November 29^th, 2001 (12:00am) - As of today nintendo declares that the Gamecube is the fastest selling platform of the three next-generation systems. According to Nintendo, GameCube sold more than one-half million units during the first week of availability. The firm claimed that its machine sold at nearly twice the rate of Microsoft’s Xbox system and 25 percent faster than Sony’s PlayStation 2 when it debuted last year. Initial North American shipments numbered 740,000 hardware units. 100,000 systems went to Canada and Latin America and another 75,000 to US rental stores. Nintendo said that all of the 80 percent shipments to retailers have sold out, though new loads of 125,000 pieces are already arriving.

"To have outpaced any other videogame console launch ever would be notable in its own right," said Peter Main, executive vice president, sales and marketing, Nintendo of America. "But to accomplish this under the current economic conditions is truly remarkable. There is a seemingly endless appetite for high quality, stay-at-home entertainment at an affordable price -- which is a perfect definition of Nintendo GameCube."