With Some Help From Final Fantasy, The PSP Closes In On The 3DS

This week’s Japanese bestsellers list will likely be reference in a future report, “Why We Should Continue To Re-release Remakes of Final Fantasy Games” at Square Enix. The latest collection, the PSP release of Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection—containing Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy IV: The After Years—is this week’s top game in Japan.

More than 100,000 copies of the FFIV collection sold during week one in Japan. (PSP owners in North America get it on April 19, by the way.) That’s more than enough to best the week’s other new debut, Gundam the 3D Battle for the Nintendo 3DS.

That software victory for Square Enix gave the PSP a boost this week, coming within spitting distance of the newly launched 3DS.

For the rest of the top 20 bestselling games in Japan for the week of March 21 to 27, courtesy of Media Create, read on.

01. Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection (PSP) – 104,173 / NEW

02. Dynasty Warriors 6 (PS3) – 36,548 / 357,113

03. Gundam the 3D Battle (3DS) – 23,500 / NEW

04. Dissidia Duodecim Final Fantasy (PSP) – 21,741 / 403,912

05. Monster Hunter Portable 3rd (PSP) – 16,444 / 4,401,653

06. Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask (3DS) – 16,294 / 242,649

07. Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity (PSP) – 14,403 / 300,418

08. nintendogs + cats (3DS) – 13,219 / 160,742

09. SD Gundam G Generation World (PSP) – 10,160 / 283,802

10. Pokemon Black / White (DS) – 10,025 / 5,127,678

11. Gakuen Hetalia Portable (PSP)

12. Way of the Samurai 4 (PS3)

13. Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii)

14. Wii Party (Wii)

15. Portable Fairy Tail Guild 2 (PSP)

16. Classic Dungeon X2 (PSP)

17. Digimon Story: Super Xros Wars Blue / Red (DS)

18. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)

19. Samurai Warriors Chronicle (3DS)

20. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii)

Hardware-wise, as previously mentioned, the race for numero uno was close in Japan. Just a few hundred units separated the 3DS and PSP. Not so on the console front, which saw the PlayStation 3 with a clear lead against its nearest competitor, the Wii.

Nintendo 3DS – 50,710

PSP – 50,479

PlayStation 3 – 28,973

Wii – 11,808

Nintendo DSi LL – 9,760

Nintendo DSi – 8,604

Xbox 360 – 1,963

PlayStation 2 – 1,862

Nintendo DS Lite – 730

PSP go – 616