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[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Almost $3 billion was spent on boxed games and hardware in Japan last year, according to Famitsu's annual report.

The total sales of physical games products amounted to ¥403.8 billion ($2.7 billion) from December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2023 – a 7.8% increase compared to ¥384.6 billion ($2.5 billion) in 2022.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was the best-selling game of the year with 1.9 million boxed copies shifted since it debuted in May.

Super Mario Bros Wonder was close behind in second place with 1.5 million boxed copies sold since its release in October.

Momotaro Dentetsu World: The Earth Spins With Hope saw a surge in sales in December. Since we reported Japan's best-selling boxed games of the year up until December 3 in our annual Year in Numbers report, the Konami title moved up two places ahead of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe.

Every game in the top ten were for Nintendo Switch, with seven published by Nintendo (Pokémon Scarlet & Violet is published by The Pokémon Company in Japan).

In terms of hardware, Nintendo Switch was once again the best-selling console in Japan with the Nintendo Switch OLED model being the most popular with 2.8 million units sold.

PlayStation 5 came in second at 2.5 million units sold, followed by Xbox Series X|S at 141,712 units sold.

Below are the top ten best-selling boxed games along with their sales totals for December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2023, courtesy of Famitsu:

• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Switch, Nintendo) – 1,929,603
• Super Mario Bros Wonder (Switch, Nintendo) – 1,549,401
• Pikmin 4 (Switch, Nintendo) – 1,119,027
• Pokémon Scarlet & Violet (Switch, The Pokémon Company) – 907,432
• Momotaro Dentetsu World: The Earth Spins with Hope (Switch, Konami) – 795,681
• Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch, Nintendo) – 617,223
• Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe (Switch, Nintendo) – 514,581
• Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince (Switch, Square Enix) – 510,477
• Splatoon 3 (Switch, Nintendo) – 503,312
• Super Mario RPG (Switch, Nintendo) – 447,687

Japanese physical sales neared $3bn in 2023 | Japan Annual Report

Almost $3 billion was spent on boxed games and hardware in Japan last year, according to Famitsu's annual report. The t…

www.gamesindustry.biz

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

So I heard that physical games are dying guys....

The total sales of physical games products amounted to ¥403.8 billion ($2.7 billion) from December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2023 – a 7.8% increase compared to ¥384.6 billion ($2.5 billion) in 2022.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Physical up, baby!

 

[Sentenza]

Is this one of these threads where everyone celebrates physical sales dominating the market and then someone else pulls out the number for digital sales and the increase is way larger there?
Only time will tell.

 

[ReBurn]

Is this one of these threads where everyone celebrates physical sales dominating the market and then someone else pulls out the number for digital sales and the increase is way larger there?
Only time will tell.

Probably. I think the most interesting thing here is how all of the top sellers are Nintendo games. They seem to own Japan right now.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Interesting seems like the Japanese are standing up to the digital narrative.

 

[AJUMP23]

Japan is making it cool to buy a box still.

 

[Northeastmonk]

I am curious. What’s the narrative concerning video games in Japan.

 

[TheDarkPhantom]

People love physical media here in Japan, myself included. This extends to all media whether it be books, music CD's, blu-ray etc.

 

[Fake]

Where are the assholes digital freak users now?

 

[BlackTron]

Holy crap Nintendo

 

[Woopah]

So I heard that physical games are dying guys....

The total sales of physical games products amounted to ¥403.8 billion ($2.7 billion) from December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2023 – a 7.8% increase compared to ¥384.6 billion ($2.5 billion) in 2022.

That figure contains hardware as well as physical software.

Physical software alone was down 18% year on year, since 2022 had the two biggest physical game launches in Japan's history.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

That figure contains hardware as well as physical software.

Physical software alone was down 18% year on year, since 2022 had the two biggest physical game launches in Japan's history.

Welp... pack it up boys. Physical game sales are biting the dust, even in Japan. Change is upon us.

I'm joking ofc

 

[SlimeGooGoo]

In this case,

Japan = Nintendo

 

[demigod]

In this thread, yes. But on the whole? I love to buy physical but most people don't. NeoGAF is not representative of the majority of those who play games.

No, we're a dying breed.

Physical Games Represented Just 4% of Sales for PlayStation Last Quarter

The only category down year-on-year

www.pushsquare.com

Has anyone seen these 2? Whenever you have numbers for physical, these 2 sure don’t wanna come out.

Long live physical!!!

 

[Rocco Schiavone]

Digital only fanboys.

 

[NeverYouMind]

Seems like people are too afraid to invest in Nintendo's current digital marketplace. I am not surprised as they have killed all of the previous ones.

 

[Woopah]

Seems like people are too afraid to invest in Nintendo's current digital marketplace. I am not surprised as they have killed all of the previous ones.

How are getting that from these numbers?

 

[NeverYouMind]

How are getting that from these numbers?

It is a bit of a reach, but the lack of physical PlayStation titles in that list is jarring.

 

[Spyxos]

So I heard that physical games are dying guys....

The total sales of physical games products amounted to ¥403.8 billion ($2.7 billion) from December 26, 2022 to December 31, 2023 – a 7.8% increase compared to ¥384.6 billion ($2.5 billion) in 2022.

They don't have internet in Japan.

 

[RoboFu]

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was the best-selling game of the year with 1.9 million boxed copies shifted since it debuted in May.


Super Mario Bros Wonder was close behind in second place with 1.5 million boxed copies sold since its release in October.


Momotaro Dentetsu World: The Earth Spins With Hope saw a surge in sales in December. Since we reported Japan's best-selling boxed games of the year up until December 3 in our annual Year in Numbers report, the Konami title moved up two places ahead of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe.


Every game in the top ten were for Nintendo Switch, with seven published by Nintendo (Pokémon Scarlet & Violet is published by The Pokémon Company in Japan).

That's why. portable game console.

now shows us digital numbers?

 

[Woopah]

It is a bit of a reach, but the lack of physical PlayStation titles in that list is jarring.

The PlayStation audience in Japan seems to have gone largely F2P.