Nintendo has claimed that its GameCube console has 25 per cent of
the market share in Europe, putting the console ahead of the Xbox
in the region.
With a new GameCube bundle that includes Zelda Collector's
Edition and Mario Kart: Double Dash! launching this Friday for
£99, this puts the console in an even more solid position against
the Xbox.
While Nintendo has been openly touting its edge over the Xbox,
the latest figures from Chart-Track show that the GameCube is
outsold by the Xbox 2.5 to one and Sony’s PS2 by 7.5 to one.
These same figures showed that GameCube sales dropped 15 per cent
while Xbox sales increased 3 per cent, putting Nintendo's console
behind PS2 sales by a three to one ratio.
In contrast to Nintendo's reports on GameCube sales, Microsoft
has been largely silent about the European success of the Xbox
console, perhaps because they want to portray the PS2 as the only
real contender, or because they're saving their marketing blitz
for a later time.