Nintendo has officially launched its next generation Wii U console in Australia, with stores around the country opening at midnight to start selling the games console.
24 games are available for launch, including Wii U specific versions of high profile games like Mass Effect 3, FIFA 13 and Call of Duty: Black Ops II.
Selected EB Games, Kmart and JB Hi-Fi stores all opened their doors early for the midnight sale. While it's too early to have any hard numbers, we do know that Nintendo sold 400,000 of the consoles in its first week on sale in the US.
Stiff competition
The timing of the US Wii U launch may have proven problematic for Nintendo. While the new Wii U console managed to ship 400,000 units in its first week, the Black Friday sales helped Microsoft sell 725,000 Xbox 360 consoles.
Sony managed to sell 525,000 PS3 units in the same time frame.
Without the sales in Australia, there shouldn't be the same level of competition at retail, although it will be telling to see whether Nintendo can maintain its success in the coming months.
