Grand Theft Auto IV sold a record 609,000 copies on its first day of release, generating an estimated £24.4 million at the tills — nearly double the box-office takings of a blockbuster film.

The higher-than-expected UK sales figure, compiled by Chart-Track, eclipsed the record of 501,000 held by the previous instalment in the Grand Theft Auto series, San Andreas, in October 2004.

It also comes hard on the heels of the success of Wii Fit, on the Nintendo console, which sold 240,000 in its first two days — more than the 200,000 that retailers had been predicting. Wii Fit is the sixth-best seller ever, generating £16.8 million at the tills.

Last weekend the highest-grossing film was Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which generated £2.1 million at the box office. Casino Royale and Pirates of the Carribbean: Dead Man’s Chest each generated just over £13 million on their opening weekends.

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Grand Theft Auto IV, meanwhile, is on course to beat the record for first-week sales, also held by San Andreas, which achieved 677,000. It is possible that the game could surpass one million sales this week, depending on stock availability. Many retailers have been saying that they are selling out.

The debut was boosted by the decision by the game's publishers, Take Two, to release the title in two formats, for the Microsoft Xbox 360 and the PlayStation3. Previous Grand Theft Auto titles were available only on the PlayStation. The Xbox 360 version accounted for 55 per cent of sales.

Typically, somewhere between a half and two thirds of first-week sales will take place on day one, depending on when in the week games are released. Grand Theft Auto IV’s first week will cover five days of sales.

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