Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Becomes The Biggest Game Launch of the Year in the UK
Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet were released on 18th November 2022; they were the first mainline Pokémon games in three years after the last Pokémon Sword and Shield in 2019. The hype for the new Pokémon games was so massive that Scarlet and Violet became the most pre-ordered titles in the series’ history, as revealed by the Pokémon Company.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo; they are the first truly open-world Pokémon games with the players having an extensive range of selections to the way they want to explore the world, thanks to non-linear progression. And on top of these, your friends can also join you in capturing the Pokémon with the game’s co-op features.
However, the games got mixed reviews due to the lack in the technical department and graphics. Still, the fans were in for a new open-world experience of the Pokémon island. And the fact that Pokémon Scarlet and Violet became the biggest boxed launch of the year in the UK proves that fans have been waiting for a long time for a new Pokémon game.
As reported by Gamesindustry.biz, Scarlet and Violet have left the FIFA 2023 boxed sales behind in its launch week; more specifically, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet sales were 4% more than FIFA 23 in the launch week. Before we further break down the sales of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, it should be noted that these sales figures are for physical copies, as digital sales of Nintendo games are not usually public.
Pokémon Scarlet boxed sales account for 52% of the total sales, while Violet accounts for 42%, and the remaining 6% of the sales comes from the combined version of both games. Another interesting fact was noted by Gamesindustry.biz that the launch of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has also boosted Nintendo hardware sales by 62% compared to the last week’s sales of Nintendo Switch in the UK.
These sales figures made Scarlet and Violet the second biggest Pokémon game launch of all time, just behind Pokémon Sun and Moon, released in 2016 for 3DS. Still, according to GfK, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet generated more money during its launch week than Sun and Moon. The average selling price was £35 for Sun and Moon compared with £48 for Scarlet and Violet. For comparison,
Scarlet and Violet’s first-week sales are 25% bigger than the previous ‘new generation’ Pokémon release, Sword and Shield, which launched on Switch in November 2019. It’s also 70% bigger than last year’s Diamond and Pearl remakes and 56% bigger than January’s Pokémon Legends: Arceus.
Undoubtedly these sales figures are impressive even though both games come with various technical issues. It just shows how strong the Pokémon community is. Although, the popularity of the Pokémon franchise has declined in recent years.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are now available for Nintendo Switch. So, what are your thoughts about this? Were you expecting this sales record from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet? Have you played the games yet? Let us know in the comment section below.
