New York - U.S. sales of video game consoles, software and accessories rose 33% in March, to $1.1 billion, with Nintendo's Wii leading all next-generation console sales and the company's DS handheld far outpacing sales of all other game devices, Reuters reported, citing sales data from market research firm NPD.

Console sales nearly doubled in March, to $257 million. Nintendo's Wii sold 259,000 units, compared to 199,999 for Microsoft's Xbox 360 and 130,000 for Sony's PlayStation 3; the company's PlayStation 2 outsold all next-generation consoles during March, moving 280,000 units.

The top-selling game device overall for March was Nintendo's DS handheld, which sold 508,000 units, while sales of Sony's PSP handheld totaled 180,000.

U.S. sales of game software in March rose 15%, to $574 million, led by Sony's "God of War II" for PlayStation 2 (833,000 units).

For the year to date, NPD data shows U.S. video game sales have grown 54%, to $3.3 billion.

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http://tinyurl.com/3a2rt5 (Reuters)

http://www.npd.com