Japanese Charts: Switch Games Make Up The Entire Top 20

Oh my Mario Bros

I am not surprised at this point

I still can’t believe those Momotaro Dentetsu sales. I’ve seen it in stores and am wondering what the appeal is.. but I figure it must be good.

The initial sales of Monster Hunter Rise in Japan will be crazy.

So Microsoft still underperforms that hard in Japan, huh?
A little disappointing.

Way to go, Nintendo. I love it when the Big N takes over total sales.

Can mk8 please stop selling well. We won't ever get a new one at this rate. Double Dash 2 anyone?

@MaxlRoseGNR Microsoft has no presence in Japan so it isn’t surprising. Like Microsoft products aren’t sold in many stores or even if they are, they are relegated to a small corner. During the 360 days, there was a bit more of a presence.

Its not even surprisingly anymore at this point. The switch took over Japan for a long time now.

PS5 digital edition selling almost as many as the 2DS.

Impressive, Nintendo!

Great to see however, Still weeks after Christmas these titles feel very I just purchased a switch which top 10 games should I play.

That top ten also represents over 30m in lifetime sales... Nuts

So long Pikmin - it was fun. You outlasted many a huge budget western "AAA" in the process.

Momotaro just won't stop. Probably one of the most successful 3rd party games over there in a recent while.

I want to buy ring fit but it costs 115 dollars here in Indonesia;-;

Can somebody tell me why Momotaro Dentetsu sells like crazy?
Saw some videos and didn't understand a thing. What is so special about this game?

Are the next gen systems region free?

If so I wonder if it would be a viable strategy for someone looking for an Xbox to try and import a Japanese one (they may not be selling out as quickly over there, and even with the import fees it may still be cheaper than paying scalper prices).

@MaxlRoseGNR What's more surprising is how Sony's underperforming there

@arpaktiko It seems it's a Hudson Soft franchise just like Bomberman. Konami owns Hudson Soft's IPs.
The game seems to be some sort of transport (trains/planes) simulator aimed at kids. The franchise has existed since the NES/Famicom days.

At this rate Sony's going to have no presence!

Let's just hope Nintendo's current success doesn't lead to complacency. They have a good thing going, I hope they keep it going. Looking forward to some big 2021 announcements!

At this point Sony is just wasting their money selling those stupid digital edition PS5. Nobody in Japan care about digital that much even during the pandemic. Also it seems like Sony and Microsoft didn't learn from their mistakes with the PS3 and Xbox 360 launch. Launching a console with 2 models won't equal success, it failed the PS3, it failed the Xbox 360, it failed the Wii U, it failed the PS Vita, and now it will fail the PS5 and Xbox Series. Reasons why the Wii, PS4, Xbox One, 3DS, and Switch sell so well was cause those don't launch with multiple models to confuse consumers, their other models came much later.

Well I hope the 17 foreigners are enjoying their Xbox Series X. 😄

If no one isn't surprised by this - by this time then they been living in the Caves too long.

@xxx128 Awww. Plebstation 5 doesnt sell. What went wrong?

And this isn't a supply and demand. It's called MisManagements at the very TOP that is to be blamed.

Sony: "We don't consider Nintendo a rival."
Also Sony: Not even 10k sold

I've only got 7 of those lol

Wow, Sony is failing big time with the PS5 in Japan. It's no surprise though. Anime games censorship and software-focus towards US/Europe are leaving their trails. :/

@xxx128 Sony acted like Sony.

@Lando_ A focus on western styles may indeed be hurting them. The "censorship" you see isn't even real, let alone significant enough to affect sales. I doubt if Japan even has culture warriors banging that drum.

Personally I went with Sony for the Japanese titles like Tales of, Persona 5, Wild Arms, etc.. Now, that the brand is shifting focus to more Western-appealing games, I've lost interest. :/ To each their own, PlayStation isn't for me anymore.

@Sandro89
I wouldn't mind Double Dash 2. But yeah, they could at least give us some more DLC for Mario Kart 8. Those of us who had it on Wii U have been over, what, 5 years? But I guess since the Switch is selling so well Deluxe will keep selling since it is one of the games every new Switch owner gets

@rdrunner1178 Nintendo already ended support for Wii U so you're not getting anything coming for the vanilla version of Mario Kart 8. Either get a Switch and play MK8 Deluxe or wait for next gen cause Nintendo ain't making a new Mario Kart until the Switch successor. Wii U got Mario Kart 8 and Switch got Mario Kart Live so next gen should get Mario Kart 9.

