50,000 Wii consoles already sold in the UK

Following the launch of the Wii across Europe at midnight last night, Nintendo UK has reported that 50,000 units of the console were sold in just 12 hours.

That equates to one sale every second, according to Nintendo - much to the satisfaction of UK boss David Yarnton.

"We are delighted with the amazing response to Wii and that people of all ages and gaming experience are embracing the way that we are turning the industry on its head," he commented.

"With so many units sold it is great to see that people will be enjoying Wii with their families this Christmas."

The official launch took place at HMV's flagship Oxford Street store, where 17 year old Londoner Marwan Elgamal became the first British gamer to pick up a Wii. Other shops opening at midnight included the GAME store down the road, which saw even longer queues and also sold all of its stock.

CEO Lisa Morgan told GamesIndustry.biz that the retailer was expecting more deliveries next week, but that nothing had been confirmed as yet.

"We are doing everything we can do to meet demand throughout Christmas and the New Year period," Yarnton said.

There's more from Yarnton and full coverage of the launch elsewhere on GamesIndustry.biz. To see photos of the HMV event visit our sister site, Eurogamer.net.