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Biggest Pokémon launches in the UK [Now with Scarlet/Violet]

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Lelouch0612

Lelouch0612

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Thanks to new informations shared around Pokémon BD/SP launch and since it is a valuable tool, I decided to compile the list of the biggest Pokémon launches in the UK.

First, let's start with the official ranking, using GfK data and counting double packs as one copy:

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Now let's try to dig in a bit in the archives to find the numbers associated with these launches :

  1. Pokémon Sun/Moon (3DS) : ~290k
  2. Pokémon Scarlet/Violet (Switch) : ~ 236k (or ~223k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
  3. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Switch) : ~191k (or ~177k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
  4. Pokémon Alpha Saphire/ Omega Ruby (3DS) : ~145k
  5. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl (Switch) : ~145k (or ~131k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
  6. Pokémon Legends Arceus (NSW) : ~144k
  7. Pokémon Black/White (DS) : ~133k
  8. Pokémon X/Y (3DS) : ~124k
  9. Pokémon Let's Go (Switch) : ~116k
  10. Pokémon Yellow (GB) : ~106k
  11. Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (DS) : ~90k
  12. Pokémon Gold/Silver (GB/GBC) : ~
  13. Pokémon Diamond/Pearl (DS) : ~ 86k
  14. Pokémon Ruby/Saphire (GBA) : ~
  15. Pokémon UltraSun/UltraMoon (3DS) : ~78k
  16. Pokémon Platinum (DS) : ~
  17. Pokémon Black/White 2 (DS) : ~62k
  18. Pokémon LeafGreen/FireRed (GBA) : ~~ 53k
  19. Pokémon Emerald (GBA) : ~ Same as Crystal
  20. Pokémon Crystal (GBC) : ~
  21. Pokémon Red/Blue (GB) : ~~<27k
Still updating the OP with the remaining numbers left and better sourcing, feel free to contribute ;)
 
Last edited:
Lelouch0612 said:
Thanks to new informations shared around Pokémon BD/SP launch and since it is a valuable tool, I decided to compile the list of the biggest Pokémon launches in the UK.

First, let's start with the official ranking, using GfK data and counting double packs as one copy:

FE99YPIXwAUWbV2


Now let's try to dig in a bit in the archives to find the numbers associated with these launches :

  1. Pokémon Sun/Moon (3DS) : ~290k
  2. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Switch) : ~191k (or ~177k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
  3. Pokémon Alpha Saphire/ Omega Ruby (3DS) : ~145k
  4. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl (Switch) : ~145k (or ~131k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
  5. Pokémon Black/White (DS) : ~133k
  6. Pokémon X/Y (3DS) : ~124k
  7. Pokémon Let's Go (Switch) : ~116k
  8. Pokémon Yellow (GB) : ~
  9. Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (DS) : ~90k
  10. Pokémon Gold/Silver (GB/GBC) : ~
  11. Pokémon Diamond/Pearl (DS) : ~
  12. Pokémon Ruby/Saphire (GBA) : ~
  13. Pokémon UltraSun/UltraMoon (3DS) : ~78k
  14. Pokémon Platinum (DS) : ~
  15. Pokémon Black/White 2 (DS) : ~62k
  16. Pokémon LeafGreen/FireRed (GBA) : ~
  17. Pokémon Emerald (GBA) : ~
  18. Pokémon Crystal (GBC) : ~
  19. Pokémon Red/Blue (GB) : ~
Still updating the OP with the remaining numbers left and better sourcing, feel free to contribute ;)
Click to expand...
Awesome job!
 
Pokémon Gen 9 will be insane. It Better land on NSW, if it does we can see 300k+ debut, maybe 400k
 
Pokémon Sun/Moon PR
  • Index
    • www.gamesindustry.biz

    Pokémon Sun and Moon sales hit 1.5m in Europe

    Update: Following the European news below, Nintendo of America has announced that Pokémon Sun and Moon have become the …
    www.gamesindustry.biz www.gamesindustry.biz

    Apparently Pokémon Sun / Moon launch sales with digital was 368.000 in UK.

    What we don't know if it was GfK + digital or all internal Nintendo estimations. If it was the former then the digital ratio would be 17%, it feels too big for a platform like Nintendo 3DS and in 2016.
     
