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The first half of 2023 has come to a close, so there will be some more sales data coming out in relation to that time period. For example, there has been some new sales data released from Famitsu. The data is for gaming hardware and software sales in Japan from December 26th, 2022 to June 25th, 2023.
According to Famitsu, the Nintendo Switch family of consoles has sold 1,940,000 units in the first half of the year, making the Switch the top-selling console in Japan. 380,000 of those units were in June alone. The runner-up console is the PlayStation 5, which sold 1,400,000 in the same time period. In the period between May 29th and June 25th, Sony sold 215,000 PlayStation 5 consoles.
As for software, it is nothing but good news for Nintendo. They had the most boxed title software sales, generating ¥28 billion ($203,000,000) during the first six months of 2023, which made up 44% of the physical game market in Japan. They are followed by Square Enix in second with ¥6.74 billion ($48,600,000) and 10.6% of the market, and The Pokemon Company in third with ¥4.68 billion ($34 million) and 7% of the market.
For June, Nintendo led physical software sales with 422,000 copies sold. Square Enix was the runner-up with 364,000 copies, and Capcom was in third with 83,000 copies. As for Square Enix, their physical sales were fueled by the release of Final Fantasy XVI, which was June’s top-selling physical game in Japan with 336,000 copies sold. The runner-up was The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Speaking of Nintendo’s latest Zelda game, it was the top-selling physical game release of the first half of 2023. It is currently being estimated that the game sold 1,700,000 copies in Japan in that time period. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet was in second with 719,000 copies. Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe was in third with 451,000 boxed games sold. In fact, 8 of the top 10 best-selling physical game releases for the first half of the year are Nintendo Switch games. You can see the charts for this in full down below.
| Rank | Title | Platform | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom | Switch | Nintendo |
| 2 | Pokémon Scarlet/Violet | Switch | Pokémon Company |
| 3 | Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe | Switch | Nintendo |
| 4 | Splatoon 3 | Switch | Nintendo |
| 5 | Final Fantasy 16 | PS5 | Square Enix |
| 6 | Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | Switch | Nintendo |
| 7 | Nintendo Switch Sports | Switch | Nintendo |
| 8 | Fire Emblem Engage | Switch | Nintendo |
| 9 | Minecraft: Switch Edition | Switch | Microsoft Japan |
| 10 | Hogwarts Legacy | PS5 | Warner Bros. Games |