Hogwarts Legacy Achieves Record-Breaking Launch as the Largest Harry Potter Game Release

The launch of Hogwarts Legacy has seen tremendous success in the UK retail market, securing the top spot for the week, according to GfK data. This achievement marks the biggest launch for any Harry Potter game, with sales exceeding the previous record holder, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone from 2001, by 64%. Notably, even when compared to the highest sales week of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which occurred during its second week due to the hype surrounding the movie release, Hogwarts Legacy still managed to outsell it by 2%. This impressive result is based solely on physical sales, with digital downloads expected to further amplify its success. The Harry Potter franchise ranks as the 26th largest video game franchise in the UK. In comparison to last year's major fantasy release, Elden Ring, Hogwarts Legacy's first-week sales have seen an 80% increase. The sales distribution for Hogwarts Legacy was predominantly on the PS5, accounting for 82% of sales, with the remaining 18% attributed to Xbox Series S and X. It is anticipated that digital sales will narrow the gap between these platforms, given Xbox's higher digital sales share. Hogwarts Legacy is expected to maintain its presence in the charts, with versions for PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch scheduled for release in the coming months. God of War Ragnarok held firm at the second position, experiencing a 10% increase in sales. FIFA 23 dropped to third place after a slight 3% decline in sales. Mario Kart 8: Deluxe retained its fourth position despite a 10% decrease in sales. Pricing adjustments for Nintendo Switch games led to significant movements in the charts. Animal Crossing: New Horizons jumped seven places to fifth after a 40% sales increase. New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe rose eight places to tenth, while Mario Strikers: Battle League Football saw a 197% sales surge, propelling it 25 places up the chart. Other notable movements included Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, which grew 68% and moved from 27th to 15th, Mario Tennis Aces re-entering the chart at 17th with a 182% sales increase, and Luigi's Mansion 3 reaching 20th after an 88% sales boost. Conversely, Dead Space fell from third to seventh after a 52% decline, and Spongebob Squarepants: The Cosmic Shake dropped from tenth to 34th in its second week, experiencing a 60% sales drop.