14 DAY TRIAL // Nintendo has announced that Mario Kart 8, the latest entry in the company's kart racing series, sold over 1.2 million units over its launch weekend, making it the fastest-selling title in the Wii U's history.
Businesswire has revealed that the number of sales is based on some internal estimates that take into account Japan, Europe and the Americas, but has refrained from specifying whether the quoted figure represents the number of games actually sold to consumers or just the total number of games shipped to retailers.
The firm has also revealed that previous entries in the Mario Kart franchise scored an average of over 14 million units sold per title, which the latest iteration seems determined to top, considering its stellar performance since its release on May 29 in Japan and May 30 in Europe and North America.
The best-selling titles in the franchise are among the most financially successful games of all time, with Mario Kart DS for the Nintendo DS selling over 23.5 million units, and Mario Kart Wii for the Nintendo Wii managing to shift a staggering 35.5 million units.
"Such positive early feedback for Mario Kart 8 reinforces the great gameplay experiences that Wii U currently offers. With Nintendo set to showcase its future releases at E3 next week, this is a great milestone going into the summer season," says Nintendo of Europe President Satoru Shibata.