@Lando_ Other than Dragon Quest and whatever the next home console Monster Hunter game is, Sony just has nothing on the horizon that'll be huge in the Japanese market, and it's clear they've lost almost any interest in competing for the Japanese dollar.

Anyway, Nintendo and PC is the ideal combination of platforms going forward if you're into Japanese games.

@JimmySpades The censorship is real and well-documented. It's also why there was a bit of an exodus of fanservice game developers to the Switch (the ones who weren't Sony loyalists, anyway).

@roboshort No presence? Maybe not much product in stores, but there are tens of millions of Japanese Windows users. I’d call that presence.

The Switch sold 96,000+ units during this same week last year, so weekly sales are up 40%+ YoY. The Switch sold 650,000+ units during the first 3 weeks of 2021, up 30%+ YTD.

The Switch has just officially outsold the Super Famicom in Japan. The next milestone is to outsell the original Famicom, followed by the PS1 and PSP.

@Retro_Player_77
Yeah sorry I think you misunderstood me. I have a Switch and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. I was just remarking that it would be nice to get some new DLC since we haven't had any since 2015. I agree that we probably won't see Mario Kart 9 until the Switch successor.

No surprise Switch sales are up this year from the same week last year since Corona hadn't quite hit Japan, yet.

Also, imagine when MH Rise is out. That game is going to sell very well in Japan. Hell, probably the West too.

@Ralizah

To be fair, there are still some Japanese games to be released on PlayStation, like Tales of Arise, that Platinum Games Action RPG Babylon Fall, a NieR Automata clone from China, a remake of the first NieR, the next Final Fantasy, a new Harvest Moon, Ryza 2, P5 Strikers, a new Neptunia...

But: We can't be sure anymore if Sony will leave everything untouched and most of the games mentioned above will also release on Switch. :/

@Lando_ Sure, Japanese games will still go to the platform, but pretty much all of those are going to PC as well, and some are even going to Switch, as you point out.

It's possible to get almost everything on PC uncensored. It also gets re-releases that skip consoles entirely like the HD port of Persona 4 Golden. And, of course, there are hundreds of visual novels and other more niche sorts of games that are exclusive to that platform.

Like you, I primarily bought Playstation consoles for Japanese exclusives, but those are largely a thing of the past (outside of the occasional timed exclusive like Final Fantasy XV), and Sony's first-party resources are almost exclusively devoted to Western-oriented properties. Japan Studio seems like it's been resigned to permanent VR game duty.

@rdrunner1178 I believe the DLCs are suppose to be for the vanilla version only. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the GOTY version and was to include everything. Once a company made a GOTY edition, they're not going to go back and add anything new to it. It's suppose to be the upmost complete version.

Sony need to get those PS5 consoles to the west, far more demand in the west.

@WiltonRoots,

It's not looking to good for the long rumored Pikmin 4 game.

Seems like the US is the only region with enough stock such that PS5 is selling on par with PS4.

Launch aligned, PS5 sales in Europe are down 20-40% (depending on the region) compared to PS4 sales, while PS5 sales in Japan are down by nearly 50% compared to PS4 sales.

@Ralizah

Thanks for the advice. The amount of Japanese games on Steam is growing. Very fascinating. Even niche games like Onechanbara, Neptunia and Senran Kagura can be found there. It is worth saving up for a reasonably good PC then. Well, at least in case that the Switch Pro rumor stays a rumor.

So, in the last week in Japan, Nintendo Switches have sold over 15x all Playstation and XBox consoles combined. 94% market share.

PIIIKMIIIIIIINNNN!!! NOOOOO!!!!

🥺 “He fell.” 😢

@johnvboy Pikmin4 lives on in my heart. Along side a myriad of other forgotten classic series. Oh well back to WaveRace64 Rumble edition and 1080.

@beazlen1

I would love another game, and hoping the worldwide sales of Pikmin 3 show Nintendo the franchise deserves more games, would love a sequel to Wave Race....

@BlubberWhale I wasn’t clear enough. I was referring specifically to the Xbox . Many retailers don’t carry it or only have it in a small corner of the store. Of course Microsoft itself has a huge presence.

@roboshort Fair enough. We probably saw the same Japanese Xbox fan’s YouTube video on the subject ha.

