UK Charts: Mario Wonder And Sonic Superstars Start Strong, But Neither Can Out-Swing Spidey

Probably a close one with digital sales included especially as you can get Mario Wonder as part of the 2 for £84 voucher deal on the eshop.

Although the Switch does have a way bigger install base than the PS5 so the physical sales should of been more, it's launch sales are even behind odyssey which launched to a way much lower install base. Maybe people just don't care about Side Scrollers like they used to, 3D Mario games are the way forward.

no surprise spiderman beating mario wonder in the uk as the ps5 is the most dominate console in europe.

I amazed to see The Grinch: Christmas Adventures is still on Top 20. 😗

@UltimateOtaku91 The PS5's continued commercial success in Europe has just reached new heights. According to the latest report from Games Industry, Sony's current-gen console is utterly dominant over here, with system sales up a frankly mental 175% over the same period in 2022. It should be noted that PS5 stock shortages were still a bit of an issue 12 months ago, but overall, the machine was well on the path to stability in terms of production and consumer availability.

It sounds like the PS5 is pretty much carrying overall console sales in the region, as both Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series figures are down (28% and 35%, respectively) over September 2022. Sony's success alone meant that console sales were up overall by roughly 38%

Would it be possible to share the Switch splits for both EA Sports FC 24 and Sonic Superstars for this week? I see that they're missing from the article.

Oooooh my prediction last week was off by one. I had MK8D at 5 instead of Mirage.

Great start for all 3 new releases.

Very good for Mario Wonder and well deserved.

"I imagine with digital, it may well be the biggest Mario platform game launch in the UK ever"

This wouldn't surprise me at all. Not only that, but Mario games have incredible legs, so this will continue to sell for a while.

@johnedwin hello Mr. Sony rep lol

@Olliemar28 thanks that information is great, interesting, please include it if you guys are privy to it!

I'm surprised it didn't surpass Odyssey or All Stars but I've no doubt it'll be an evergreen seller over the next few months and possibly the best-selling 2D Mario game.

Unsurprising Spidey is doing well considering how much marketing the game has. Nobody markets their games as hard as Sony.

Ah well. Sales aside, Mario and Superstars sounds like a better time than another open world game that's held up by it's story and nothing else.

I hope Mario makes number 1 NEXT week!

@johnedwin Yes but that's just for this year, the switch has been on the market for 6 and half years, pretty sure it was outselling the PS4/PS5 for most of that time, infact last year it was the best selling consile in the UK period, so should be more Switch consoles in people's homes than PS5.

@Olliemar28 Thank you for your kindness! About the missing 1%, I wouldn't be surprised if that can be linked to a rounding error on GfK's side, it wouldn't be the first time either.

I think Spiderman 2 will be top for a couple of weeks but overall Mario Wonder will end up staying in the charts for longer. Sonys games usually have insane launch week numbers but don't have the legs that Nintendo games have.

That just seems weird given that the switch's install base is nearly 100 million higher than the PS5's. Mario also has a lot wider appeal than Spiderman, I would have thought. And this is coming after the mario movie, which grossed as much as an MCU (and actually outgrossed the Spiderman movies except No Way Home). I can't see this as anything but strange and disappointing. I'd guess Wonder will sell more in the long run as Nintendo games tend to do, but I also wonder (heheh) whether the release of the Switch 2 might cut those sales short, even if it is backwards compatible.

@johnedwin Why are you copypasting articles?

Did Switch Sports go up from #26 to #10 and Animal Crossing from #25 to #17 because of those bundles?

@Frogspree
It's really not that weird at all. Beyond the fact that Nintendo is comparatively weaker in the UK than elsewhere, you have to remember that Spider-Man 2 is the direct sequel to Spider-Man 2018, which is the best-selling 1st party PlayStation game of all time. Hype for Spider-Man 2 was strong ever since it was announced 2 years ago, which has now been reflected in in its huge launch.

On the other hand, Super Mario Bros Wonder is the spiritual successor to the New Super Mario Bros series, whose last entry was 10+ years ago and wasn't exactly the most well recieved game ever. The game was also only announced back in June so it only had ~4 months to accumulate interest and preorders rather than 2+ years.

