Japanese gamers invested $2.9 billion in physical games and consoles in 2022

According to Famitsu's annual report, the Japanese gaming market saw a significant expenditure of approximately $2.9 billion on physical games and consoles in 2022, marking a 4% increase from the previous year's ¥361.4 billion ($2.8 billion) in sales. The report, which covers the period from December 27, 2021, to December 25, 2022, reveals that Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were the top-selling games of the year, with combined sales of over four million units. Splatoon 3 followed closely, with 3.7 million copies sold since its release in September. Notably, Pokémon sales surged in December, propelling the titles to the top of the charts. In comparison, when the Year In Numbers infographic was published, Splatoon 3 was ahead of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet in terms of sales up to December 4. The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling hardware of the year in Japan, with 4.8 million units sold, bringing its total sales in the Japanese market to 27.7 million units since its launch in March 2017. Unsurprisingly, nine out of the top ten games of the year were Switch titles, with seven published by Nintendo. The only exception was Elden Ring, which secured the tenth spot with its PS4 version. PlayStation 5 came in second in terms of console sales, with 1.2 million units sold, pushing its lifetime sales to 2.4 million. Xbox Series X|S had a respectable year, selling 269,737 units in 2022, more than doubling its sales from the previous year. The top ten best-selling boxed games in Japan for the period, according to Famitsu, are: - Pokémon Scarlet & Violet (Switch, The Pokémon Company) - 4.3 million - Splatoon 3 (Switch, Nintendo) - 3.7 million - Pokémon Legends: Arceus (Switch, The Pokémon Company) - 2.3 million - Kirby and the Forgotten Land (Switch, Nintendo) - 966,047 - Nintendo Switch Sports (Switch, Nintendo) - 887,772 - Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch, Nintendo) - 742,018 - Minecraft (Switch, Nintendo) - 548,415 - Mario Party Superstars (Switch, Nintendo) - 485,594 - Super Smash Bros Ultimate (Switch, Nintendo) - 441,053 - Elden Ring (PS4, Bandai Namco) - 356,711 For additional 2022 sales data, please refer to our annual reports on game sales in Europe and the UK, as well as our Year In Numbers infographic.