  • Index
    • 2016 was a pivotal year for Nintendo. They started turning the tides that year after the Wii U ordeal.
     
    Bruno MB said:
    www.gamesindustry.biz

    Pokémon Sun and Moon sales hit 1.5m in Europe

    Update: Following the European news below, Nintendo of America has announced that Pokémon Sun and Moon have become the …
    www.gamesindustry.biz www.gamesindustry.biz

    Apparently Pokémon Sun / Moon launch sales with digital was 368.000 in UK.

    What we don't know if it was GfK + digital or all internal Nintendo estimations. If it was the former then the digital ratio would be 17%, it feels too big for a platform like Nintendo 3DS and in 2016.
    Click to expand...
    It is possible that it included Sunday numbers if it is Nintendo estimates, hence the gap.
     
    So Pokemon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl would be at least the #3 largest debut of all time if you included digital. VERY nice! This could be huge for larger markets like the USA as well. If it's above Black/White, maybe it could sell >2.5 million as well in the USA in November. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking. :LOL:
     
    Damn what a gold mine this franchise is. They can just randomly remake some previous games and sell better than most other games in the market.
     
    Aquamarine said:
    So Pokemon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl would be at least the #3 largest debut of all time if you included digital. VERY nice! This could be huge for larger markets like the USA as well. If it's above Black/White, maybe it could sell >2.5 million as well in the USA in November. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking. :LOL:
    Click to expand...
    out of curiosity, did Nintendo release any PR about Sword/Shield launch? I remember it was the "biggest launch" in revenue according to NPD but i'm a bit surprised i couldn't find any official numbers, usually Nintendo always share them for big games.
    Anyway i think Black/White numbers are doable but it's hard to say withouth knowing Sword/Shield launch.
     
    Ryng™ said:
    out of curiosity, did Nintendo release any PR about Sword/Shield launch? I remember it was the "biggest launch" in revenue according to NPD but i'm a bit surprised i couldn't find any official numbers, usually Nintendo always share them for big games.
    Anyway i think Black/White numbers are doable but it's hard to say withouth knowing Sword/Shield launch.
    Click to expand...
    2M+ for Sword/Shield in 2 days in the US :

    Nintendo of America announced that after selling more than 6 million units worldwide during launch weekend*, the Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield games are among the fastest-selling Nintendo Switch games of all time. Additionally, the games sold just over 2 million copies in the first two days in the U.S., making it the highest-grossing launch of any Pokémon game.
    Click to expand...

    www.businesswire.com

    Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield Sales Exceed 6 Million Units Worldwide After Massive Launch Weekend

    Nintendo of America announced that after selling more than 6 million units worldwide during launch weekend*, the Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield game
    www.businesswire.com
     
    Additional tidbits
  • Index
    • New tidbits from the GBiz article :

    Ruby and Sapphire remained the high point for Pokémon on GBA. In October 2004, the first Pokémon remakes appeared -- Fire Red and Leaf Green. At launch, the games sold more than double what the originals managed back in 1999, but sold half the number of copies of Pokémon Yellow.
    Click to expand...
    Sales of the remakes are 53% higher than the original Diamond and Pearl
    Click to expand...

    www.gamesindustry.biz

    The biggest Pokémon game launches in UK history | UK Time Tunnel

    Biggest UK Pokémon launches
    www.gamesindustry.biz www.gamesindustry.biz

    So, we can deduce the following :
    • Pokémon Diamond/Pearl : ~86k
    • Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen : ~~ 53k
    • Pokémon Red/Blue : ~~ <27k
     
  • Index
    • Pokemon Sun/Moon was very well timed in the sphere of the Pokemon GO-mania.

    Still, it was insane to see that level of hype for a 3DS game in the UK. Some stores actually had midnight launches.
     
    Guess that solidifies that future Pokemon remakes will be handled by ILCA going forward, and will likely be done in a similar fashion as BDSP (So no longer using the same engine and gameplay mechanics as the latest mainline game, but taking a more conservative approach to budget & scope that allows for a more faithful remake, with more content being preserved from the original version than otherwise possible).

    Hopefully that gives Game Freak themselves some breathing room to be able to spend more time making future mainline installments, now that they're not having to stretch their limited resources across both remakes and mainline games (S/S was clearly a hard lesson for them in that regard).
     
