SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 22 — Companion games Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield have sold six million copies worldwide during their first week on sale, The Pokémon Company has revealed, confirming its status as the console’s fastest seller.
Released on November 15 as the first core franchise entries on the Nintendo Switch, Pokémon Sword and Shield is now the console’s fastest-seller to date, Nintendo has confirmed.
Of the six million copies sold, North America contributed two million, per a separate announcement, while 1.36 million were derived from Japanese sales, according to industry data published by Japan’s Famitsu magazine.
In both Japan and the UK, Sword and Shield were already understood to be the console’s fastest sellers in terms of three-day sales, according to earlier reports.
The games, which are functionally identical with a small number of creatures and characters exclusive to each, have overtaken Super Smash Bros Ultimate to take the Nintendo Switch’s first-week crown.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate shifted 5fivemillion copies over the course of its first seven days.
It would appear, by virtue of omission, that Sword and Shield did not manage to surpass predecessors Pokémon Sun and Moon.
In the lead up to release, some sections of the series’ fanbase expressed disappointment with game features — specifically the atypical absence of some Pokémon creatures introduced in previous games — while the games’ reception at review was not quite at the same level of acclaim as Sun and Moon.
In addition, when Pokémon Sun and Moon launched in November 2016 for the portable Nintendo 3DS, 61 million 3DS consoles had been shipped to retail worldwide, according to Nintendo’s own figures; by contrast, at the time of the Sword and Shield launch, Nintendo had shipped 41m Switch units internationally.
Yet as Sword and Shield generate more revenue than Sun and Moon, thanks to differences in average retail prices, the console manufacturer and Pokémon Company partner may not be too worried in the short term. — AFP-Relaxnews
