[Japan] Media Create sales for Week 40, 2018 (October 1st – October 7th) [Top 50]

12 October 201812 October 2018 Lite_Agent Capcom, Famitsu, FuRyu, Heroland, Media Create, Mega Man 11, NDCube, Nippon Columbia, Sumikko Gurashi: Atsumare! Sumikko Town, Super Mario Party

Here’s the latest sales data for the Japanese video game market, courtesy of Media Create and Famitsu!

Media Create

Week 40 saw the release of quite a few games (including one multiplatform title), so once again, there’s many new faces in the Top 20 from Media Create this week.

The star of the week is obviously Super Mario Party, which is off to a great debut with 142 868 units sold during the first 3 days on the market. That makes it the best opening for the series since Mario Party 9 on Wii, and that’s without taking into account digital sales (which seem to be stronger than usual for family-focused games).

Here’s how previous entries sold (NB: Famitsu data):

It looks like the return to the traditional board game was the right move for Nintendo and NDCube. Also, there’s no doubt the strong interest in the Nintendo Switch helped with sales, especially with how great the Nintendo Switch is for local multiplayer games.

This strong debut certainly bodes well for Super Mario Party, which may end up the first Mario Party game to reach 1 million units sold since Mario Party 9 on Wii. Given the usual sales trajectory of Mario Party games (which tend to sell on the long run), and the upcoming holiday season, it may even reach that milestone this very year (if we factor in digital sales, of course), provided word of mouth is good enough to support sales through the current slow period (until late November).

Next, we have Mega Man 11, which sold roughly 26 000 units on the two platforms it was released on according to Media Create. This time around, the Nintendo Switch version was the best-selling one, with 14 650 units. This is a rather poor performance, as even the Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 + 2 sold more… on PlayStation 4 alone. Unfortunately, it’s unlikely to sell well on the long run: this is no Nintendo platformer, after all…

Finally, we have Sumikko Gurashi: Atsumare! Sumikko Town at #16, with 5 221 units sold. This is the worst debut for the Sumikko Gurashi series so far, and while it’s bound to keep selling steadily through the rest of the year, this entry may well end up the worst-selling one period. Could Japanese players be suffering from franchise fatigue? This is the 6th Sumikko Gurashi game in 4 years, after all… Of course, the fact that it was released in October didn’t help with sales: previous entries were released in July and November respectively.

By the way, Work x Work was released last week, but did not chart in the Top 20 provided by Media Create: that means it sold less than 3 890 units. A rather poor performance, but not unexpected for FuRyu (which isn’t really known for strong sales). It’s highly unlikely sales will pick up in the upcoming weeks, even if word of mouth was fantastic.

During its second week, Warriors Orochi 4 saw its sales drop sharply to 31 000 units, with 7 022 units for the Nintendo Switch version. The drop is slightly better for the Nintendo Switch version (-70%, compared to -76% for the PlayStation 4 version), but that’s mostly due to the fact its Week 1 sales were lower. Both versions have no sold over 154 000 units, including 30 682 units on Nintendo Switch alone.

FIFA 19 saw a similar drop in sales, with about 18 000 units sold during the second week. The Nintendo Switch version sold 5 238 units, which is 68% less than during launch week. The same observations can be made for this game as for Warriors Orochi 4. The two versions combined have now sold over 95 000 units, and will reach 100 000 units next week. They should have no trouble reaching the 200 000 units LTD later down the line (most likely next year).

Despite Nintendo Switch sales increasingly slightly thanks to the release of Super Mario Party, most evergreen titles on Nintendo Switch saw their sales drop this week. That’s the case of Minecraft, which sold 11 071 units this week (-18%), bringing the total since launch to 315 616 units sold. Same story for Splatoon 2, which saw a slightly worse drop in sales: -21%, with 10 381 units sold. Since launch, it’s now sold 2 654 977 units at retail alone.

Of course, those drops are nothing to worry about, as not only the games are still selling steadily, but we’ve also entered a particular slow period for video games.

Next, let’s take a look at how games are faring in the second half of the Top 20 provided by Media Create:

11./12. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo) – 9.953 / 1.788.666 (-6%). Sales remain steady, but finally dropped below the 10 000 units/week threshold;
12./05. [NSW] Dragon Ball FighterZ (Bandai Namco Games) – 8.186 / 31.388 (-65%). Good second week, better than Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 (but that one suffered from shortages right out of the gate);
14./13. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo) – 5.896 / 1.129.097 (+2%). The only evergreen title that saw a slight increase in sales;
18./17. [3DS] Pokemon Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon (Pokemon Co.) – 4.637 / 1.738.872 (-3%). Sales remain strong, despite Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! / Let’s Go, Eevee! launching in a little over a month. Will it drop off the Top 20 provided by Media Create before it comes out?
19./16. [NSW] Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum ‘n’ Fun! (Bandai Namco Games) – 4.472 / 209.827 (-7%). Sales remain steady, but this is most likely the last week in the Top 20 provided by Media Create for this game…
20./20. [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo) – 3.890 / 1.825.226 (-8%). It really doesn’t want to leave the Top 20 provided by Media Create, now does it? It looks like it could still be in that very Top 20 one year after its launch.

