While driving last night I was listening to the latest episode of Warning: A Huge Podcast — one of the few gaming podcasts worth the bits it's printed on — when the hosts began discussing the latest video game sales figures from the Land of the Rising Sun.
While most of the discussion was further depressing evidence of the Japanese gaming biz sliding headlong into oblivion, two figures stood out as hilariously contrary to the rest of the planet, further proof of the increasingly detrimental nationalism of Japanese consumers or simply baffling depending on your own personal tastes.
The two figures in question are the sales of Pokémon Black and White and the sales of Halo: Reach.
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- Nintendo of Japan
- If you're thinkin' about my baby it don't matter if you're black or white.
A high five should be aimed at Nintendo for what they've accomplished with their latest Poké-release. Last week saw the games' Japanese debut and in two days the duo sold 2,557,000 copies. That's a huge number, so if you're having trouble wrapping your mind around it, consider this: Pokémon Black and White now hold the record for the biggest two day sales total in Japanese gaming history.
This, despite the fact that overall Nintendo DS software sales are declining sharply across the board.
It should also be mentioned that the Pokémon franchise is rapidly approaching its 15th anniversary with no signs of slowing down. To wit: These latest two games are the 26th and 27th entries spawned from series creator Satoshi Tajiri's childhood memories of forcing bugs to fight to the death in the Japanese countryside.
Hit the jump for more numbers and less insect bloodsport.
