Media Create sales for Week 53, 2015 (Dec. 28 – Jan 03) [Top 50]

Update 2: this post was updated with the full Top 50.

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Update: the Hardware chart was updated (now compared Week 53 of 2015 with Week 1 of 2014, due to 2015 having 53 weeks), as well as our analysis.

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In Week 53, we have both the end of 2015, and the beginning of 2016. During the week following Christmas, sales inevitably drop, but thanks to New Year (and kids buying games with money they got for the occasion), the drop is not as bad as usual this year.

Monster Hunter X remained pretty popular, with over 130 000 units sold (-32%) during Week 53 and over 2.5 millions since launch. Since Capcom expected to ship (not even sell!) 2.5 million copies before April 1st, it’s a great result for this spin-off title. It’s especially true if you add digital sales, which have been quite high due to severe shortages at launch (Capcom announced that 3 million units were shipped last month).

Monster Hunter X is the total opposite of Monster Strike, which only sold 91 572 copies last week in Japan. This definitely looks like a good performance, but the problem comes from the total of units sold since launch: “only” 699 436. That means retailers still have a lot of copies left to sell, and with the holiday period now over, they will definitely need to drop the price in order to get rid of everything.

When actual sales data came out, on December 23rd, it was clear mixi had overshipped the game at launch (they announced 1 million units shipped within the first two days, definitely not the most clever PR move). Monster Strike did sell pretty well on Nintendo 3DS, but it’s now even clearer that both mixi and retailers overestimated demand.

Games on Nintendo platforms were pretty popular during Week 53 in Japan, with Splatoon (60 447 units sold), Super Mario Maker (52 753 units sold), Yo-kai Watch Busters (49 533 units sold), Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer (24 539 units sold), Rhythm Heaven: The Best+ (26 513 units sold) and several others holding pretty well.

In fact, there’s even some games making their comeback in the Top 20, such as Mario Kart 7, Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai Yaarahen de!! Zettai ni Tsukamatte Haikenai Gasu Kurobikari Land, or New Super Mario Bros. 2. But there’s also some bad news for Nintendo, such as Genei Ibun Roku #FE already leaving the Top 20 . Sales for that game dropped (-62%), and there’s no doubt retailers are pretty unhappy about that (even though shipments for Day 1 were not too big, only 40-60% of all units sent have been effectively sold).

Hardware-wise, Nintendo platforms end 2015 and start 2016 on a (more or less) positive note. The Nintendo 3DS sold 120 105 units, and remains the best selling platform in Japan. Naturally, sales are down compared to the same week last year (by about 33 000 units). Nintendo’s handheld ends the year with 2 347 554 units sold, as opposed to 3 176 525 for 2014.

The drop is quite noticeable, but not as big as you’d expect in a market now completely dominated by mobile platforms. Since launch, the Nintendo 3DS has sold over 20 million units, and there’s no doubt it will reach 21 million units in 2016. Whether it reaches 22 millions LTD will depend on when its sucessors is announced and released.

One thing’s for sure: it will be interesting to see how the Nintendo 3DS will sell throughout 2016. Sales are bound to drop sharply, due to the age of the platform itself, but also the reveal of the NX platform. That being said, the line-up is quite strong, with titles such as Yo-kai Watch 3, Dragon Quest XI, and more. It looks like the Nintendo 3DS won’t simply retire without putting on a fight!

As for the Wii U, it sold over 53 000 units during Week 53, which is almost half of what it sold during Week 52. Sales are still above their 2015 levels, which is pretty impressive now that the holiday period is over. It looks like Splatoon and Super Mario Maker are still carrying the Wii U on their backs, as both games were pretty popular during New Year (according to retailers, and confirmed by the sales data above).

It will be interesting to see just how well (or bad) the Wii U will hold throughout 2016. It’s pretty clear it will all depend on Super Mario Maker and (especially) Splatoon, as it’s unlikely Nintendo will announce a game significant enough to make an impact on the Japanese market, this year.

