While Nintendo’s NPD celebrations mostly centered around hardware sales, Microsoft has instead chosen to trumpet the success of third-party software on their system, particularly as it pertains to Grand Theft Auto IV. Microsoft points out that the game outsold "the other platform’s version" (apparently speaking any combination of the words "Sony," "Playstation," or "3" are grounds for immediate execution), by a margin of 2:1 with a total of 871,000 units sold. The company also points out that the 360 has generated $3.9 billion for third-party publishers, so hopefully when they decide what platform to develop for in the future, they’ll remember who butters their bread.

Microsoft also took a moment to point out the recent Nielsen research, which states that the Xbox 360 gets the most play time from 10-26 year-olds, hoping to woo a few more publishers with fancy demographics data. Basically, the company is saying, "If you want to sell your stuff to folks with disposable income, have a look this direction!"

In a sneaky little blurb at the bottom of the press release, Microsoft promised to have "quite a few aces up our sleeve," which they will be presenting at E3 next month. With their lineup already confirmed, one has to wonder what these "aces" may be. My guess is a Halo/GTA crossover where Master Chief and Niko team up to defeat an invading alien force who all look suspiciously like the Italian and Russian mobsters Niko kept running up against. Either that or they’re bringing everyone cake.