Nintendo celebrates the success of its popular handheld format, putting it into a similar bracket as the PS2...

We're getting ever so slightly less enthusiastic about running stories of Nintendo's unmitigated success these days, it seems barely a day passes without Wii achieving something, or as today proves, the DS accomplishes yet another significant milestone.

Laying claim to the fastest console ever to shift 10 million units across Europe, Nintendo today celebrated 22 months of conquering success since the DS first appeared on the scene back in March 2005.

Although the news serves as a continued reminder of the good times Nintendo is curently enjoying, it's worth putting this into comparison to understand that the DS performance is comparable to that of the PlayStation 2. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe recorded "shipments" of just over 12 million in September 2002, a 22-month period since its launch in November 2000.

Of course, this only serves to highlight the timeless issue involved when drawing any parallels between Nintendo and Sony; one consciously uses actual sales data, whilst the other refrains from releasing anything other then shipment figures. You decide which one offers a "fairer" portrayal of a system's success, although a source close to Nintendo did estimate a shipping figure of a "fair bit higher" then 12 million to TVG - not that we saw too many DS Lite's sitting on the shelves at Christmas.

Harking onto the widespread appeal of the Touch! Generations label and traditional games such as NEW Super Mario Bros, Nintendo's European Marketing Director commented:

"Nintendo DS topped the six million mark in September and has continued to go from strength to strength with thousands of new people being introduced to gaming through the Nintendo DS. Its appeal to both gamers and non-gamers means it has expanded the gaming population significantly. This landmark figure of 10 million Nintendo DS gamers cements the console's position as undisputed leader of the handheld market, bringing gaming to a whole new audience - something that was unimaginable a few years ago! The innovative Nintendo DS is now helping to shape the whole market with sales of the Nintendo DS console and games being the main drivers behind recent market growth all across Europe."