Only the Nintendo Switch Is Avoiding Japan’s Console Sale Slump

Hard to Say when Nintendo’s Console will Drop in Popularity

Reaching into April, Japan is witnessing a bit of a slump in gaming. Nothing major, simply a decline in market activity as one might expect. PlayStation 4 and other hardware are down in sales. Without any console drivers, current owners may have already hopped on console wagons for Horizon, NieR, or Persona 5. So we may see a static market until the next big mover. Nonetheless, Nintendo manages to retain strong numbers for the Nintendo Switch. It seems as if Nintendo Switch is moving them as fast as they can make them.

On the software side, last week, Lego Worlds saw the biggest increase with 11K units sold. Some might actually call this a breakout success, considering that western IPs don’t turn as many heads in Japan. Of course, that’s not the case for Horizon: Zero Dawn which is rising to a total of 200K units sold. This would help explain why PS4 Pro did not see a sales decrease. There is always a market for 4K gaming so long as 4K is the apex. And no other console will offer such visuals until Scorpio releases this holiday season.

You can check out the hardware and software numbers down below. See this week’s increases and totals. Even Nintendo’s new DS reigns just below the Switch:

Hardware

1. Switch – 41,193 (45,509)
2. New 3DS LL – 19,533 (25,719)
3. PlayStation 4 – 18,022 (25,006)
4. PlayStation 4 Pro – 6,490 (5,051)
5. PlayStation Vita – 5,987 (7,780)
6. 2DS – 4,629 (6,240)
7. New 3DS – 1,523 (1,995)
8. PlayStation 3 – 704 (1,724)
9. Wii U – 358 (449)
10. Xbox One – 132 (187)

Software

1. [3DS] Monster Hunter XX (Capcom, 03/16/17) – 65,672 (1,322,152)
2. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 23,016 (354,404)
3. [3DS] Mario Sports Superstars (Nintendo, 03/30/17) – 18,765 (51,181)
4. [NSW] 1-2-Switch (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 12,418 (166,319)
5. [PS4] LEGO Worlds (Warner Bros., 04/06/17) – 11,578 (New)
6. [PS4] Warriors All-Stars (Koei Tecmo, 03/30/17) – 8,577 (48,946)
7. [PS4] Ghost Recon: Wildlands (Ubisoft, 03/09/17) – 7,907 (153,408)
8. [3DS] Pokemon Sun / Pokemon Moon (Nintendo, 11/18/16) – 6,972 (3,236,826)
9. [PS4] NieR: Automata (Square Enix, 02/23/17) – 6,593 (294,694)
10. [Wii U] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 6,487 (95,806)
11. [PS4] Blue Reflection: Sword of the Girl Who Dances in Illusions (Koei Tecmo, 03/30/17) – 6,100 (40,691)
12. [PS4] Horizon: Zero Dawn (SIE, 03/02/17) – 6,018 (196,661)
13. [3DS] Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo, 12/01/16) – 5,717 (1,015,110)
14. [PSV] Warriors All-Stars (Koei Tecmo, 03/30/17) – 4,527 (22,393)
15. [NSW] Super Bomberman R (Konami, 03/03/17) – 4,233 (66,617)
16. [PS4] Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix (Square Enix, 03/09/17) – 4,218 (98,725)
17. [PS4] Grand Theft Auto V (Low Price Version) (Take-Two, 10/08/15) – 4,094 (318,014)
18. [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf Amiibo+ (Nintendo, 11/23/16) – 4,017 (159,150)
19. [Wii U] Minecraft: Wii U Edition (Nintendo, 06/23/16) – 4,014 (313,703)
20. [3DS] Kawaii Pet to Kurasou! (Nihon Colombia, 04/06/17) – 3,631 (New)

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