The PlayStation Vita's barely a week old in its native Japan, where its release was met with the usual lines and enthusiasm. Hordes of PlayStation faithful are hoping that Sony's latest handheld makes good on the promise of hi-def handheld gaming that approaches the quality of a home console.
But the sales numbers from the last week show continued dominance by Nintendo in the world of portable gaming. Gamasutra cites numbers from Japanese tracking firm MediaCreate which say that the 3DS moved 367,691 units in the Vita's debut week. The new dual-stick handheld sold 324,859 units, nearly double that of its predecessor. The 3DS' strong showing was helped by a great slate of software, with Monster Hunter Tri-G, Mario Kart 7, and Super Mario 3D Land all having come out recently.
It's only the first week for the Vita and many of the new system's hotly-anticipated titles have yet to roll out. Still, one has to wonder how well the Vita will do against a cheaper Nintendo 3DS, even when its own hot exclusives hit shelves. Round two of the battle for palm supremacy will happen in February when the Vita releases in North America.
3DS Outsells Vita In Debut Week, Though It Had An Advantage [Gamasutra]