3DS surpasses the PS3 in lifetime sales in Japan

Want to hear something funny? The PlayStation 3 has been out in Japan for over six years; the Nintendo 3DS has been out for just under two years. Yet when it comes to sales, the 3DS has sold more in Japan than the PS3 has. According to Media Create (via Nintendo Life) — who crunched the numbers so we didn't have to — the 3DS sold 211,499 between December 3rd and December 9th to bring its lifetime sales total in Japan to 8,799,378 units. It overtook the PS3, which has 8,716,260 in its lifetime in Japan. So much for the 3DS being a failed system, huh?

The PS Vita, which is supposed to compete with the 3DS, only manages to sell a fraction of what the 3DS sells. Again, during December 3rd through the 9th, the PS Vita sold only 11,039 units, bringing its lifetime total in Japan to 1,074,621. My favorite thing about all of these sales numbers? The Wii U sold the best during that week.

Here's the rundown of how well the consoles sold from the 3rd to the 9th, with lifetime numbers in parenthesis:

1. Nintendo Wii U – 308,142 (308,142)
2. Nintendo 3DS – 211,499 (8,799,378)
3. PlayStation 3 – 36,994 (8,716,260)
4. PSP – 19,637 (19,488,236)
5. PlayStation Vita – 11,039 (1,074,621)
6. Nintendo Wii – 6,714 (12,608,700)
7. Xbox 360 – 1,216 (1,608,399)
8. PlayStation 2 – 904 (21,829,112)
9. Nintendo DS – 424 (32,875,469)

Ya know what's really sad? The PlayStation 2 almost outsold the Xbox 360 last week. Just my personal opinion, but I think this shows that Microsoft has no idea how to appeal to the eastern gaming market — something they have to learn how to do with the next Xbox console.

You can follow Senior Editor Lance Liebl on Twitter @Lance_GZ. He likes talking sports, video games, movies, and the stupidity of celebrities. Email at LLiebl@GameZone.com