Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are among best-selling Nintendo Switch games of all time, with over 20m copies sold

There is no denying the success of Game Freak
There is no denying the success of Game Freak's latest projects (Image via Game Freak)

Nintendo Switch users will be delighted to learn that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are already in the top 10 best-selling games on the console. Nintendo has reported that they sold over 20.61 million copies as of December 31, 2022.

The games came out on November 18, 2022. However, they have already outsold most Nintendo Switch titles and are currently ranked seventh in the top 10. This information should come as no surprise since the Pokemon IP is currently the highest-grossing media franchise in the entire world.

Note: The Pokemon Scarlet and Violet sales figure comes from Nintendo.co.jp's IR information.


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Official sales data of best-selling Nintendo Switch games, including Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

This data is from the official Nintendo website (Image via Nintendo)
This data is from the official Nintendo website (Image via Nintendo)

Here is the official sales data of the top 10 best-selling games on the Switch, as provided by Nintendo:

  1. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: 52.00 million copies
  2. Animal Crossing: New Horizons: 41.59 million copies
  3. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: 30.44 million copies
  4. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: 29.00 million copies
  5. Pokemon Sword and Shield: 25.68 million copies
  6. Super Mario Odyssey: 25.12 million copies
  7. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet: 20.61 million copies
  8. Super Mario Party: 18.79 million copies
  9. Ring Fit Adventure: 15.22 million copies
  10. Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu and Eevee!: 15.07 million copies

Three of these titles come from the Pokemon series. It is worth noting that these figures put some games together, so something like Sword wouldn't be separated from Shield for this type of data.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are the only 2022 titles in the top 10 best-selling Nintendo Switch games of all time.


Why Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are so successful

Many Trainers loved what these two games had to offer (Image via Game Freak)
Many Trainers loved what these two games had to offer (Image via Game Freak)

Takato Utsunomiya, the CEO of The Pokemon Company, has stated that Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are the most pre-ordered games in the franchise's history. This is a huge deal, considering the series' massive success up to this point.

The two titles sold over 10 million copies in just three days after launch. In Japan alone, they sold over four million copies at the time. For reference, Sword and Shield only sold about two million copies in that region within three days.

The two games sold well despite some notable flaws (Image via Game Freak)
The two games sold well despite some notable flaws (Image via Game Freak)

At launch, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were two games with non-optimal frame rates, performance issues, and unimpressive graphics. Their Metacritic reviews were poorer than other mainline titles within the series as a result of these criticisms.

Despite that, the two games have become huge successes. A few reasons could be attributed to the following:

  • They are fun open-world games that feel less linear than past titles.
  • The usual charm of collecting Pocket Monsters is still present here.
  • The Nintendo Switch is an incredibly popular console that continues to sell numerous copies even in 2023.
  • Not everybody cares about minor issues like framerate or mediocre graphics.

Remember, these two titles sold over 20 million copies by the end of 2022. As time passes, they can easily reach higher spots in the top 10 best-selling Nintendo Switch games.

🚨 Calculate how strong your evolved Pokémon will become with our newly launched Pokemon GO Evolution Calculator 🚨

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Edited by Rachel Syiemlieh
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