

Quote from: xcwarrior

But since they are now selling WiiU at a profit, they are pretty much in the clear.

Whoa, they are? Do you have a link?

They announced at their investors meeting about a month ago.


I tried to get the game at my job the other day so I could get a discount, but they hadn't gotten it yet :/


When I do get the game, i'll get my free copy of Wii Party U (don't really have interest in it, buy I already own the other 3 games they are giving away with the offer).

broodwarsJune 02, 2014

*shrugs* Yeah, it's a good sales number, but it means almost nothing if Nintendo doesn't sell a similar number of Wii Us with it. It's not exactly a secret that the people who bought the Wii U are die-hard Nintendo fans, so it's likewise not a surprise that the Wii U's 1st major retail game since Donkey Kong sold well. It's not like there's been much else to play on the thing.  Likewise, it's not exactly a surprise that a 1st party Nintendo title would sell well on a console where only 1st party Nintendo titles have sold well so 3rd party development will remain indifferent.

So yeah, it's a good start, but it would be premature to call this a revitalization of the Wii U right now.  It's just a decent game that's sold well to an audience it's always sold well to.

marvel_moviefan_2012June 02, 2014

That is pretty good for a first weekend though especially for a May release. Depending on how things work out I might be getting a Wii U and this bundle pretty soon.

Mop it upJune 02, 2014

Nice. I wonder how many were the system bundle.

Nothing warms my heart more than seeing the Kooch look like a fool.

KhushrenadaJune 03, 2014

Quote from: BlackNMild2k1

Ohhh... well then he must be PISSED right now.

unless he said "I would die right now to see Iwata fail hard after the Wii"

I think you are forgetting when he died which is September last year. From that point, the Wii U console sales started to pick up again after flatlining as well as games started getting released for it. Of course, they didn't meet the 9 million expected units but let's face it, there's only so much the devil can do. Besides, the 666% increase in U.K. should tell you that things are on track again.

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