This week, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata emphasized a boost in third-party software sales on typically first-party-friendly Nintendo hardware.

"Third party titles sold more [in the U.S.] on Nintendo hardware than on any other platform for two consecutive months," Iwata said in a financial presentation.

He added that as of the end of March 2008, there were only 12 third-party Wii titles with sales totaling over 1 million units. But as of December 2008, that number had jumped to 30 titles, he said.

On DS, there were 28 third-party DS games that exceeded 1 million units at the end of March 2008. That number climbed to 49 at the end of December.

"As the hardware expands the installed bases, we are starting to see a cycle where more titles from the third parties are making the million-seller list," he said.

Following the launch of the Wii, third-parties were taken aback by the uptake of the then-unusual hardware. Many had to transition development resources away from other platforms in order to address imminent market demand for Wii software. Since then, some publishers have established studios that focus exclusively on Wii or DS development.

Nintendo first-party software still puts up a fierce fight for the consumer dollar. The company revealed today 11 first-party Wii software titles and 15 DS games that have exceeded the 1 million unit mark.