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Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield are ruling the roost on the physical sales chart, making it the second biggest Pokémon launch in the UK (via Eurogamer).
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was no match for the Sword, and was bumped to second place while the pocket monster-hunting game took the crown. Ergo, Pokémon Sword is the biggest platform exclusive of this year, leaving other platform exclusives like Death Stranding, Gears 5, and Luigi’s Mansion 3 in the dust. Sorry, Luigi. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and FIFA 20 did eclipse Pokémon Sword in the number of units sold, but these were multi-platform, of course.
Nintendo has made its presence felt in the physical sales chart, with new and previously-released games peppered in the top ten. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sit at tenth and ninth place respectively, then Pokémon Sword and Shield: Dual Edition in seventh place is cosying up to Luigi's Mansion 3 in sixth place. Sword snags the gold medal and Shield grabs the bronze medal, making the Generation 8 games the second most successful Pokémon launch in the UK, after Pokémon Sun and Moon.
The lead-up to Pokémon Sword and Shield’s launch was blighted with uncertainty, so it’s heartwarming to see the game do so well. The games do not have a national dex and therefore do not include all of the Pokémon from the previous regions, and this will continue to be the case for future Pokémon games. This upset a lot of fans who then created the “#bringbackthenationaldex” and “#GameFreakLied” to voice their criticisms. However, in multiple interviews, the developer explained its approach to a core Pokémon RPG on a new console, and cited the unique challenges of producing a game for the Switch and the desire to add fresh new features into the franchise.
Pokémon Sword and Shield is out now for Nintendo Switch.
