Entertainment

Metroid Dread is fastest selling Metroid ever in UK – Games charts 9 October

It was never going anywhere (pic: EA)

It’s had to settle for number three in the charts, behind Far Cry 6 and FIFA 22, but Metroid Dread has already broken sales records in the UK.

In hindsight it’s surprising that any big name game was released last week, just seven days after FIFA 22, as there was never any chance of them beating it for the number one spot. But thanks to the industry’s typically incompetent scheduling it was actually a busy week for new releases.

Far Cry 6 was the highest new entry, at number two, with sales 70% lower than 2018’s Far Cry 5. Even that drop is likely to be inline with increases in digital sales though, with last week’s FIFA 22 already confirmed to have sold more than FIFA 21 despite first week physical sales being down by 35%.

Nintendo never releases digital sales data, so we’ll never know the full extent of Metroid Dread’s success, but it’s already the fastest selling entry every in the UK, selling three and a half times that of 2017’s Metroid: Samus Returns on the 3DS.

Metroid Dread is the fifth biggest Nintendo Switch launch of the year – behind Super Mario 3D World, Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, Monster Hunter Rise, and New Pokémon Snap – and seems to have achieved Nintendo’s goal of revitalising interest in the franchise.

Alan Wake Remastered also did well at number five, beating fellow remaster Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania. It’s the first time Remedy’s game has been released on PlayStation formats, with the PlayStation 5 version accounting for 63% of sales and the PlayStation 4 claiming 21%.

Sega’s second recent attempt to revive Super Monkey Ball has been a more equivocal success, entering the charts only at number eight and seeing 70% of sales go to the Nintendo Switch version.

That in a week in which all Nintendo Switch games saw an increase across the board, thanks to the launch of the new OLED model of the console. Although, as ever, there’s no indication of how exactly how well that sold.

UK all formats retail chart – 9 October

1 (1) FIFA 22 (PS4/XO/PS5/NS)
2 (-) Far Cry 6 (PS5/XO/PS4)
3 (-) Metroid Dread (NS)
4 (2) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NS)
5 (-) Alan Wake Remastered (PS5/PS4/XO)
6 (5) Minecraft (NS)
7 (7) Animal Crossing: New Horizons (NS)
8 (-) Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania (NS/PS5/XO/PS4)
9 (10) Super Mario 3D World + Bower’s Fury (NS)
10 (9) Grand Theft Auto 5 (PS4/XO/PS3/360/PC)

Ukie Games Charts©, compiled by GfK

Japanese console chart – 3 October

1 (-) The Legend Of Heroes: Kuro No Kiseki (PS4)
2 (-) FIFA 22 (PS4)
3 (1) Lost Judgment (PS4)
4 (-) Melty Blood: Type Lumina (PS4)
5 (-) FIFA 22: Legacy Edition (NS)
6 (-) Melty Blood: Type Lumina (NS)
7 (4) WarioWare: Get It Together! (NS)
8 (8) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NS)
9 (2) Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot + A New Power Awakens Set (NS)
10 (6) Minecraft (NS)

U.S. all formats chart – August

1 (-) Madden NFL 22 (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
2 (110) Ghost Of Tsushima (PS4/PS5)
3 (2) Call Of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5)
4 (-) Humankind (PC)
5 (8) Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (PS4/PS5)
6 (4) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (NS)*
7 (1) The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword (NS)*
8 (5) Minecraft (multi)
9 (20) Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
10 (7) MLB The Show 21 (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5)^

*does not include digital sales
^Xbox digital sales not included

Note: U.S. charts are organised by revenue, not unit sales

The NPD Group/NPD Funworld

GameCentral Top 10 – 2021

1. Returnal (PS5)
2. Monster Hunter Rise (NS)
3. It Takes Two (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
4. Guilty Gear -Strive- (PS4/PS5/PC)
5. Chicory: A Colorful Tale (PS4/PS5/PC)
6. Little Nightmares 2 (XO/PS4/NS/XSX/PS5/PC)
7. Genesis Noir (XO/NS/PC)
8. New Pokémon Snap (NS)
9. Scarlet Nexus (XO/PS4/XSX/PS5/PC)
10. R-Type Final 2 (XO/PS4/NS/XSX/PC)

GameCentral Top 20 – 2020

1. Animal Crossing: New Horizons (NS)
2. The Last Of Us Part 2 (PS4)
3. Spelunky 2 (PS4/PC)
4. Ori And The Will Of The Wisps (XO/NS/XSX/PC)
5. Final Fantasy 7 Remake (PS4)
6. Half-Life: Alyx (PC VR)
7. Nioh 2 (PS4)
8. Hades (NS/PC)
9. Cyberpunk 2077 (XO*/PS4*/PC/Stadia)
10. Spider-Man: Miles Morales (PS4/PC)
11. Doom Eternal (XO/PS4/NS/PC)
12. The Pathless (PS4/PS5/PC/iOS)
13. Star Wars: Squadrons (XO/PS4/PC)
14. Horace (NS/PC)
15. Ghostrunner (XO/PS4/NS*/PC)
16. Paper Mario: The Origami King (NS)
17. Streets Of Rage 4 (XO/PS4/NS/PC)
18. Immortals Fenyx Rising (XO/PS4/NS/XSX/PS5/PC/Stadia)
19. Mortal Shell (XO/PS4/PC)
20. Wasteland 3 (XO/PS4/PC)

The chart above lists our best reviewed titles of 2020 but as usual does not include remakes (with the special exception of Final Fantasy 7), remasters, expansions, re-releases, compilations, games not yet released in the UK, or versions of games previously released on other formats.

*Not recommended at launch