Software

01./01. [3DS] Monster Hunter X # <ACT> (Capcom) {2015.11.28} (¥6.264) – 130.063 / 2.521.859 (-32%)
02./02. [3DS] Monster Strike <RPG> (Mixi) {2015.12.17} (¥4.860) – 91.572 / 699.436 (-46%)
03./05. [WIU] Splatoon # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.05.28} (¥6.156) – 60.447 / 1.153.989 (-36%)
04./04. [WIU] Super Mario Maker # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.09.10} (¥6.156) – 52.753 / 726.885 (-46%)
05./03. [3DS] Yo-Kai Watch Busters: Red Cat Team / White Dog Squad <ACT> (Level 5) {2015.07.11} (¥4.968) – 49.533 / 2.124.427 (-59%)
06./07. [PSV] Minecraft: PlayStation Vita Edition <ADV> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.03.19} (¥2.592) – 48.222 / 584.717 (-23%)
07./11. [3DS] Rhythm Heaven: The Best+ <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.06.11} (¥5.076) – 26.513 / 620.782 (-27%)
08./08. [3DS] Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2015.07.30} (¥4.320) – 24.539 / 1.301.227 (-53%)
09./12. [PS4] Fallout 4 # <RPG> (Bethesda Softworks) {2015.12.17} (¥8.618) – 22.378 / 178.420 (-32%)
10./09. [3DS] Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam <RPG> (Nintendo) {2015.12.03} (¥5.076) – 22.343 / 198.315 (-54%)
11./06. [PSV] Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs-Force <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.12.23} (¥7.344) – 20.508 / 107.763 (-76%)
12./10. [3DS] Disney Magic World 2 # <ETC> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.11.05} (¥6.145) – 16.139 / 252.344 (-64%)
13./24. [PS4] Star Wars: Battlefront # <ACT> (Electronic Arts) {2015.11.19} (¥8.424) – 13.216 / 192.475
14./36. [PS4] Call of Duty: Black Ops III # <ACT> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.11.06} (¥8.532) – 11.150 / 266.459
15./45. [3DS] Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai Yaarahen de!! Zettai ni Tsukamatte Haikenai Gasu Kurobikari Land <ACT> (Alchemist) {2015.12.17} (¥5.184) – 9.962 / 22.420
16./18. [WIU] Mario Kart 8 # <RCE> (Nintendo) {2014.05.29} (¥6.156) – 9.875 / 1.187.570 (-21%)
17./27. [3DS] New Super Mario Bros. 2 # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2012.07.28} (¥4.800) – 9.828 / 2.421.040
18./33. [PS4] Minecraft: PlayStation 4 Edition <ADV> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.12.03} (¥2.592) – 8.835 / 32.901
19./17. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2012.11.08} (¥4.800) – 8.499 / 4.110.542 (-37%)
20./23. [3DS] Mario Kart 7 <RCE> (Nintendo) {2011.12.01} (¥4.800) – 8.122 / 2.589.230
21./15. [3DS] Sumikko Gurashi: Omise Hajimerundesu <ETC> (Nippon Columbia) {2015.11.19} (¥5.184)
22./19. [3DS] Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS <FTG> (Nintendo) {2014.09.13} (¥5.616)
23./48. [PS4] Grand Theft Auto V [1/1][New Price Edition] <ACT> (Take-Two Interactive Japan) {2015.10.08} (¥5.389)
24./44. [PS4] Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege <ACT> (Ubisoft) {2015.12.10} (¥9.072)
25./26. [WIU] Super Smash Bros. for Wii U # <FTG> (Nintendo) {2014.12.06} (¥7.776)
26./13. [3DS] Medabots 9: Metabee Ver. / Rokusho Ver. <RPG> (Rocket Company) {2015.12.24} (¥6.264)
27./21. [3DS] The Legend of Zelda: TriForce Heroes <ADV> (Nintendo) {2015.10.22} (¥5.076)
28./20. [3DS] Pro Baseball Famista Returns <SPT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.10.08} (¥6.145)
29./14. [WIU] Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem # <RPG> (Nintendo) {2015.12.26} (¥7.236)
30./38. [3DS] Super Mario 3D Land # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2011.11.03} (¥4.800)
31./22. [3DS] Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon <RPG> (Pokemon Co.) {2015.09.17} (¥5.076)
32./40. [3DS] Pokemon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire <RPG> (Pokemon Co.) {2014.11.21} (¥4.937)
33./30. [3DS] Pokemon Rumble World <ACT> (Pokemon Co.) {2015.11.19} (¥3.996)
34./32. [WIU] Taiko no Tatsujin: Atsumete Tomodachi Daisakusen! # <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.11.26} (¥5.724)
35./25. [3DS] Super Run For Money Tousouchuu Atsumare! Saikyou no Tousou Monotachi # <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.07.09} (¥5.119)
36./41. [WIU] Mario Party 10 # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2015.03.12} (¥5.616)
37./29. [3DS] PriPara Mezase! Idol Grand Prix No.1! <ACT> (Takara Tomy) {2015.10.22} (¥5.832)
38./30. [3DS] Pokemon Rumble World <ACT> (Pokemon Co.) {2015.11.19} (¥3.996)
39./49. [PS3] Winning Eleven 2016 <SPT> (Konami) {2015.10.01} (¥7.128)
40./39. [3DS] Dragon Ball Heroes: Ultimate Mission 2 <TBL> (Bandai Namco Games) {2014.08.07} (¥6.145)
41./42. [PSV] Miracle Girls Festival <ACT> (Sega) {2015.12.17} (¥7.549)
42./00. [PS4] Winning Eleven 2016 <SPT> (Konami) {2015.10.01} (¥8.208)
43./00. [PSV] Taiko no Tatsujin: V Version <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.07.09} (¥6.145)
44./46. [3DS] Kirby Triple Deluxe <ACT> (Nintendo) {2014.01.11} (¥4.800)
45./37. [3DS] Style Savvy 2: Fashion Forward <ETC> (Nintendo) {2015.04.16} (¥5.076)
46./47. [PSV] Exist Archive: The Other Side of the Sky <RPG> (Spike Chunsoft) {2015.12.17} (¥7.344)
47./43. [3DS] Tomodachi Life # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2013.04.18} (¥4.800)
48./28. [3DS] Aikatsu! My No.1 Stage! # <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.11.26} (¥5.627)
49./31. [WIU] Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival <TBL> (Nintendo) {2015.11.21} (¥6.480)
50./00. [WIU] New Super Mario Bros. U <ACT> (Nintendo) {2012.12.08} (¥5.985)

