The Wii U is well known for being Nintendo’s worst-selling mainline console, while the Switch continues to break impressive sales records. In light of that, one would think a Wii U game like Pikmin 3 would see noticeably better sales on the Switch with its newly-launched port, Pikmin 3 Deluxe, but the data suggests this isn’t so.
Pikmin 3 was very well received among critics and players when it first debuted in 2013, and the Switch version continued that trend this weekend, with reviews for Pikmin 3 Deluxe praising the new content and gameplay improvements Nintendo added to an already-solid base game. Unfortunately, that critical praise doesn’t seem to be translating into equally strong sales, because the Switch version, in some places, has actually failed to outperform the original game in opening weekend sales.
GamesIndustry.biz reports that physical sales for the game in the UK are down 18.5% compared to the Wii U version. Furthermore, according to sales chart data, the game debuted in seventh place, putting it behind multiple Switch games that have been out for a while now, including Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Super Mario 3D All-Stars.
While this data only shows how the game is faring in one region, it’s still an unusual break from convention with Switch ports of Wii U games, which tend to see a growth in popularity within the Switch’s larger install base. This is most evident with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which is currently the best-selling Switch game of all time with more than 26 million copies sold worldwide, a vast improvement over the Wii U version’s lifetime sales of 8.45 million.
There are a few factors that could be to blame. For one, a real-time strategy game like Pikmin 3 Deluxe might not be as enticing to the average consumer as more casual titles like Mario Kart 8 and Animal Crossing. There’s also the frustration among many longtime fans that the long-awaited Pikmin game on the Switch is a port instead of a brand new title, even though it’s been argued that Nintendo made a smart decision porting Pikmin 3 instead of releasing Pikmin 4.
Ultimately, though, the current sales numbers don’t paint the full picture here, since Nintendo has yet to reveal how well the game has sold digitally. This is important since digital sales have been on the rise, spurred on by factors like the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, if Pikmin 3 Deluxe’s digital sales are taken into account, it’s possible that its opening weekend sales might be closer to the original version’s numbers, and might even surpass them in the best case scenario.
Pikmin 3 Deluxe is available for the Switch.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz
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