That made the Wii the top-selling console in April, according to the independent NPD Group, which tracks US video game sales.

“Wii sales were buoyed in part by the strong launch of Mario Kart Wii, which sold more than 1.1 million units,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of sales and marketing.

“Our belief in appealing to a broad, diverse audience of players continues to resonate with consumers, and we look forward to continuing our outreach to an expanded audience with the launch of Wii Fit next week.”

Strong sales for the Wii were backed up by the Nintendo DS, with those two consoles finishing as the two top-selling hardware systems in April.

Microsoft’s US sales milestone means the US makes up more than half of the 19 million Xbox 360 consoles sold worldwide.

Industry analysts IDC said Microsoft’s 10 million sales in the territory was a “significant achievement” and “an essential milestone on the road to market leadership”.

“Perhaps more important is the Xbox 360 worldwide online base,” said Billy Pidgeon, research manager at IDC.

“Twelve million Xbox Live gamers is the largest community in the connected console games sector, which represents the greatest growth opportunity in the console market and where Microsoft has been the leader for two generations.”