There is good news in every statistic, depending on how you twist the numbers. It is not surprising that all three game console manufacturers found good news in the latest unit sales numbers. However, besides the obvious plain sales numbers, NPD’s shipment estimates reveal a trend that the Wii’s best times in the U.S. market may be over and Nintendo could be in trouble as soon as Sony and Microsoft roll out there new game controllers, which effectively serve as platform refreshes.

According to NPD, Nintendo sold 277,200 Wii’s in April, Sony 180,800 PS3s and Microsoft 185,400 Xbox consoles. The combined shipments of 643,400 units are almost 50% below the March result of 1.21 million and about flat with the April 2009 result of 642,000.

The big loser in April was the Wii, whose shipments dropped by 18.5% year over year, while the Xbox 360 gained 5.9% and the PS3 42.4%, according to the figures released by NPD. The Wii is still the best selling console, however, and its shipment drop is enough to drag the entire industry into negative growth area. Year to date, shipments are down 6.7% to 4.1 million consoles, compared to 4.4 million at the same time in 2009.

(6 Images)

Sony commented NPD’s numbers stating that “the continued momentum of our brand only further solidifies the value proposition we offer our consumers.” Microsoft, knowing that it has a solid foundation, said that “in one month, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 will make entertainment history at the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo” and added that Xbox 360 buyers typcially purchase 8.8 games for the device. Nintendo said that “consumers recognize the unprecedented combination of value and fun offered by Nintendo game systems. But including even more hardware and software with every Wii system should drive consumer interest even higher.”

However, it appears that, now in its fourth year and after 29.3 million units sold, the Wii is beginning to lose its appeal with U.S. customers. That said, sales are still strong enough to allow the Wii to increase its installed base over both the Xbox 360 and the PS3. The Wii’s lead over the Xbox 360 is currently 9.4 million units and over the PS3 it is 17.0 million units. The Xbox 360 has sold 19.9 million units in the U.S. so far, the PS3 stands at 12.3 million.

The Wii’s declining appeal can be seen from various angles, and especially how its rivals are eating away market share as the leading unit sales are not enough to stabilize its market share, which has now turned into a soft decline. The Wii’s U.S. share stands at 47.64%, down from a 48.09% high in December 2009. The Xbox 360 is also losing share slightly and is down to 32.41%, which is down from 32.50% in December 2009 and down from 35.24% April 2009.

However, the PS3 has been quietly improving its market positing and now accounts for 19.95% of the installed base, up from 17.81% one year ago. Unit sales for the year to date are 1.13 million, which is up from 824,000 at the same time in April 2009 and just slightly behind the Xbox 360 (1.3 million). The Wii’s year to date unit sales dropped from 2.4 million units last year to 1.7 million at this time.

It is quite apparent that Sony has found a way to improve its position, while Microsoft has a very solid base for the introduction of its Project Natal controller system. The Wii may be getting a bit old and needs a refresh as well. Promoting what we know already and games alone may not be enough anymore. In one year from now, Nintendo may feel like a train rolled over it with the PS3 and Xbox 360 taking over the lead and finishing the current gen console race, which may end in the 2013 or 2014 time frame, on a strong note.

See all charts with details in our slideshow.

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.