Media Create – Software Top 50

01./00. [NSW] Super Mario Party <ETC> (Nintendo) {2018.10.05} (¥5.980) – 142.868 / NEW
02./00. [PS4] Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey # <ACT> (Ubisoft) {2018.10.05} (¥8.400) – 45.166 / NEW
03./01. [PS4] Warriors Orochi 4 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 24.005 / 124.836 (-76%)
04./00. [NSW] Mega Man 11 # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.10.04} (¥4.990) – 14.650 / NEW
05./03. [PS4] FIFA 19 # <SPT> (Electronic Arts) {2018.09.28} (¥7.800) – 13.426 / 71.197 (-77%)
06./06. [PS4] Marvel’s Spider-Man # <ADV> (Sony Interactive Entertainment) {2018.09.07} (¥6.900) – 12.276 / 279.078 (-46%)
07./00. [PS4] Mega Man 11 # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.10.04} (¥4.990) – 12.052 / NEW
08./02. [PS4] The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV – The End of Saga # <RPG> (Nihon Falcom) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 12.032 / 97.193 (-86%)
09./10. [NSW] Minecraft <ADV> (Microsoft Game Studios) {2018.06.21} (¥3.600) – 11.071 / 315.616 (-18%)
10./11. [NSW] Splatoon 2 # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2017.07.21} (¥5.980) – 10.381 / 2.654.977 (-21%)
11./12. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe <RCE> (Nintendo) {2017.04.28} (¥5.980) – 9.953 / 1.788.666 (-6%)
12./05. [NSW] Dragon Ball FighterZ <FTG> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.09.27} (¥6.800) – 8.186 / 31.388 (-65%)
13./04. [NSW] Warriors Orochi 4 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 7.022 / 30.682 (-70%)
14./13. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild # <ADV> (Nintendo) {2017.03.03} (¥6.980) – 5.896 / 1.129.097 (+2%)
15./08. [NSW] FIFA 19 # <SPT> (Electronic Arts) {2018.09.28} (¥5.800) – 5.238 / 21.438 (-68%)
16./00. [NSW] Sumikko Gurashi: Atsumare! Sumikko Town <ETC> (Nippon Columbia) {2018.10.04} (¥5.800) – 5.221 / NEW
17./00. [PS4] Astro Bot: Rescue Mission |PlayStation VR| <ACT> (Sony Interactive Entertainment) {2018.10.04} (¥4.900) – 4.963 / NEW
18./17. [3DS] Pokemon Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon <RPG> (Pokemon Co.) {2017.11.17} (¥4.980) – 4.637 / 1.738.872 (-3%)
19./16. [NSW] Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum ‘n’ Fun! <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.07.19} (¥6.100) – 4.472 / 209.827 (-7%)
20./20. [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2017.10.27} (¥5.980) – 3.890 / 1.825.226 (-8%)
21./19. [NSW] Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 03: Drive Kit <EDU> (Nintendo) {2018.09.14} (¥6.980)
22./22. [NSW] Kirby Star Allies <ACT> (Nintendo) {2018.03.16} (¥5.980)
23./18. [NSW] Mario Tennis Aces <SPT> (Nintendo) {2018.06.22} (¥5.980)
24./15. [PS4] Winning Eleven 2019 <SPT> (Konami) {2018.08.30} (¥7.600)
25./00. [NSW] Work x Work <RPG> (FuRyu) {2018.10.04} (¥4.980)
26./21. [PS4] Conan Exiles <ACT> (Spike Chunsoft) {2018.08.23} (¥6.800)
27./25. [3DS] WarioWare Gold <ETC> (Nintendo) {2018.08.02} (¥4.980)
28./24. [NSW] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker <ADV> (Nintendo) {2018.07.13} (¥3.980)
29./09. [NSW] The World Ends with You: Final Remix <RPG> (Square Enix) {2018.09.27} (¥4.800)
30./00. [PSV] Wand of Fortune R2 FD: Kimi ni Sasageru Epilogue # <ADV> (Idea Factory) {2018.10.04} (¥6.300)
31./07. [PS4] Utawarerumono: Zan # <SLG> (Aqua Plus) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800)
32./32. [PS4] Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 + II.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts \ Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories> \ Kingdom Hearts HD II.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts II \ Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ \ Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep>> <RPG> (Square Enix) {2017.03.09} (¥6.800)
33./23. [PS4] Shadow of the Tomb Raider <ADV> (Square Enix) {2018.09.14} (¥7.980)
34./14. [NSW] Valkyria Chronicles 4 <SLG> (Sega) {2018.09.27} (¥7.490)
35./31. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf – Welcome amiibo # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2016.11.23} (¥2.700)
36./29. [NSW] My Hero: One’s Justice <FTG> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.08.23} (¥7.600)
37./26. [NSW] Pro Baseball Famista Evolution <SPT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.08.02} (¥6.100)
38./00. [XB1] Forza Horizon 4 # <RCE> (Microsoft Game Studios) {2018.10.02} (¥6.900)
39./35. [3DS] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker <ADV> (Nintendo) {2018.07.13} (¥3.980)
40./36. [NSW] Pokken Tournament DX <FTG> (Pokemon Co.) {2017.09.22} (¥5.980)
41./28. [PS4] Steins;Gate Elite # <ADV> (5pb.) {2018.09.20} (¥7.800)
42./38. [PS4] Persona 5 [New Price Edition] <RPG> (Atlus) {2018.09.06} (¥4.980)
43./37. [PS4] NBA 2K19 # <SPT> (Take-Two Interactive Japan) {2018.09.11} (¥7.800)
44./41. [PS4] Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege – Advanced Edition <ACT> (Ubisoft) {2018.03.01} (¥6.000)
45./00. [3DS] Mario Party: The Top 100 <ETC> (Nintendo) {2017.12.28} (¥4.980)
46./40. [NSW] Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit <EDU> (Nintendo) {2018.04.20} (¥6.980)
47./44. [NSW] Octopath Traveler <RPG> (Square Enix) {2018.07.13} (¥6.800)
48./42. [NSW] Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze <ACT> (Nintendo) {2018.05.03} (¥5.980)
49./33. [NSW] Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna – The Golden Country <RPG> (Nintendo) {2018.09.21} (¥3.980)
50./48. [3DS] Mario Kart 7 # <RCE> (Nintendo) {2011.12.01} (¥4.571)

