…after nearly a decade of typing “NPD” it’s still hard to get used to.
In the last month before the Zelda title sold 10 million units, Nintendo’s three-headed monster did pretty well in April’s US sales survey.
All data is based on earnings from April 2nd to April 29th unless otherwise stated. NItendo digital sales are not counted. Third parties may report eShop earnings if they so choose.
For the first time all year, the Switch was the best-selling platform by unit sales, but still fell short of the more expensive PlayStation 5 in terms of sales. According to Citrana’s Mat Piscatella, the April 28 launch of Tears of the Kingdom branded Switch OLEDs has led to a “double-digit percentage increase” in Switch dollar sales compared to March.
Nintendo’s other major events for the month were the start of a Mario movie and Advance Wars 1+2 Reboot Camp, both of which were within expectations given the lack of digital reporting. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe remains the top 10 first-party title in the software survey, with Advance Wars at 15th, New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe at 16th, and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury at 20th. (from 23rd place). 26th in March). Pokemon Scarlet and Violet took him 18th in April.
Monthly third-party sales were also strong, with MLB The Show 23 maintaining its No. 3 position since March, and Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection at No. 8 (on Switch, second only to Mario Kart; second place). FIFA 23 debuted at number 9, Minecraft Legends made his debut at number 11, the original Minecraft remained at number 13, and Final Fantasy Pixel Remastered landed him at number 14 with very limited distribution.
The main event for the May term is, of course, the release of Tears of the Kingdom. The book has already sold more than 4 million copies in its first weekend alone, but it’s unclear what percentage of that will be sold next month. The investigation is due to Nintendo’s failure to report his eShop sales and the existence of a Switch Online voucher program that eases the $69.99 MSRP.
