In the recently released 4th Quarter 2006 numbers (compiled by the research firm NPD), Nintendo pretty much mopped up the competition. Kotaku has done a rather thorough analysis of the numbers, and while the Xbox 360 outsold the Wii in December, Nintendo totally hit their target and sold 1.1 million Wii units in 2006 from launch to Dec. 31st! In the same story, the DS Lite kicked the living crap out of the PSP, which should be surprising to no one, but the lead they've established is shocking: 2.5 million more DS/Lite units sold than PSPs. Ouch. In fact, the DS and (of all the darndest things) the PS2 were the real winners last month, with Nintendo selling 1.6 million new DS units, and the PS2 selling an impressive 1.4 million. This over the "next-gen" console sales for December, which clock in at 1.1 million for the Xbox 360, 604,200 for the Wii and an anemic 490,700 PS3s.

So, in short, Nintendo hit their launch goal (1 million by year end), and sold more DS systems than any other system. Microsoft won December, and has sold 4.5 million Xbox 360 units since its launch in 2005 (though this means in a month and a half, the Wii sold enough systems to make up 25% of the 360-owner market). Sony sales are in the shitter - PSP losing badly to DS, and the PS3 is finding more of a home back on store shelves rather than in people's homes or selling like hotcakes on eBay.

But the PS2? Sony's saving grace? What could be up with this? I've got an idea, but I'll talk more about that later...

So at any rate, because all of Sony's current systems are falling short of everyone's expectations, Microsoft is now taking note of the real competition: Nintendo. Bill Gates himself acknowledged that Nintendo is their "toughest competition," even though the company isn't directly aiming at any of their users. This is an interesting admission, and is a double-slap in the face of Sony, especially after such a smackdown on the PS3's nascent online service by MS reps recently.

Poor Sony. My heart breaks, and yet my Wii elbow throbs on...

The PS3 is NOT doing well. In fact, the 360 is making a strong comeback, and happily the Wii seems to be kicking everybody's ass. Down under, the Wii is shattering sales records as well, and is causing fights and riots in stores by the typically peaceful (?) Dutch. When it's this fun, how can you blame em:

Anyhow, back to the PS3. Analysts are taking note of the PS3's sales numbers, launch follies and long term potential, and with Sony's fate hanging in balance, this is serious stuff. Not to mention growing Blu-ray gripes: most owners either don't care or resent the fact that it's in there, and many analysts have pointed out that integrated drive ultimately won't matter in deciding the format war, and may in fact be hurting Blu-ray's chances, if it's having any effect at all. And speakaing of games, that's another area the PS3 is surprisingly lagging in: the leading game in the PS3-vs-Xbox360-tug-of-war-FPS-shooter-genre is on Xbox, Japanese sales of the PS3 are down by half, and in addition to already getting its butt kicked by Xbox 360 and Wii, the Wii might get even cheaper, which would only blow the doors off of Sony even harder. Combine that with the fact that most PS3 units are now moving off of eBay at cost, and...

Not to mention that sketchy cops and violence still dominate the PS3 headlines. Wii owners, on the other hand, are beating the crap out of themselves, but they seem to be having a blast doing it.

Meanwhile, on a completely different note that draws a stark contrast to the grim PS3 forcasts, the Wii is being heralded as a potential savior of a long-lost genre that based on recent re-releases for download services, people are quite hungry for.

At any rate, it'll be interesting to watch this continue to unfold as more PS3 units become available. Wouldn't it be sad if they ended up gathering dust after all that launch-related chaos?

Lines can be fun, can be dangerous, and ultimately take a lot of time and energy away from the rest of your life. Plus they don't guarantee you the system you want, since quantities are always limited, and it's basically a crapshoot anyhow.

So since it's a crapshoot, why not do it in your slippers from home? In front of your computer? With no frantic reload clicking? Just sign up, come back on Tuesday, and order one if you want it!

Register to eligible to purchase a 20 GB or 60 GB PS3, or a Nintendo Wii at Amazon.com!

It costs you nothing to sign up, so why not?

Shivers. Master Chief is such a timeless thug: