Pokemon Black & White 2 Dominates Japanese Charts as Nintendo 3DS Leads Hardware Sales

Pokemon Black & White 2 has surged to the top of Japan's weekly software charts, underscoring the enduring strength of the Pokémon franchise and the Nintendo 3DS install base. Developed by Game Freak and published by The Pokemon Company with support from Nintendo, Black & White 2 posted outsized sales that eclipsed other releases across the market for the reporting period. According to the latest chart data, 'Pokemon Black & White 2 dominated the Japanese software charts, outselling the combined total of the nation's top 20 games for the week,' the figures indicate. That level of market dominance is notable for a single-week release and highlights the franchise's continued commercial pull in Japan. Hardware sales data for the same period show the Nintendo 3DS remains the best-selling console in Japan, moving 68,056 units. The PlayStation Vita saw a decline in weekly sales, registering 13,589 units compared with 34,459 units in the prior week. PlayStation 3 and PSP hardware also appeared on the chart, while legacy platforms and Nintendo's handheld family rounded out the list. Weekly software top listings (by platform) from the reported chart: - [NDS] Pokemon Black & White 2 - [3DS] Dragon Quest Monsters Terry's Wonderland 3D - [PSV] Persona 4 The Golden - [PSP] Kenka Bancho Bros. Tokyo Battle Royal - [PS3] Tokyo Jungle - [PS3] K-On After School Live!! HD Version - [WII] Mario Party 9 - [3DS] Mario Tennis Open - [PS3] Dragon's Dogma - [PS3] Lollipop Chainsaw Reported hardware sales for Japan (current week, previous week in parentheses): - Nintendo 3DS: 68,056 (61,793) - PlayStation 3: 15,680 (14,673) - PlayStation Vita: 13,589 (34,459) - PSP: 8,954 (9,740) - Wii: 6,127 (5,963) - Xbox 360: 1,073 (1,084) - PlayStation 2: 1,065 (1,237) - Nintendo DSi: 900 (380) - Nintendo DSi LL: 704 (689) These figures provide a snapshot of Japan's console and software landscape for the period, illustrating strong first-week software performance for a major Pokémon release and the continued relevance of Nintendo's portable hardware in the region. Industry watchers will track subsequent weeks to see whether Black & White 2 sustains momentum and how hardware trends adjust in response to new releases.