    DCSales said:
    Guess that solidifies that future Pokemon remakes will be handled by ILCA going forward, and will likely be done in a similar fashion as BDSP (So no longer using the same engine and gameplay mechanics as the latest mainline game, but taking a more conservative approach to budget & scope that allows for a more faithful remake, with more content being preserved from the original version than otherwise possible).

    Hopefully that gives Game Freak themselves some breathing room to be able to spend more time making future mainline installments, now that they're not having to stretch their limited resources across both remakes and mainline games (S/S was clearly a hard lesson for them in that regard).
    Click to expand...
    yeah, if GF gets more resources (devs and time) per game i'm fine with these faithful remakes. maybe they'll work on the Let's Go series as well (if that will continue) and every 2D/2.5D mainline pokémon game will be developed by ILCA.
    hopefully they'll add all of the old games to the eshop as well (starting with Gens 3-5).

    EDIT: good to see @Serebii on the forum! :)
     


    1. Pokémon Sun/Moon (3DS) : ~290k
    2. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Switch) : ~191k (or ~177k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
    3. Pokémon Alpha Saphire/ Omega Ruby (3DS) : ~145k
    4. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl (Switch) : ~145k (or ~131k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
    5. Pokémon Legends Arceus (NSW) : ~145k
    6. Pokémon Black/White (DS) : ~133k
    7. Pokémon X/Y (3DS) : ~124k
    8. Pokémon Let's Go (Switch) : ~116k
    9. Pokémon Yellow (GB) : ~106k
    10. Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (DS) : ~90k
     
    Last edited:
    Lelouch0612 said:


    1. Pokémon Sun/Moon (3DS) : ~290k
    2. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Switch) : ~191k (or ~177k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
    3. Pokémon Alpha Saphire/ Omega Ruby (3DS) : ~145k
    4. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl (Switch) : ~145k (or ~131k by counting the Double Pack as 1 copy)
    5. Pokémon Black/White (DS) : ~133k
    6. Pokémon Legends Arceus (NSW)
    7. Pokémon X/Y (3DS) : ~124k
    8. Pokémon Let's Go (Switch) : ~116k
    9. Pokémon Yellow (GB) : ~106k
    10. Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (DS) : ~90k
    Click to expand...




    10,000 units between No. 3 and No. 6. This is also interesting.
     
    Revolsin said:
    i'm guessing it's lower than S&S cause of a Jan release? not sure how that stuff impacts software
    Click to expand...
    Yeah, people preparing for holidays are a strong market. Plus I think there was some trepidation about Arceus from the initial reveal, which was firmly squashed by the reviews and the other impressions. The latter aspect might have led to some interested buyers delaying their purchase until after the first week while waiting for impressions. We can test that hypothesis by looking at the second week drop (it should be soft in that case, softer than the roughly 2/3 WoW decline of SwSh).
     
    anyone know the stock situation of the game over in the UK? i'm hearing from some that it's sold out in some places. might be undershipped?
     
    Lelouch0612 said:
    We are getting very close to the next update, really wonder where Gen 9 will land.

    On the one hand, it has a ton of momentum behind it, on the other hand, Switch in the UK has experienced some softness these past months.
    Click to expand...
    A softer Switch is probably still better than whatever the 3DS was during Sun and Moon’s launch, Pokémon can easily be the exception in cases like this
     
    I think SV will break the 200k barrier (physical only), this time around no "scandal" involved (tho maybe that's more a minus than a plus?) and I see a lot of people very hyped about the game around the internet. It'll be very interesting for sure
     
    Lelouch0612 said:
    We are getting very close to the next update, really wonder where Gen 9 will land.

    On the one hand, it has a ton of momentum behind it, on the other hand, Switch in the UK has experienced some softness these past months.
    Click to expand...
    My sense on the ground is that the new Pokémon will launch absolutely massive here in the UK, will at least be in 3rd place for sure.

    Beyond that is hard to tell given the rise of digital, but Sword and Shield will be close I think.
     
    Anything below Sword / Shield will be disappointing.

    Sun / Moon is most likely untouchable, no Nintendo game at retail will ever come close to touching it.
     
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