The latest Nintendo Switch release, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, has become the fastest-selling game in the history of the Zelda series.
In the three days since its launch on May 12, the Nintendo Switch game sold more than 10 million units worldwide, the Japanese company said in a May 17 press release. These numbers are on par with the global sales of two other Nintendo Switch games, Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet, which also surpassed 10 million units in the first three days of their worldwide launch last year.
The figures are welcome news for Nintendo, which posted a year-on-year revenue drop in 2022 largely due to a decline in sales of the Switch consoles. “These sales numbers for the latest installment continue to show the strong momentum for both the franchise and Nintendo Switch this year,” Devon Pritchard, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of sales, marketing and communications, said.
One big number: Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom sales in the Americas
4 million: Copies of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom sold in the Americas in the first three days out of the total 10 million total, making it not only the fastest-selling Nintendo Switch game in the region, but also the fastest-selling Nintendo game for any system in the region.
35: Years since the launch of the Zelda adventure series. The Legend of Zelda game debuted in the US in 1987 for the Nintendo Entertainment System
30 million: Sales of the most popular Zelda game, Breath of the Wild—also a game for the Switch console—in its six-year lifetime.
130 million: Number of units the series had sold worldwide as of March 2023
$69.99: The suggested retail price of the latest Zelda switch game in Nintendo eShop on Nintendo Switch, the My Nintendo Store, and select retailers.
$359.99: The suggested retail price of the Nintendo Switch—OLED Model—The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom edition system, which is a special version of Nintendo’s best-selling hybrid console featuring a special design (game sold separately)
$74.99 and $24.99: Prixe of two special edition accessories—a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller and a Nintendo Switch carrying case respectively–which both feautre designs from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
$700 million: How much Axios estimates Tears of the Kingdom’s haul could be.
Charted: The Switch is Nintendo’s second-most popular console
What’s next for the Nintendo Switch?
Speculation is rife that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, which was originally slated for a 2022 release, is among the last few big first-party titles to come to the console. But in an investor Q&A last month, Nintendo representative director and president Shuntaro Furukawa reassured more new titles were coming.
Separately, Nintendo is apparently working on the next-gen Switch 2.
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