Not only is the Switch outselling everything else, even the Switch lite is outselling every other console combined (except the normal Switch)

I predict they will continue to dominate the rest of the year!
To push holiday sales next year, Nintendo should come out with a revision or Pro version with more power to hold out 3-4 years until Switch 2 (hopefully) or a successor is ready to release.

I don't think this is particularly likely, but this list is only physical sales, right?

Perhaps there are confounding factors that mean that PS owners (and XB) disproportionately purchase digital, or Nintendo owners disproportionately purchase physical.

Again, unlikely, but possible.

Happy to see that Mario Maker 2 still sells.

@roboshort
From what i can see it's kinda like monopoly but it seems more complicated and stuff

@shazbot
Not sure on that one, I know NPD sales only tracks physical sales for nintendo, but XB and PS are always physical and digital sales, so if these are only physical sales that says even more about these games

For a sec I thought that was a new joycon design in the pic.

@BlubberWhale Hey half a million isn't terrible for japan only, maybe worldwide it's sold at least 1 million?

Does this come as a Surprise to anyone reading this? Not me for sure is the only person here to know this was obvious. And this has nothing to to do with 4K or upscaled 4K games or console resolution.

Remember when Zelda BOTW briefly had a greater that 1:1 attach ratio. Seems criminal that it has sold way less than 3 million in Japan considering the 17mill user base.

I know Zelda isn’t as popular in Japan and it’s still selling very well internationally but this is a once in a lifetime kind of game.

That Momotaro Dentetsu game from Konami still on number One.
Konami must be got a lot of money from Momotaro Dentetsu games.
Why don't Konami take a consider immediately to release Dance Dance Revolution A20+ for consoles ??
I'm already sick with Just Dance domination.
Bring back Dance Dance Revolution again.

@meeto_1 I know Zelda isn’t as popular in Japan and it’s still selling very well internationally but this is a once in a lifetime kind of game.
Where did this delusion come from? It's a Japan game not a NA or EU game developer. Where are you getting that info from to verify what your mentioning.

@OnlyItsMeReid No I agree, you’re right! 😃

You know, I think I saw WiltonRoots’ comment and sort of assumed Pikmin fell off the list into oblivion, but later after my comment I saw that it was still holding number 11, so not bad at all!

Somewhere I think I predicted/hoped for a 3 million worldwide lifetime sales number, and it looks like we may be on track. Really curious to find out the North American numbers. Still haven’t heard anything. (Probably won’t until March 31st, the magical date that everything hinges on apparently.)

They only sold 17 series s!!! The Japanese love their physical media.

@meeto_1
The only region where Breath of the Wild ever had a 100%+ attach rate was the US, and it was only during the Switch's launch month.

In Japan, Breath of the Wild had a ~60% attach rate during the Switch's launch month.

The PS5 stock situation is the same in Japan as in the west so the figures are more indicative of huge supply issues.

Japanese auction site prices are achieving double the retail price.

@SwitchForce lol. Im trying to picture a person speaking to another person face to face with such little respect over an opinion on video games. It’s truly amazing.

By the way, Zelda being a game developed in Japan is not a argument against it being more popular outside the region itself. As an argument it doesn’t hold much weight.

I’d be happy to see the following in 2021:

Wave Race (please!)
Mario Strikers (please!)
WarioWare
MarioKart 9
Breath of the Wild 2
Pilot Wings
WindWaker
Metro Prime Trilogy
Rare Collection
Link to the Past (update)
Pokemon Stadium
Donkey Kong 64 (update)

Come on Ninty smash the ball out of the court this year!

remember this moment ladies and gentlemen, this is historical, and it will never happen again after the nintendo switch, not by nintendo, sony or whatever lies in the future.
it is truly remarkable in gaming history. Yamauchi and satori would be very proud man.

a big aplause for all the people who are working for nintendo, they doing a great job, of wich they should be proud te be part of.
not only for creating (imo) the best nintendo product ever but also for changing its policy and behavior to consumers, developers and sales.

1UP

This made me laugh...Unfair I know as the PS4 had a slow start but eventually caught the Wii U, but I'm starting to wonder whether Japan will actually get allocated a decent amount of stock any time soon?

Momotaro Dentetsu reached 2 million and there's no article on Nintendo Life about it even though you guys pick up a lot of articles from gematsu which did two articles for the 1 and 2 million.

Konami has a huge success and you guys don't help lol

@Nemure
thats because its a heavily japanese title almost nobody cares about outside asia.

@PALversusNTSC And yet many other jp-only games had articles in the past