Nintendo announced that the new Nintendo 3DS has beaten the 3DS XL in terms of sales upon launch both in the United States and Europe. It seems that the Nintendo 3DS is way popular than 3DS XL in the western hemisphere. 

According to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, Nintendo 3DS has sold 325,000 combined units, significantly more compared to the numbers generated by the Nintendo 3DS XL, which sold 115,000 units across the U.S. and Europe in 2012. 

The increase in sales is due to consumers holding off in buying last year's 3DS XL in favor of the Nintendo 3DS release this year. The sale of the new 3DS is also fueled by the release of much-anticipated game titles such as "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D" and "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate."  

Based on the crunched numbers, "Majora's Mask 3D" has sold around 555,000 units during its launch weekend in the U.S. and Europe, while "The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds" has sold 335,000. On the other hand, "Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate" shifted around 110,000 units over its launch weekend. The high sales translate to the immense popularity of the new gaming device from Nintendo. 

Now, Nintendo is posed with a great challenge on how to keep the sales afloat.

"Our next challenge is to keep this sales momentum," Iwata said in Nintendo's Third Quarter Financial Results Briefing.

Nintendo has plans to release a myriad of must-have games for the 3DS such as "Bravely Second" and the Mario version of "Puzzles & Dragons." In addition, Nintendo plans to add more features such as local multiplayer and the unit's trademark 3D effect. 

Meanwhile, it is best to hold one's horses in buying the successor to 3DS XL, which is the mid life-cycle update of the portable game console, since nothing is promising yet about the device. Currently, one game is working with the console. "Xenoblade Chronicles" will be launched on April 10 in the U.S. More games are expected to be available for the console in the near future.