Japan Charts: Mario Party Advance goes in at No.1; PSP overtakes DS

The Japanese software market continues to slow down after the busy New Year period, with new GBA release Mario Party Advance taking the top spot while weekly sales of the PSP surpassed DS sales for the first time.

Mario Party Advance displaced PS2 title Gran Turismo 4 from the top spot, selling 68,000 units in its first week on sale, while only one other new release made it into the top ten - From Software's PS2 action title The Story of Hero Yoshitune, which sold 42,000 units and came in at number three.

All eyes, however, are on the battle between Sony's PSP and Nintendo's DS, which saw the PlayStation Portable pulling ahead of its rival in weekly hardware sales for the first time, taking just under 31 per cent market share as opposed to just over 25 per cent for the DS.

The DS, of course, still has a huge lead in terms of overall installed base, but its sales are slowing slightly after the initial rush - while demand for the PSP remains high, with Sony's limited shipments being snapped up as soon as they arrive at retail.

Nintendo's platform continues to dominate in terms of software sales, however, with Wario Ware: Touched! taking the number four slot in this week's ranking, ahead of Super Mario 64 DS at number seven.

Two PSP titles also make it into the top ten - Hot Shots Golf Portable at number eight and Dynasty Warriors at number ten - but how much of a sales boost this represents is tough to judge, given that overall software sales in Japan dropped by over 40 per cent this week.

It's certainly too early to judge the performance of either the DS or the PSP based on this data, as PlayStation Portable continues to be badly affected by supply shortages while the DS is a few weeks further into its cycle and has enjoyed good supplies all along, meaning that most early adopters who want one already have a console at this point.

One thing is certain, though - the arrival of the DS and PSP has hurt sales of the Game Boy Advance, with the older handheld platform accounting for only nine per cent of the market last week. PlayStation 2, however, continues to dominate - leading the field with over 31 per cent market share.