Media Create – Number of games in Top 50

NSW – 26
PS4 – 16
3DS – 6
PSV – 1
XB1 – 1

Media Create – Hardware

This week, Nintendo Switch sales increase slightly to 45 672 units (compared to 42 957 units last week). As expected, Super Mario Party had a limited (but still noticeable!) impact on sales, mostly because the majority of people who bought it already owned a Nintendo Switch. It will be a different story during the end of year holiday season, but by that time, Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! / Let’s Go, Eevee! and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be available, and it’s unlikely people will buy the console just for Super Mario Party.

With 45 672 units sold this week, Nintendo Switch sales are finally back up Year on Year. A few more weeks,and the total for 2018 would have dropped below the one for 2017. Unfortunately, this may end up happening anyway with the release of Super Mario Odyssey at the end of October: there’s no game of that caliber during that same week in 2018. Of course, with the heavy hitters coming starting a couple of weeks later, this will be but temporary.

While sales are not exactly what would you call impressive, the Nintendo Switch has been selling pretty steadily so far. We predicted sales would remain in the 35-50k range until the release of Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! / Let’s Go, Eevee!, and it looks like we’ve been spot on so far.

Finally, Nintendo 3DS sales remain remarkably steady, with 7 396 units sold this week. The handheld is clearly done for, with literally nothing left to boost its sales, but it’s still holding in there!

