Nintendo has announced that it sold 12 million total hardware units in the US during 2011, marking the fifth year in a row it has accomplished such a feat. This includes more than 4.5 million units of Wii, more than 4 million 3DS systems, and over 3.4 million units of NDS systems.

This brings the installed base for Wii and Nintendo DS to 39 million and over 51 million, respectively.

Nintendo also said Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 for 3DS were also the fastest-selling titles in the history of their respective franchises at launch, and are the first 3DS titles to sell 1 million units each in the US.

On Wii, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword became the 45th Wii title to sell more than 1 million units in the US.

“One of the strongest software lineups in our history helped Nintendo have a great holiday season and to close 2011 with a full head of steam,” said NOA VP of sales and marketing Scott Moffit. “Not only have the new Mario and Zelda titles already broken records, but with strong reviews and satisfied customers sharing their positive experiences, all three are also shaping up to be the latest long-tail titles from Nintendo.

“Couple that with a massive first and third-party lineup in the first part of the year and the prospects for 2012 are extremely promising.”

In addition to the milestones reached by new software, two other Nintendo titles celebrated milestones as 2011 closed: Mario Kart Wii passed 11 million units sold, and New Super Mario Bros. for NDS systems crossed 10 million total units sold.

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The firm also said it has a strong line-up planned for 2012 with new installments in the Mario Party, Pokemon, and Kid Icarus franchises, and highlighted third-party titles such as Resident Evil Revelations and Metal Gear Solid 3D Snake Eater.