The latest installment of Pokemon is a certified blockbuster. According to Nintendo, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet sales figures breached the 10 million mark in just three days on sale. The numbers break all manner of records, both for the Pokemon franchise and Nintendo as a whole. The games launched on November 18, 2022.
Nintendo’s press release revealed that the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet sales figures cover the global numbers for the games. However, more than 4 million copies (of the 10 million total) were sold in Japan alone. Nintendo said that the launch is the “highest number ever” for worldwide launch sales of a Nintendo title, over all Nintendo consoles. The same figures make Scarlet and Violet the biggest-ever launch for a Pokemon game and a Switch game, too.
The latest mainline releases in the Pokemon franchise, Scarlet and Violet move the setting to the Iberian-inspired region of Paldea. Players are students at Paldea’s oldest school (either Naranja Academy in Scarlet or Uva Academy in Violet), and can pursue one of three available storylines at their initiative. The “Victory Road” storyline involves challenging the region’s gyms and conquering the Paldean Pokemon League. The “Starfall Street” storyline puts players at odds with the delinquent students of Team Star. The “Path of Legends” storyline pairs players with Arven as they track gigantic Titan Pokemon and gather rare Herba Mystica. Paldea is also home to a range of unique Pokemon, as well as the Terastal phenomenon, a transformation that allows Paldean Pokemon to power up and alter their natural type attributes.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are available on the Nintendo Switch. In the aftermath of the launch, players and reviewers alike reported widespread concerns about performance problems, bugs, and glitches that hampered the experience and dampened review scores. In Siliconera’s official review, Graham remarked on the game’s “challenging” technical state.
