All Articles: Super Mario Odyssey

State of Decay 2 rises as the best-selling game of May 2018

I think we can all agree that the Xbox’s two biggest franchises are Halo and Gears of War. But it looks like Microsoft can add the State of Decay series to the list, as The NPD Group (via Game Informer) has confirmed that State of Decay 2 was the best-selling game of May 2018.

The zombie survival sim beat out other several other May releases including Detroit: Become Human (#3), Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (#5), Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition (#7), and Street Fighter: 30th Anniversary Collection (#17).

While it might have seemed like a slow month for new releases, The NPD Group confirmed that increased hardware sales gave the game industry a 13% bump over May 2017’s retail figures.

The complete Top 20 for May 2018 can be found after the break. (more…)

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God of War slays all comers and emerges as the best-selling game of April 2018

You might say that Kratos returned with a vengeance last month, and that’s because Sony’s God of War reboot climbed to the top of The NPD Group’s list of best-selling games for April 2018. According to the NPD (via GamesIndustry.biz), God of War was also the “best ever launch for a PlayStation exclusive.”

Sony and Kratos weren’t done setting records, and the former “Ghost of Sparta” helped sell a lot of PS4 consoles too. Thanks to a push from the newly-available PS4 Pro 1TB + God of War Limited Edition Bundle, Sony’s console was propelled to the top of the NPD’s Hardware Chart for both “units sold” and “dollar sales.” The PS4 also set a new record for console sales during the month of April, besting the previous mark set in April 2008 by Nintendo’s Wii.

While Nintendo lost out on one record, they almost stole Sony’s thunder by placing six games in the NPD’s Top 20 last month, including the Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit (#4), Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (#5), Mario Kart 8 (#6), Super Mario Odyssey (#9), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#13), and Kirby Star Allies (#19).

You can find the full list of The NPD Group’s best-selling titles for April 2018 after the break. (more…)

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Far Cry 5 and Sea of Thieves sail to the top of March 2018’s list of best-selling games

The number of high-profile new releases has slowed to a trickle in April, and that’s probably because game publishers threw open the tap in March. Not surprisingly, gamer scooped up these new titles by the armful, with Ubisoft’s Far Cry 5, Microsoft’s Sea of Thieves, Sony’s MLB The Show 18, and Nintendo’s Kirby Star Allies taking the top four spots in The NPD Group’s monthly tally of best-selling games.

The venerable Grand Theft Auto V remains in the top five, but other new releases, including Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom (#8) and A Way Out (#15), managed to break into the NPD’s top twenty.

According to GamesIndustry.biz, overall sales for the industry were down by 11% in March, however, “first quarter 2018 spending across the four categories [software, hardware, game cards, and accessories] was up by 15% year-on-year to $3.4 billion with growth in all areas.”

You can find the full list of The NPD Group’s best-selling titles for March 2018 after the break. (more…)

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February 2018’s best-selling game was Monster Hunter: World… and Nintendo Switch set the record for first-year console sales in US

The Nintendo Switch continues to break records, and the consolemaker can now add “Best First-Year Sales in the US” to its trophy case. The news comes courtesy of The NPD Group’s February 2018 report (via GamesIndustry.biz), which estimates that Nintendo sold more than five million Switch consoles in the US over the previous 12 months.

On the software side of the ledger, Capcom’s Monster Hunter: World was the top-selling game yet again. It was challenged by several new releases in February, but while EA Sports UFC 3 (#7), Kingdom Come: Deliverance (#8), Bayonetta 2 (#14), and Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet (#18) all cracked the top 20, none could dethrone Monster Hunter: World.

The NPD Group’s complete top 20 for February 2018 can be found after the break. (more…)

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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is “Video Game of the Year” at 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild took home another trophy last night when the “open-air” adventure was named “Video Game of the Year” at the 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards. The Nintendo Switch launch title also scooped up awards for “Excellence in Design” and “Excellence in Gameplay”

PUBG Corporation’s PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds also picked up three awards last night (“Esports Game of the Year,” “Trending Game of the Year,” and “Excellence in Multiplayer”), and a handful of other games (Cuphead, Horizon: Zero Dawn, and Nier: Automata) were two-time winners.

You can find the complete list of winners from the 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards at Video Game Canon.

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UK-developed Hellblade leads the way at 2018 BAFTA Games Awards with 9 nominations

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice was developed in the United Kingdom at Ninja Theory, and this hometown advantage helped it lead the way with nine nominations at the 2018 BAFTA Games Awards.

With so many nominations, it’s no surprise that Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is up for “Best Game,” and it’ll be competing against Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Origins, Guerrilla’s Horizon: Zero Dawn, Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nintendo’s Super Mario Odyssey, and Giant Sparrow’s What Remains of Edith Finch.

The BAFTA Games Awards ceremony will be held on Thursday, April 12, and hosting duties will once again be handled by comedian Dara O’Briain. If you weren’t able to score a ticket to the big show, you’ll still be able to livestream the entire ceremony through BAFTA.org and several other streaming platforms.

The complete list of nominees in all categories can be found after the break. (more…)

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Monster Hunter: World is king of the jungle… and the bestselling game of January 2018

The Monster Hunter franchise is an absolute phenomenon in Japan, and Capcom has been trying to replicate its success in North America since since Monster Hunter was released for the PS2 in 2004.

It might have taken more than a decade, but it looks like the series finally broke through with Monster Hunter: World, which was the best-selling game of January 2018. According to The NPD Group (via GamesIndustry.biz), Capcom’s unique Action RPG helped push the industry to its best performance in January since 2011.

However, Capcom wasn’t the only publisher to post a monster-sized debut in January. Bandai Namco’s Dragon Ball Fighter Z fought its way to the #2 slot, beating out some of 2017’s biggest titles, including Call of Duty: WWII (#3) and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (#5).

All told, video game fans purchased more than $517 million in software, as well as $278 million in hardware. Microsoft’s Xbox One, Nintendo’s Switch, and Sony’s PS4 were neck-and-neck-and-neck, and total hardware sales crossed one million units during the month.

You can find the NPD’s recounting of January 2018’s top ten best-selling titles after the break. (more…)

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Free Luigi’s Balloon World expansion is now available for Super Mario Odyssey

Are you ready to play hide-and-seek across the world of Super Mario Odyssey? I hope so, because according to Nintendo’s official website, the Luigi’s Balloon World expansion is now available to download through the Nintendo eShop:

Luigi’s Balloon World
After downloading the update and beating the main story, Luigi will now show up in different kingdoms to give Mario a new challenge. To start Balloon World, seek out the green-clad bro and have a nice chat with him. There are two modes in Balloon World: “Hide It” mode lets you hide a balloon somewhere in that kingdom, while “Find It” mode challenges you to find balloons hidden by other players from around the world. If you get good at hiding and finding balloons, you’ll also move up the online rankings!

Luigi’s Balloon World is a free update for Super Mario Odyssey, and it also includes new Outfits for Mario and new Filters for Snapshot Mode.

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