Amount of games per platform

3DS – 28
WIU – 9
PS4 – 7
PSV – 5
PS3 – 1

Hardware

Head after the break for Famitsu sales!

Famitsu

01./02. [3DS] Monster Hunter X # <ACT> (Capcom) {2015.11.28} (¥6.264) – 149.587 / 2.591.564 <80-100%> (-14%)
02./01. [3DS] Monster Strike <RPG> (Mixi) {2015.12.17} (¥4.860) – 140.479 / 777.188 <80-100%> (-34%)
03./05. [WIU] Super Mario Maker # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.09.10} (¥6.156) – 68.523 / 742.717 <80-100%> (-30%)
04./04. [WIU] Splatoon # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.05.28} (¥6.156) – 60.991 / 1.125.888 <80-100%> (-38%)
05./03. [3DS] Yo-Kai Watch Busters: Red Cat Team / White Dog Squad <ACT> (Level 5) {2015.07.11} (¥4.968) – 56.819 / 2.022.021 <80-100%> (-46%)
06./09. [PSV] Minecraft: PlayStation Vita Edition <ADV> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.03.19} (¥2.592) – 45.302 / 523.780 <80-100%> (-4%)
07./10. [3DS] Rhythm Heaven: The Best+ <ACT> (Nintendo) {2015.06.11} (¥5.076) – 29.623 / 636.966 <80-100%> (-36%)
08./07. [3DS] Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2015.07.30} (¥4.320) – 28.326 / 1.311.206 <80-100%> (-53%)
09./12. [PS4] Fallout 4 # <RPG> (Bethesda Softworks) {2015.12.17} (¥8.618) – 25.994 / 175.361 <80-100%> (-8%)
10./08. [3DS] Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam <RPG> (Nintendo) {2015.12.03} (¥5.076) – 24.711 / 199.385 <60-80%> (-56%)
11./06. [PSV] Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs-Force <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.12.23} (¥7.344) – 22.988 / 92.973 <40-60%> (-67%)
12./21. [PS4] Star Wars: Battlefront # <ACT> (Electronic Arts) {2015.11.19} (¥8.424) – 12.215 / 174.540 <80-100%> (+18%)
13./00. [PS4] Call of Duty: Black Ops III # <ACT> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.11.06} (¥8.532) – 11.601 / 285.871 <80-100%>
14./16. [3DS] Mario Kart 7 <RCE> (Nintendo) {2011.12.01} (¥4.800) – 10.062 / 2.502.755 <80-100%> (-18%)
15./11. [3DS] Disney Magic World 2 # <ETC> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.11.05} (¥6.145) – 9.888 / 257.505 <80-100%> (-78%)
16./13. [WIU] Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem # <RPG> (Nintendo) {2015.12.26} (¥7.236) – 9.094 / 32.900 <40-60%> (-62%)
17./25. [3DS] New Super Mario Bros. 2 # <ACT> (Nintendo) {2012.07.28} (¥4.800) – 8.562 / 2.423.824 <80-100%> (-11%)
18./18. [3DS] The Legend of Zelda: TriForce Heroes <ADV> (Nintendo) {2015.10.22} (¥5.076) – 8.422 / 149.947 <80-100%> (-27%)
19./00. [PS4] Minecraft: PlayStation 4 Edition <ADV> (Sony Computer Entertainment) {2015.12.03} (¥2.592) – 7.683 / 28.807 <60-80%>
20./00. [PS4] Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege <ACT> (Ubisoft) {2015.12.10} (¥9.072) – 7.620 / 48.698 <80-100%>
21./24. [WIU] Mario Kart 8 # <RCE> (Nintendo) {2014.05.29} (¥6.156) – 7.551 / 1.178.576 <80-100%> (-22%)
22./00. [3DS] Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai Yaarahen de!! Zettai ni Tsukamatte Haikenai Gasu Kurobikari Land <ACT> (Alchemist) {2015.12.17} (¥5.184) – 7.460 / 17.688 <40-60%>
23./22. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf # <ETC> (Nintendo) {2012.11.08} (¥4.800) – 7.119 / 4.452.206 <80-100%> (-31%)
24./26. [3DS] Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS <FTG> (Nintendo) {2014.09.13} (¥5.616) – 6.839 / 2.420.316 <80-100%> (-28%)
25./00. [PS4] Grand Theft Auto V [1/1][New Price Edition] <ACT> (Take-Two Interactive Japan) {2015.10.08} (¥5.389) – 6.766 / 40.951 <80-100%>
26./15. [3DS] Sumikko Gurashi: Omise Hajimerundesu <ETC> (Nippon Columbia) {2015.11.19} (¥5.184) – 6.276 / 86.893 <80-100%> (-69%)
27./14. [3DS] Medabots 9: Metabee Ver. / Rokusho Ver. <RPG> (Rocket Company) {2015.12.24} (¥6.264) – 5.985 / 27.720 <40-60%> (-72%)
28./30. [WIU] Taiko no Tatsujin: Atsumete Tomodachi Daisakusen! # <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.11.26} (¥5.724) – 5.560 / 42.297 <60-80%> (-35%)
29./17. [3DS] Super Run For Money Tousouchuu Atsumare! Saikyou no Tousou Monotachi # <ACT> (Bandai Namco Games) {2015.07.09} (¥5.119) – 5.540 / 103.116 <80-100%> (-52%)
30./28. [3DS] Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon <RPG> (Pokemon Co.) {2015.09.17} (¥5.076) – 5.408 / 295.598 <80-100%> (-42%)

3DS – 17
PS4 – 6
WIU – 5
PSV – 2

Source: Media Create / Famitsu
Via: 4Gamer.net / NeoGAF