Not bad for the C-team game.

Hopefully Spidey will be on top for as long as it takes to complete the game!

@westman98 True. Also, any hype for Mario probably translates into sales across the whole franchise, and there are a bunch of Mario games on the Switch, even before you get to spin offs. If people were pumped for Mario after seeing the movie they probably already bought one of those other games lol. Whereas Spider-man fans have had the original game and Miles Morales and that's it until now. Still... dem install bases...

just because Nintendo is number 1 in Japan doesn't mean they are number 1 everywhere else and clearly they are not

@Rob3008

I thought the same to be honest. I'm not suggesting that it's a better game than Oddesy but when you think of the Switch's install base now compared to October 2017 you would think it would have sold more in that first weekend

@Olliemar28 Are these charts calculated as the number of units shipped? Or by the amount of revenue generated?

Mario games are typically evergreen and typically Christmas presents.
Now to watch Spiderman progressively go down the chart as Mario sits there for weeks.

@johnedwin I think you are on the wrong website.

@BTB20 a Playstation fanboy who comes here to troll a bit.

Bit of a surprise, but things should right themselves in the long run, as many others have said.

I have a feeling Mario is definitely gonna be outselling Spiderman 2 in the long run in these charts. Many Sony titles get bought up right away and then sales tank but main Mario titles always hold steady spots on the best sellers charts

2D Mario has a more casual audience so it will have less of a big first week, and a larger more long term sales.

Not surprised if either game beat out the other initally. Both are iconic and tend to sell a lot. However, Wonder will for certain have the longer legs. Thoroughly enjoying Wonder. It's a wonderful game. Wasn't trying to be funny there.

@Ooccoo_Jr It's units sold through at retail.

@UltimateOtaku91
Like most very good PS4 and PS5 games, give it one to two weeks and the trade in stores will have loads of them.
My son purchased SM2 for PS5 by next weekend it will be sold to CEX to help recover some of his cost.

@SBandy1 you were right last week, got the top 2 spot on! I was surprised with the switch having the larger install base.
Great for both games though, and equally superb pieces of entertainment! Both will sell over 10 million + easily.

I also hope Mario will win in the long run.

A stronger launch doesn’t guarantee a better selling game mario wonder will get most of its sales over the holidays and then linger on the charts for a little longer

I don't care in the slightest about Spidey (Insomniac is a fantastic studio though, so no offense to them), but Mario Wonder has to be one of the best games I've ever played, having literally reminded me why I enjoy video games in the first place. I think it's generation- defining, honestly, which I never expected out of a 2D Mario game since at least 1995, before I was even alive.

Maybe it's just a tad bit too late in the system's life cycle for Mario to have that huge of an impact anymore. Just because the Switch has a large install base doesn't necessarily mean its owners play the system regularly (or at least, not as much as they used to). But even so, the game is selling well! Let's not dismiss that.

"Super Mario Bors. Wonder" eh?

Well deserved for both titles. Played a bit of both over the weekend and had a great time with each.

@WaffleRaptor01, actually I'd say the Spider-Man games (along with the Astro Bot games) are some of the only first party PS titles that manage to capture that "Nintendo" gameplay quality in where they're just pure fun & joy to move around in.

@johnedwin Yep. But 5 months from now, I don't think Spidey will be in the top 10 but it's usually expected that Mario will still be fighting for a position. Nintendo games sell well over a ridiculously long period of time but other first party games from Sony/Microsoft lose steam after a few weeks/months.

@johnedwin Well it only took Sony about 3 years....almost half a console generation with all the bells and whistles, against old underpowered handheld kit as they say.

The fact that both Spider-Man 2 and Super Mario Bros. Wonder outsold Sonic Superstars is impressive considering both are exclusives and only available for one platform whereas Sonic Superstars is a multiplat title and was widely available across all platforms (even last gen).

@johnedwin I have family in Greece and last time I was there was the Wii U era. I saw Playstation in stores and I even saw ps vita at like every vodafone place over there but i never saw Nintendo or Xbox. I really dont care for anything playstation I just dont like their games so I guess im glad im in America xD

Enjoying Wonder a lot! Great to see the Nintendo creativity back in the series. Now time for a 3D Mario or Donkey Kong!

