Whilst the latest batch of sales figures from the NPD Group may point towards complete and utter Nintendo domination, with both the Wii and Nintendo DS systems sweeping the boards, a certain analyst believes that the Wii is quite inhospitable for Third Parties.

Cowen Group analyst Doug Creutz has gone on record to point out how the Wii edition of last month’s mega-hit ‘Madden 09′ from Electronic Arts actually sold less than even the PlayStation 2 version of the immensely popular yearly updated American Football title. Apparently the Wii version sold 79% less than the PlayStation 3 edition and 87% less than the Xbox 360, despite the fact that the Wii is the current generation leader in hardware numbers and how EA’s ‘All-Play’ version that was specifically set to appeal to casual gamers has garnered it a score on Metacritic than the other iterations.

Despite this being the first foray into trying to make such a hardcore sports title appeal to a wider audience, and a move that could well prove to be very successful in the long-run, Creutz still insists that we should all believe that the Wii is not giving Third Parties the returns they should be getting from a system with such a large userbase, “”We continue to believe that the Wii is a relatively inhospitable platform for third-party publishers.”

For reference, below is the sales data revealed by the NPD Group:

Hardware Sales - August 2008

• Nintendo DS - 518,300 (almost 22 million in total)
• Wii - 453,000 (almost 12 million in total)
• PlayStation Portable - 253,000
• Xbox 360 - 195,200
• PlayStation 3 - 185,400
• Playstation 2 - 144,100

Software Top 10 Sales - August 2008

1.) Madden NFL 09 (Xbox 360, EA Tiburon/EA) - 1,000,000
2.) Madden NFL 09 (PS3, EA Tiburon/EA) - 643,000
3.) Madden NFL 09 (PS2, EA Tiburon/EA) - 424,500
4.) Wii Fit (Wii, Nintendo EAD/Nintendo) - 394,900
5.) Mario Kart Wii (Wii, Nintendo EAD/Nintendo) - 328,700
6.) Wii Play (Wii, Nintendo EAD/Nintendo) - 200,200
7.) Soulcalibur IV (Xbox 360, Project Soul/Namco Bandai) - 174,000
8.) Too Human (Xbox 360, Silicon Knights/Microsoft) - 168,200
9.) Madden NFL 09 All-Play (Wii, EA Tiburon/EA) - 115,800
10.) Guitar Hero: On Tour (NDS, Vicarious Visions/Activision) - 111,200

“The positive public response to Nintendo DS and Wii has stayed strong throughout 2008. New titles like Madden NFL 09 All-Play for Wii have joined top 10 veterans like Wii Fit, demonstrating the wide and long-lasting appeal of Nintendo games.”
- Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

Of note is how Wii Play has now spent a record-breaking nineteen straight months in the Top 10, whilst Too Human managed to slink in at No.8 despite average reviews, and both Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii continue to storm ahead, racking up very strong sales. On the topic of the Wii being inhospitable, though, it should be remembered that the Wii is indeed attracting casual gamers that perhaps would never have considered picking up a title like Madden before. Therefore, managing to appeal to over 100,000 owners in its first month is a decent first step for EA in its efforts to expand the potential customer base for its long-running series.

Do you agree with Creutz or not? Be sure to share your thoughts by posting below…