Pokémon Scarlet & Violet Is The Best-Selling Game In Japan In 2022

Famitsu has launched its annual gross sales charts for 2022, and Pokémon Scarlet & Violet — unsurprisingly — has topped the yr’s gross sales, promoting an unimaginable 4,338,931 models since its launch in November (thanks, Nintendo All the pieces!).

In case you’ve been following the headlines and the weekly Japanese charts, then this may not come as a shock to you. Pokémon at all times does nicely — in 2021, Sensible Diamond & Shining Pearl was the second best-selling sport of the yr, for instance. Scarlet & Violet offered over 2.5 million copies in its first week, and the momentum hasn’t actually stopped.

You in all probability should not be shocked, then, that Splatoon 3 takes second place. Splatoon 3 broke a number of gross sales data when it launched in September and offered simply shy of two million copies in its launch week. Its complete 2022 gross sales equal 3,687,814 models, which is totally not a quantity to sneeze at.

Proper behind Splatoon 3 with 2,314,806 models offered is one other Pokémon sport — this time, Pokémon Legends: Arceus. This new twist on the Pokémon components additionally offered a staggering variety of copies in its first week, nearly cracking 1.5 million models. Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Nintendo Swap Sports activities spherical out the highest 5 — and Kirby is not far off of 1 million, both. Just one non-Swap sport made it into the highest ten, which is FromSoftware’s Elden Ring.

Sufficient from us, then — listed here are the highest ten best-selling video games in Japan in 2022:

1. [NSW] Pokemon Scarlet & Violet (The Pokemon Firm, 11/18/22) – 4,338,931 (New)
2. [NSW] Splatoon 3 (Nintendo, 09/09/22) – 3,687,814 (New)
3. [NSW] Pokemon Legends: Arceus (The Pokemon Firm, 01/28/22) – 2,314,806 (New)
4. [NSW] Kirby and the Forgotten Land (Nintendo, 03/25/22) – 969,047 (New)
5. [NSW] Nintendo Swap Sports activities (Nintendo, 04/29/22) – 887,722 (New)
6. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo, 04/28/17) – 742,018 (5,014,375)
7. [NSW] Minecraft (Microsoft, 06/21/18) – 548,415 (2,960,006)
8. [NSW] Mario Occasion Superstars (Nintendo, 10/29/21) – 485,594 (1,114,132)
9. [NSW] Tremendous Smash Bros. Final (Nintendo, 12/07/18) – 441,053 (5,065,191)
10. [PS4] Elden Ring (FromSoftware, 02/25/22) – 356,711 (New)

In one other unsurprising stat, the Swap can also be the best-selling console of the yr in Japan. Combining the unique mannequin, the Lite, and the OLED, the console offered 4,804,549 models in 2022 — greater than 4 occasions that of the PS5, which offered over 1.1 million models over the identical interval. This was the yr that the Swap outsold the 3DS in Japan, too, and we predict 2023 will probably be one other record-breaking yr for the Swap.

1. Swap (incl. Lite and OLED) — 4,804,549 (27,724,047)
2. PlayStation 5 (incl. Digital Version) — 1,154,054 (2,377,389)
3. Xbox Sequence X|S — 269,737 (398,395)
4. PlayStation 4 — 22,823 (9,417,767)
5. 3DS — 10,449 (24,597,897)

Are there any surprises for you in Japan’s best-selling video games? Share your ideas within the feedback!