The share price of Nintendo hit an all time high yesterday, amid expectations that the new Wii gaming console would repeat the success of the DS. The company recently announced that it was to ship almost 400,000 units of the Wii for its Japanese launch at the start of December - offering four times as many machines as Sony did for its PlayStation 3 debut. In addition to this, Nintendo has said that it plans to ship 1.5 million units of the DS in December in Japan.

Nintendo is reportedly preparing a marketing blitz worth some $200 million, and has already benefited from reports in The Wall Street Journal, People magazine and even an appearance in South Park (where Cartman can't wait any longer for the Wii to be launched and cryogenically freezes himself until it is available.) All in all, this will be Nintendo's biggest ad campaign ever.

The change in the company's share price told its own story - shares in Nintendo closed up 3.2 percent at 26,750 yen yesterday, after hitting a record high of 26,770 yen. Nintendo shares have soared 88 percent since the start of 2006, making this a fine year for the company.