Bloody good week for gaming if you ask me! It will be interesting to see who out of Mario and Spider-man has the most legs.*

*lol.

Interesting give or take a few numbers.
Maybe 3d, Odyssey and Mario world are showing with a lower user base at the time of release that 3d Mario is the way to go.
I know a few young general public were disappointed that it was a 3d Mario and didn’t purchase with pocket money etc.

This is one reason big flash 3d Spider-Man 2 did so well with a lot lower user base.

PlayStation has confirmed that the superhero sequel sold through a crazy 2.5 million copies in its first 24 hours — having released on the 20th October. This means it's officially the fastest-selling PlayStation Studios game ever.

@Serialsid

Exactly. Two stellar games selling well and being enjoyed by millions. Win win!

Got Spider-man 2 (brilliant game) for my birthday and my missus got me Mario Wonder for Christmas, so happy days! One question: Did the new Forza Motorsport ever even make the chart?

Yeah expected that. UK is more Sony land and Spider-Man 2 is their biggest 1st party in awhile.

Also not surprised the Sony Stan poster that lost his way from PushSquare here is posting like 5 times gushing about PlayStation lol

Wonder how silent or loud he will be when the Japan list is posted depending on the result.

I'd bet Super Mario Bros. Wonder is actually at number 1. Nintendo never reports digital numbers until one of their quarterly reviews, so we won't know for sure for a while, but Switch is so much more encouraging for the digital purchase. Not only the portability factor, but that voucher. Everyone I know who bought it used a voucher to save money and get full gold points for digital over physical ($5 vs $1 back). PlayStation doesn't have the same incentives. I myself bought the physical Spider-Man 2 for that very reason.

"Super Mario Bors. Wonder"

It's Super Mario Bros. Wonder

I was FOUR of the Mario Wonder sales number for this week; One for me and three for each of my nephews.

There was a time when this probably would have been unthinkable.

@UltimateOtaku91
There's plenty of room for both the 2D and 3D entries, but I agree at the start of a generation when a company is most looking to sell consoles, 3D is the way to go because it's the best way to show off a system's capabilities. The 2D entries are great for mid or end of generation releases after the console has been established on the market.

I just like seeing Switch Sports selling better than TOTK, 3d Mario, Street Fighter 6, Mortal Kombat, Splatoon, Kirby, etc. As it should, the game is great.

In the end mario wonder with outsell spidey 2 I think, mario wonder will be in the top 10 chart for a loong time 😃

Why do some of you so desperately need Mario to ‘win’ this? 🤷‍♂️ It’s selling well, be happy! It’s no use comparing it to something with an entirely different target audience.

@Frogspree All those 100 million Switch users are not in the UK though. It will be interesting to see the Japanese numbers, as well as the overall sales numbers for both titles, to see if they show something different.

And this is the UK: it's PlayStation land, though the Switch has done very well there.

@HaileySheridon wait until you hear about sports

Spider man over Mario?

Dear normies

Why

Spider man games = 40 hours content + a lot of difficult settings = replay value ($60)

Mario Wonder = 6 hours for 100%, too easy game and no difficult settings = poor replay value ($60)

Spider man has more fun hours for the same $60

It's understandable.

@HaileySheridon well until there is such a thing as videogame hooliganism, I'm going to disagree and say sports fans are worse

@johnedwin You seem to know a lot about Sony's business practices and commercial success. I'd be interested to know how the aggressive price slashing the PS5 has seen in the UK recently factors into that. Why would they slash the price by so much if it was doing so well? Does the more they slash the price = more success? Nintendo Switch has managed to sell 130+ million units without a price a cut for example, so I wonder why Sony felt the need to slash PS5's price. Be great to get your insight on it cos I struggle to follow the business side of things.

I also saw this article: https://metro.co.uk/2023/10/24/playstation-staff-cuts-include-up-to-20-of-dreams-dev-media-molecule-19713744/?ico=mosaic_gaming
about Sony studios having to lay off staff - presumably this is because of all the success too...

@Frogspree don't read too much into it. The UK has been a Sony market for years. Switch's success in the UK is not the norm, well not since the SNES days anyway.