It has just been revealed thatPokemon SwordandShield, the most recent mainline entries in the long-running Pokemon franchise, have just hit an impressive sales milestone.
The Nintendo Switch titles have sold a total of 18.22 million units, making them the best-selling Pokemon games in the last 20 years. They currently stand as the third best-selling entries in the franchise, still behindPokemon RedandBlueandPokemon GoldandSilver, which have comparatively sold 31.3 million units and 23 million units, respectively.
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The franchise has always been knownfor its high sales, with every generation of titles becoming best sellers on its respective console.SwordandShieldcurrently stand as the fifth best-selling titles on the Switch console, just beating outSuper Mario Odysseywhich sold 18.06 million units, and are only beaten byThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild(18.6 million),Super Smash Bros. Ultimate(19.99 million),Animal Crossing: New Horizons(22.4 million), andMario Kart 8 Deluxe(26.74 million).
Given how well games have been selling on Nintendo’s hybrid console, it’s not big surprise seeingSwordandShieldsucceed like they currently are. The Switch has proven thateven more niche games can sell well on the system, with new and more experimental titles such as1-2 Switch, Ring Fit Adventure, andArmsall selling over 2 million units each.
Many old titles have also been ported over to the console with several selling better than their original Wii U releases, the most notable of which being the console’s best selling titleMario Kart 8 Deluxe. But many other older titles have seen success on the platform, such asCaptain Toad Treasure TrackerandNew Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe. This trend has continued into 2020, withPikmin 3 Deluxerecently getting announcedand given a release date of May 19, 2025.
ThePokemonfranchise shows no sign of stopping, with moreDLC set to release later this Fall forSwordandShieldin the form of its second expansion entitled The Crown Tundra. There’s no telling whether the title will receive additional content after this expansion, or whether a new game will come next. But withPokemon’s sales track record, it’s sure to sell well no matter what.
Pokemon SwordandPokemon Shieldare available exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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