NPD sales numbers [[link]] procured by Gamasutra reveal that Sega’s M-rated tongue-in-cheek blood bath [[link]] MadWorld sold 66,000 copies in the U.S. following its March launch, and the publisher feels encouraged.

Despite a respectable Metacritic score of 82 percent, the M-rated MadWorld [[link]] didn’t exactly explode off of the shelves when Sega released it last month. The stylishly violent first offering from Platinum Games only managed to push 66,000 copies. Not a huge number, but still higher than Sega’s other M-rated title, House of the Dead: Overkill, which saw 45,000 copies sold in its debut month. Still, Sega seems pleased with the results, telling Venture Beat:

House of the Dead has done very well and has absolutely met our expectations. The first set of data for Mad World is very encouraging, as well.

I suppose when you are releasing an M-rated title on a console that’s been embraced by the American family you’ve got to keep those expectations realistic.

Wii’s M-Rated MadWorld Sells 66,000 in the U.S. [Gamasutra]