Pokémon Sword And Shield Sales Have Surpassed 16 Million Units

The Pokémon franchise continues to prove its staying power today by reaching a monumental milestone.

Revealed earlier this week as part of the company’s most recent earnings call, series publisher Nintendo revealed that the latest games, Pokémon Sword and Shield, have sold a combined 16.18m units. An impressive figure for any entertainment product regardless of time spent available on the market, but even more so for this particular iteration of the globally popular franchise. The number is only representative of a six-week period (November 15th to December 31st), too, meaning the current total is likely to be considerably higher.

To put that unprecedented achievement into perspective, Sword and Shield have already far surpassed the entire lifetime sales of many previous series entries, including 2016’s Sun and Moon and 2018’s Let’s Go spinoffs. Assuming the current trend continues, last year’s Switch exclusives will be on track to surpass 1999’s current record holders, Gold and Silver.

The announcement is just the latest feather in Nintendo’s cap, as the Switch continues to dominate hardware sales in multiple territories. Lifetime sales of the hybrid console currently stand at 52.48 million, far outstripping its predecessor the Wii U, which managed a meagre 13.56 million during its tenure.

Terrific news for the Big N and Game Freak alike, then, and we only expect that growth to continue in 2020 and beyond, thanks to a certain recent announcement. Earlier this month, the latter confirmed via special Direct presentation that Sword and Shield will be the first in series history to receive DLC. The Isle of Armor and Crown Tundra expansions are due for release in the summer and fall respectively and promise to add a wealth of new content. You can learn more about both add-ons, including new Pokémon, areas and more, by heading over here.