Famitsu – Software Top 30

01./00. [NSW] Super Mario Party <ETC> (Nintendo) {2018.10.05} (¥5.980) – 126.275 / NEW <40-60%>
02./00. [PS4] Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey # <RPG> (Ubisoft) {2018.10.05} (¥8.400) – 50.173 / NEW <40-60%>
03./01. [PS4] Warriors Orochi 4 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 20.746 / 126.621 <80-100%> (-80%)
04./00. [NSW] Mega Man 11 # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.10.04} (¥4.990) – 15.218 / NEW <20-40%>
05./00. [PS4] Mega Man 11 # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.10.04} (¥4.990) – 13.082 / NEW <20-40%>
06./03. [PS4] FIFA 19 # <SPT> (Electronic Arts) {2018.09.28} (¥7.800) – 13.076 / 75.786 <60-80%> (-79%)
07./09. [NSW] Splatoon 2 # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2017.07.21} (¥5.980) – 11.636 / 2.692.056 <80-100%> (-18%)
08./05. [PS4] Marvel’s Spider-Man # <ADV> (Sony Interactive Entertainment) {2018.09.07} (¥6.900) – 11.393 / 270.109 <80-100%> (-49%)
09./11. [NSW] Minecraft <ADV> (Microsoft Game Studios) {2018.06.21} (¥3.600) – 11.138 / 316.126 <80-100%> (-12%)
10./12. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe <RCE> (Nintendo) {2017.04.28} (¥5.980) – 9.795 / 1.798.220 <80-100%> (-21%)
11./06. [NSW] Dragon Ball FighterZ <FTG> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.09.27} (¥6.800) – 7.770 / 30.268 <40-60%> (-65%)
12./02. [PS4] The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV – The End of Saga # <RPG> (Nihon Falcom) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 7.142 / 104.300 <80-100%> (-93%)
13./04. [NSW] Warriors Orochi 4 # <ACT> (Koei Tecmo) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 6.948 / 35.441 <60-80%> (-76%)
14./08. [NSW] FIFA 19 # <SPT> (Electronic Arts) {2018.09.28} (¥5.800) – 6.613 / 22.888 <40-60%> (-59%)
15./13. [3DS] Pokemon Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon # <RPG> (Pokemon Co.) {2017.11.17} (¥4.980) – 6.122 / 2.369.216 <80-100%> (-11%)
16./00. [NSW] Sumikko Gurashi: Atsumare! Sumikko Town <ETC> (Nippon Columbia) {2018.10.04} (¥5.800) – 5.260 / NEW <0-20%>
17./15. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild # <ADV> (Nintendo) {2017.03.03} (¥6.980) – 5.166 / 1.094.195 <80-100%> (-8%)
18./07. [PS4] Utawarerumono: Zan # <SLG> (Aqua Plus) {2018.09.27} (¥7.800) – 5.052 / 23.106 <60-80%> (-72%)
19./16. [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2017.10.27} (¥5.980) – 4.370 / 1.813.622 <80-100%> (-19%)
20./18. [NSW] Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum ‘n’ Fun! <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2018.07.19} (¥6.100) – 4.127 / 209.780 <80-100%> (-14%)
21./14. [PS4] Winning Eleven 2019 <SPT> (Konami) {2018.08.30} (¥7.600) – 3.704 / 124.807 <80-100%> (-45%)
22./20. [NSW] Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 03: Drive Kit <EDU> (Nintendo) {2018.09.14} (¥6.980) – 3.077 / 24.809 <40-60%> (-20%)
23./23. [NSW] Kirby Star Allies <ACT> (Nintendo) {2018.03.16} (¥5.980) – 2.890 / 607.682 <80-100%> (-9%)
24./00. [NSW] Work x Work <RPG> (FuRyu) {2018.10.04} (¥4.980) – 2.853 / NEW <20-40%>
25./00. [PS4] Astro Bot: Rescue Mission |PlayStation VR| <ACT> (Sony Interactive Entertainment) {2018.10.04} (¥4.900) – 2.807 / NEW <40-60%>
26./19. [NSW] Mario Tennis Aces <SPT> (Nintendo) {2018.06.22} (¥5.980) – 2.658 / 341.743 <80-100%> (-33%)
27./00. [PSV] Wand of Fortune R2 FD: Kimi ni Sasageru Epilogue # <ADV> (Idea Factory) {2018.10.04} (¥6.300) – 2.493 / NEW <40-60%>
28./10. [NSW] The World Ends with You: Final Remix <RPG> (Square Enix) {2018.09.27} (¥4.800) – 2.175 / 15.070 <40-60%> (-83%)
29./21. [PS4] Conan Exiles <ACT> (Spike Chunsoft) {2018.08.23} (¥6.800) – 2.172 / 81.942 <80-100%> (-42%)
30./28. [PS4] Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 + II.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts \ Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories> \ Kingdom Hearts HD II.5 ReMIX <Kingdom Hearts II \ Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ \ Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep>> <RPG> (Square Enix) {2017.03.09} (¥6.800) – 2.167 / 205.418 <80-100%> (-5%)

Famitsu – Number of games in Top 30

NSW – 17
PS4 – 11
3DS – 1
PSV – 1

Famitsu – Hardware

Click here for more Japanese sales data!

Source: Media Create (via 4Gamer) / Famitsu
Data compiled by: Chris1964 (ResetEra)
Additional data via: Game Data Library