Nintendo Switch Sports Is The Best Selling Physical Game During August (EU)

Wow, and it's not even complete.

I don't even think Switch Sports is good enough.
Go Vacation on Switch still my favorite.

How in the world is Saints Row continuing to be near the top? It's an abysmal entry from what I've heard and seen.

GTA V in first! This game is the most cash cow in history!

@StarPoint Outrage advertisment works. The ads were specifically designed to *** off a specific and very vocal audience and it did the job. That is the reason I knew this game existed. And it also has a name that already is slightly nostalgic, which definately helped.

Not deserved at all... I bought it mainly for my 5 years old daughter. And even her, after playing the game like 3 times 30mn was getting bored and asking for more content. This game is a rip off in every way possible. Waiting a little more to see what "extra" content will be added before deciding to sell it for good. Really happy that I didn't go for the digital version or it would have been a pure loss.

Well, don't have to be top quality to be a top seller, after all.

Unfortunately, this affirms Nintendo's strategy of releasing maybe 75 percent of a game and delivering the rest later.

I think I played less than 2 h, and never played again! Waiting for golf.

Not surprised. Lots of kids and families love the game. They got what they asked for which is what matters in the end.

@Arawn93 I am also thinking that the continued success means it has become a popular party game.

@Burning_Spear I don’t like the trend, but I do appreciate when they announce free dlc upfront (giving the consumers the choice to buy now or wait and see). I appreciate honest communication.

Mostly, though, it is problematic for review scores. A reviewer can only review what is there. Switch Sports might have reviewed better if golf had been included at launch.

@Burning_Spear Imagine the alternative where Switch Sports, Mario Strikers: Battle League and Splatoon 3, all hadn't released this year. Because "they weren't finished".

I'd argue its better for both players and the developers if the games can release spread out across the years. Otherwise 2022 would have very few 1st party games and then 2023 would just have loads of games all coming out at once, the players wouldn't have chance to enjoy one title they want to focus on before the next big one comes out and games like Zelda could overshadow Mario Strikers if they released in close proximity.

Are games being updated to add comtent after the fact worse than 1st party software droughts and lopsided release schedules?

@Dr_Lugae I agree about not having barren periods in the release schedule, but I'd rather have Nintendo slow it down for a while, catch up on development, and get back to a practice of releasing games fully completed, sans any true DLC.

That said, I don't think what has happened this year has been a product of development challenges but more the company floating a new model of continually refreshing titles with more content, more like launching a game as a service rather than a game. Mario Kart would be an example. I think the current DLC is a test drive (no pun intended) for developing more evergreen titles that get refreshed over many years to provide more consistent revenue flows. I can see the company getting to a point at which Mario Kart and Smash are just there, and new courses, stages and characters get added every year or so, rather than a new game coming out. I hope not.

@Dr_Lugae That is why I give Mario Golf a pass. If they had waited for the dlc to be finished, it would have been overshadowed by Metroid Dread. And I believe they did announce before launch that there would be free DLC, including New Donk City courses.

The trade-off, though, is Mario Golf most likely received lower review scores.

And speaking of sports games, still no release date for Sports Story. Hopefully a fine-tuned game and worth the wait. 😊

@Tandy255 Mario Golf felt unfinished to me at launch. Not that I couldn't enjoy the game, but I didn't feel as though I'd gotten my money's worth. Now I do, but I shouldn't have to pay for content in advance, nor do I believe we should be put in the position of having to decide between buying now or buying later when the content has been fully loaded. Again, I'm not talking about legitimate DLC but content that falls under the MSRP price.

@Burning_Spear For most games, I agree. The Mario golf promised content, though, was added around Nov 2021. From Sept to Nov 2021 we got WarioWare, Metroid Dread, the New Mario Party, SMT V, and Pokemon Diamond and Perl.

They chose to launch Mario Golf early, promising more content. They could have waited for December, in an already crowded lineup. Or wait for early 2022 (which may have been the better option).

But it also feels like a summer game, so I am forgiving that they launched it early with promised updates.

@Tandy255 yeah. I mean if it wasn’t popular then it would not be still selling after this long.

Any “bad” word of mouth this game may have already long since circulated and copies are still getting sold regardless. It’s similar to why Ring Fit sold for so long despite being a casual game. Hardcore niche audience complaints does not apply to the majority casual demographic audience that this game targets to.

lol, I love it. It's great seeing what Nintendo Life gave a 6 continue to top the charts month after month. The game is great.

they game itself is still fine and fun, they just made the mistake of cutting so much fat to the point of putting off core fans. of course its selling well its the same addictive fun that made wii sports so popular for "casuals", but i agree that price tag is not for everyone

Hopefully the sales will impress Nintendo enough to warrant a couple more additional sports being added to the game in order to keep interest in the game over the long term. If they added just a couple more sports beyond what is already there we would have a pretty solid game. I have already put over 100 hours in the game but that is mainly through bowling since I don't enjoy the other games besides soccer that much. I enjoy watching my girlfriend playing this game more than anything else. She gets the most enjoyment out of it. I have already gotten my money's worth regardless I guess.

@Dpullam True! Even adding more modes for existing sports would be welcome. 😊