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Xbox outscores Wii in September

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From Bloomberg News

Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 outsold Nintendo Co.’s Wii for the first time this year in September as surging demand for the software maker’s “Halo 3” title helped lift console sales.

U.S. retailers sold 527,800 Xbox 360s, topping the Wii’s 501,000, according to a report Thursday from research firm NPD Group Inc. Total hardware sales rose 124%.

“Halo 3,” made exclusively for the Xbox, was the top-selling video game for the month with 3.3 million copies sold, NPD said. The game, released Sept. 25, gave Microsoft the push needed to surpass Wii, said analyst Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities.

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Microsoft said the game took in $170 million on its first day.

Wii, introduced last November, had outsold competitors every month since December. The console has attracted users with easy-to-play games and a controller that can be swung like a racquet during play.

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