All Articles: Super Mario Party
Kingdom Hearts III, Resident Evil 2, New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe unsurprisingly lead NPD’s list of best-selling games from January 2019
Kingdom Hearts fans were kept waiting more than a decade for the third game in the franchise, but Square Enix finally rewarded their patience with the launch of Kingdom Hearts III last month. As you might have guessed, fans purchased the game in droves, pushing it all the way to the top of The NPD Group’s list of best-selling games from January 2019.
Two highly-anticipated re-releases, Resident Evil 2 (#2) and New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (#3) were close behind, and Bandai Namco’s Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (#7) and Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition (#12) also cracked the top 20.
However, while several games had strong starts on the sales chart, the industry overall suffered a decline last month versus January 2018. All together, GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that total sales (hardware, software, and accessories) were down 19% to $893 million.
You can find a full list of best-selling games from January 2019 after the break. (more…)
13 Nintendo-published games for the Switch have sold more than 1 million copies
Nintendo-branded products have always taken up a hefty portion of Santa’s sack, and 2018 was no different as Switch sales were huge during the holiday season.
Nintendo sold 15.05 million Switch consoles during the last quarter of 2018, bringing the platform’s total install base to 32.27 million. Consumers also spent the last three months stocking up on software, purchasing 63.51 million games from October through December.
Two games stood out last quarter on the sales charts, as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate sold 12.08 million copies and the combined might of Pokemon: Let’s Go Eevee! and Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu! sold 10 million copies. All told, 13 Nintendo-published Switch games have joined the vaunted “Million-Seller” club during this fiscal year (April 2018 – December 2018):
Title | Apr 18 – Dec 18 Sales | Total Sales |
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | 12.08 Million | 12.08 Million |
Pokemon: Let’s Go Eevee! Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu! |
10 Million | 10 Million |
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | 5.8 Million | 15.02 Million |
Super Mario Party | 5.3 Million | 5.3 Million |
Super Mario Odyssey | 3.35 Million | 13.76 Million |
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | 3.21 Million | 11.68 Million |
Mario Tennis Aces | 2.53 Million | 2.53 Million |
Splatoon 2 | 2.25 Million | 8.27 Million |
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze | 2.08 Million | 2.08 Million |
Kirby Star Allies | 1.16 Million | 2.42 Million |
Octopath Traveler (US + Europe Only) |
1.08 Million | 1.08 Million |
Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit | 1.06 Million | 1.06 Million |
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker | 1.05 Million | 1.05 Million |
Even Nintendo’s dedicated handheld was still kicking along in 2018 (albeit slower than before). 3DS owners scooped up 1.07 million copies of Mario Kart 7 during the April through December period, bringing its total to 18.11 million copies sold.
Nintendo’s current fiscal year will end on March 31, and the consolemaker will announce their full-year sales figures sometime in April or May.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate beats up the competition as the best-selling game from December 2018
Even though it’s one of Nintendo’s marquee properties, the Smash Bros. series has always drifted a bit below the radar of the average gamer. That is definitely no longer the case, as The NPD Group revealed the best-selling games from December 2018 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate absolutely blew away the competition.
In fact, the tracking firm told GamesIndustry.biz that Smash Bros. Ultimate had a record-setting debut, and set a new “Launch Month” sales record for a platform exclusive. More impressive, it set this record even though Nintendo doesn’t share digital sales data with The NPD Group.
With the gift-giving season in full swing, some of 2018’s biggest games populated the rest of the list. Red Dead Redemption II slid down to #2, and it was followed by Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (#3), Battlefield V (#4), and NBA 2K19 (#5).
Nintendo dominated the back half of the top ten, with three more titles on the list… Mario Kart 8 (#6), Super Mario Party (#8), and Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu (#9). Madden NFL 19 (#7) and Insomniac’s Spider-Man (#10) rounded out the top ten.
A complete look at The NPD Group’s list of the best-selling games from last month (in handy list format) can be found after the break. (more…)
CoD: Black Ops 4 comes out on top against Red Dead Redemption 2 in October 2018’s ranking of best-selling games
Once Red Dead Redemption 2 staked a claim on October 26, game publishers ran screaming in the other direction. Ubisoft notably subtracted three weeks from the usual late October launch for the new entries in the Assassin’s Creed series, and Activision pushed the release of the latest entry in the Call of Duty franchise up a full month from its typical early November slot.
But it looks like Activision’s gamble paid off, as The NPD Group has revealed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 was last month’s best-selling game. And at #3, Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey also performed well in its earlier launch window. Red Dead Redemption 2, which was only on sale for nine days during the sale period, galloped away with the #2 spot.
The NPD Group further noted (via GamesIndustry.biz) that Black Ops 4 is now the owner of the eighth-best launch month (in dollar sales) since they began tracking video game sales in 1995. As you might have guessed, that means its also currently the best-selling game of the year. And it’ll probably hang on to that title through November and December, but it’s hard to completely count out Rockstar Games.
A complete look at The NPD Group’s list of the best-selling games from last month can be found after the break. (more…)
Spider-Man swings into view as the best-selling game from September 2018 (and the biggest PlayStation-exclusive launch ever)
Spider-Man, Spider-Man, sells much better than 2K can… Look out! Here comes the Spider-Man!
