The family-friendly antics and activities of players have been a refreshing breath of virus-free air for millions
Step aside, Harry and Meghan, a new lineage of royalty, have emerged in the UK, and its name is Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
The long-awaited Switch exclusive shipped to gamers this past Friday, March 20. Seemingly overnight, it has become the best launched standalone Nintendo Switch title to date. Animal Crossing’s reception has sparked widespread notoriety across the internet and social media platforms. Thus, countless memes are flooding Twitter, and comment section conversations are rampant.
Regarding statistics, the game has sold more copies during its first week in the UK than all other Animal Crossing games combined. In fact, according to Gamesindustry.biz, New Horizons has more than TRIPLED the launch of the series’ last major installment, Animal Crossing: New Leaf.
New Horizons second to only Pokémon… but not really
As mentioned, the highly-anticipated chapter of the Animal Crossing franchise is now the fastest-selling individual Nintendo Switch title ever in the UK. Though, it is important to note that the combined efforts of Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield do surpass New Horizons. However, some would consider that to be cheating.
What may be the most important bit of information surrounding the report is that the data only represents physical sales. In today’s climate, digital sales account for a large portion of video game sales. Given the state of things, I’d wager that digital sales were solid, if not greater than expected.
In a similar story, DOOM Eternal, ranked second in the UK’s Switch power rankings this past week. Reports share that DOOM Eternal has fallen vastly short of its predecessor’s 2016 launch. Physical sales are sitting around 1/3 of DOOM’s results four years ago. Again, digital sales were not represented. Bethesda isn’t keen on sharing its digital download records, so it’s unlikely we’ll get an exact number anytime soon.
