Splatoon mania in Japan pulls Wii U back to top of hardware charts

Nintendo’s inky shooter has topped the software charts in Japan, helping Wii U become the best-selling console in the country.

Splatoon sold more than 156,000 units during its debut week, more than quadruple its closest competitor, newcomer Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai Deluxe on 3DS.

It helped the Wii U rise to the top of the hardware charts, shifting 15,787 units during the week.

Back in the software Top Ten, The Witcher 3, which fought Splatoon off from the top spot here in the UK, placed third in Japan during its second week on sale.

A pair of new PlayStation Vita releases – Possession Magenta and Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryu no Rondo tr. in seventh and eighth respectively – plus the continued success of Minecraft on the platform, helped Sony’s handheld place second in the hardware rankings.

The only other new software release last week was Downtown Nekketsu Jidaigeki for 3DS, which crept to number nine.

Here’s the software Top Ten for the week ending May 31st, according to the latest Famitsu data:

1. Splatoon (Nintendo) Wii U – 156,610 (New)
2. Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai Deluxe (Sega) 3DS – 37,941 (New)
3. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Spike Chunsoft) PS4 – 21,166
4. Minecraft: PlayStation Vita Edition (Sony) Vita – 11,420
5. Mario Kart 8 (Nintendo) Wii U – 11,334
6. Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition (GungHo Online) 3DS – 10,517
7. Possession Magenta (Comfort) Vita – 9,437 (New)
8. Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryu no Rondo tr. (Bandai Namco) Vita – 9034 (New)
9. Downtown Nekketsu Jidaigeki (Arc System Works) 3DS – 8,966 (New)
10. Style Savvy 3: KiraKira Code (Nintendo) 3DS – 5,854

And here are the weekly hardware rankings:

1. Wii U – 15,787
2. PS Vita – 12,945
3. New Nintendo 3DS XL – 11,640
4. PS4 – 11,327
5. New Nintendo 3DS – 2,998
6. PS3 – 2,708
7. Nintendo 3DS XL – 978
8. Nintendo 3DS – 725
9. PS Vita TV – 463
10. Xbox One – 348