Insomniac’s Spider-Man was already swinging pretty high prior to its September 7th launch, but according to The NPD Group (via GamesIndustry.biz) the superhero game is also the best-selling game of last month and the biggest PlayStation-exclusive launch ever. Oh, and it also performed 37% better than “the combined launch month sales for all other Spider-Man games released since 1995.”
Wow.
Spider-Man trounced the competition in September, beating out a ton of new releases in the top ten including NBA 2K19 (#2), Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey (#3), FIFA 19 (#4), Shadow of the Tomb Raider (#5), Forza Horizon 4 (#7), Super Mario Party (#9), and NHL 19 (#10).
Below the top ten, several popular titles continued to prove their resiliency. Grand Theft Auto V (#13), Mario Kart 8 (#14), and Minecraft (#20) have all been hanging around the top of the charts for the last four years, and their new-generation re-releases have likely cemented their spot among the best-sellers for another four.
But you can find the full list of last month’s best-selling games after the break. (more…)
Super Mario Party, Disgaea 1 Complete, Mark of the Ninja: Remastered, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
It’s party time for Switch owners as the consolemaker will add Super Mario Party to the Nintendo eShop this week. Featuring the returning of Board Game Mode, as well an online minigame mode known as Mariothon, Super Mario Party will be available to download beginning October 5.
Also set to launch this week for the Switch are a pair of remastered re-releases. NIS America will celebrate the 15th anniversary of their flagship strategy RPG by bringing Disgaea 1 Complete to the Switch on Tuesday, October 9. And Klei Entertainment will bring Mark of the Ninja: Remastered, an enhanced and updated version of their side-scrolling stealth game, to the Nintendo eShop on the same date.
Finally this week, though Telltale Games remains embroiled in a “majority studio closure,” the developer managed to complete Batman: The Enemy Within for release on the Switch.
You can learn more about the rest of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop (including Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, The King of Fighters 2001, The Midnight Sanctuary, and more) after the break. (more…)
New Retail Releases: Mega Man 11, Super Mario Party, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, More
The Blue Bomber has been sleeping for the better part of a decade, but Capcom’s venerable mascot will finally return in a new platforming adventure this week for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One. Mega Man 11 was developed internally at Capcom, and it features a brand new art style, eight never-before-seen Robot Masters, and a handful of new gameplay mechanics that should keep “Mega Fans” on their toes. In addition to its retail launch, Mega Man 11 will also be available to download for the PC.
Several other major franchises will also be making a return this week, and that includes Super Mario Party, the latest addition to Nintendo’s madcap multiplayer series. This time around, Switch owners get to try out Board Game Mode when battling friends, as well as tackle new minigames in Mariothon and Online Mariothon.
If you’re not a Switch owner yet (or you’re thinking of investing in a second Switch console), Nintendo has teamed up with Epic Games to produce the Switch + Fortnite “Double Helix” Console Bundle. The package includes a Switch console with Neon Blue and Red Joy-Con controllers, as well as 1,000 V-Bucks, and the Double Helix Costume Set.
But if you’d rather trade Tilted Towers for the Parthenon, PS4 and Xbox One owners will be able to explore Ancient Greece in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. According to Ubisoft, players will be able to “journey from outcast to legendary Spartan hero” in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, which will also be available to download for the PC.
We can race back into the present with Forza Horizon 4, a new arcade-style racer for the Xbox One from Microsoft and Playground Games. A PC download through the Windows Store (which is compatible with Microsoft’s Xbox Play Anywhere service) will also be available.
And finally this week, 2K Games will release the WWE 2K19: Deluxe Edition for the PS4 and Xbox One. This feature-packed version of the game will be available on October 5, four days before the Standard Edition, and include two bonus playable wrestlers (Rey Mysterio and Ronda Rousey), the Season Pass, and all digital content from the Wooooo! Edition.
A complete list of this week’s new retail releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Play Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (and 8 other Switch games) at Nintendo’s PAX West 2018 booth
Nintendo is putting most of their eggs in a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate-shaped basket this Fall, though the consolemaker is also planning to release a few other big titles for the Switch before the end of the year. But if you’re attending PAX West later this week, don’t worry, they’ll have playable demos of all of them on the show floor, along with several eagerly-anticipated third-party games.
In addition to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, fans will be able to stop by Nintendo’s booth (#1939) to try out Super Mario Party, Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu!, and Pokemon: Let’s Go Eevee!. Playable demos for Ubisoft’s Starlink: Battle For Atlas, Bandai Namco’s Dragon Ball FighterZ, Blizzard’s Diablo III: Eternal Collection, Grasshopper Manufacture’s No More Heroes: Travis Strikes Again, and NIS America’s SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy will also be available.
“Many of our biggest fans descend on Seattle every year to celebrate video games at PAX West,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “It’s the perfect venue for us to interact directly with our fans with fun activities and engaging hands-on demos with some of our upcoming games.”
Nintendo will also host a handful of special events at PAX West 2018, and you can learn more about them after the break. (more…)