Just as the down economy was getting blamed for hurting video game sales, Nintendo struck gold with its long-anticipated Wii MotionPlus peripheral.
In just eight days, the accuracy-boosting add-on for the Wii's motion controller, packaged with the game Wii Sports Resort, sold 500,000 units, Ars Technica reports. Like the original Wii Sports, the new game consists of several quick and simple minigames, designed to showcase the capabilities of the motion controller.
The Wii MotionPlus actually went on sale in June, bundled with Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10. That game, either with the bundle or without, sold 272,400 units in June. We'll have to wait for July's sales figures to know for sure, but I don't think it'll be long before there are one million Wii MotionPlus peripherals sold -- if it hasn't happened already.
More than just good news for Nintendo, the Wii MotionPlus' success suggests that other game publishers and developers won't be so shy about using it. So far, there's been a noticable lack of upcoming games due to support the peripheral. Besides Tiger Woods and a couple other sports titles, and a first-person action game called Red Steel 2 that will be released next year, there's literally nothing on the radar.
I played a bit of Red Steel 2 at E3 this year, and I bought Tiger Woods 10 back in June, and it's clear to me that MotionPlus has a lot of potential, but it all comes down to how game makers use it. That's the same situation Microsoft and Sony will run into if they release motion controllers in the coming years, but Nintendo already has an advantage thanks to the Wii's impressive console sales. If publishers and developers are assured that enough of those owners are also buying the MotionPlus, we're well on the way to seeing better games for the Wii.
