European GBA sales rocket as new Pokemon titles sell strongly

Sales of the Game Boy Advance in Europe jumped by over 200 per cent in the fortnight following the recent price drop to UKP 69.99, according to official figures released by Nintendo Europe this afternoon.

The boost in sales was assisted by the arrival of new GBA Pokemon titles Pokemon Fire Red and Pokemon Leaf Green, which sold some 250,000 units across Europe in their first two days on sale, and Nintendo hopes to continue the inertia with the launch of a new pink-coloured limited edition GBA SP later this month.

"This is a record sales uplift for the handheld console that continues to lead the market," according to Nintendo Europe's senior director of marketing Jim Merrick, "with a European installed base of almost 5 million."

"The phenomenal success of Pokemon FireRed and Pokemon LeafGreen in the first two days on sale proves that the franchise is still very much alive," he continued. "For the first time ever in a Pokemon game, we have introduced wireless gameplay through the use of a Wireless Adaptor (bundled free with the game). We believe this, plus the host of new features in the game, have been key to its success."

The GBA has a strong launch line-up planned for the remainder of the holiday season, with a new Legend of Zelda title, The Minish Cap, and Mario Vs. Donkey Kong headlining the first-party line-up, while third-party games including Need for Speed Underground 2, Lord of the Rings: The Third Age, The Incredibles and Tony Hawks Underground 2 should also perform well.