IGXPro

Menu
  • Blog
  • Console
    • PC
    • Playstation 3
    • Playstation 4
    • Wii
    • Wii U
    • Xbox 360
    • Xbox One
  • Gaming
  • Handheld
    • DS/3DS
    • PSP / Vita
  • Reviews
    • Handheld
    • PC
    • Playstation 3
    • Wii
    • Xbox 360
  • Tech
    • Mobile Phones
    • PC/Laptop
    • Tablets
    • Tech Reviews
  • Video Gallery

Join Us Now For Free
Home
Handheld
Nintendo DS/3DS
Nintendo & Capcom had the best-selling games in Japan for 2012

Nintendo & Capcom had the best-selling games in Japan for 2012

Michael Lacerna 18 Dec

Japanese company Tsutaya has compiled a list of the 19 games that sold the most copies in Japan during 2012, and unsurprisingly, Nintendo and Capcom dominate the chart thanks to strong sales of the latest Pokemon, Resident Evil, and Monster Hunter games.

It seems like Pokemon just never goes out of style, because Pokemon Black 2 easily earned the top spot in terms of sales this year. Its counterpart, Pokemon White 2 placed fourth, and if you combine the sales of the two versions together, it becomes even more apparent that Pokemon is just as popular in Japan today as it was when the original games were released back on the black and white Game Boy more than a decade ago. The 3DS version of Animal Crossing managed to come in second place for the year, which is extremely impressive, considering that it only came out last month. The game has been selling so well that Japanese retailers have reported nationwide shortages of the game, and Nintendo president Satoru Iwata even had to issue a formal statement apologizing for how Nintendo hasn’t been able to produce enough cartridges of the game to keep up with demand. Fire Emblem: Awakening is on track to become the best-selling entry in Nintendo’s long running strategy RPG franchise as well, as the latest game in the series charted in 13th place.

Despite a mixed reception from fans and critics alike, Capcom’s Resident Evil 6 still sold well enough to become the best selling PS3 game of the year and earn a third place position in terms of overall sales. The equally critically panned Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City also managed to sell pretty well, charting in 11th place, proving that Resident Evil can still sell well, regardless of quality. Capcom’s other big hit of the year, Dragon’s Dogma, placed 9th on the chart, while the 3DS version of Monster Hunter 3 managed to hang onto 14th place, an impressive feat when you consider that the game is over a year old at this point.

Square-Enix also has a lot to be happy about as well: Dragon Quest proved that it’s still Japan’s favorite RPG franchise, as 3DS spin-off Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry’s Wonderland sold well enough to earn the 6th spot on the list, while Wii MMO Dragon Quest X came in 8th place. Namco Bandai also had some hits thanks to the latest One Piece Musuo game, as well as the strong performance of Tales of Xillia 2.

The full list is as follows:

Rank Title name System
# 1 Pokemon Black 2 DS
# 2 Animal Crossing: New Leaf 3DS
# 3 Resident Evil 6 PS3
# 4 Pokemon White 2 DS
# 5 One Piece Pirate Musou PS3
# 6 Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry’s Wonderland 3D 3DS
# 7 New Super Mario Bros. 2 3DS
# 8 Dragon Quest X Wii
# 9 Dragons Dogma PS3
# 10 World Soccer Winning Eleven 2013 PS3
# 11 Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City PS3
# 12 Tales of Xillia 2 PS3
# 13 Fire Emblem: Awakening 3DS
# 14 Monster Hunter 3 (Tri) G 3DS
# 15 Super Robot Wars Z II PSP
# 16 Mario Kart 7 3DS
# 17 Mario Party 9 Wii
# 18 Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance] 3DS
# 19 SD Gundam G Generation World Over PSP

It’s interesting to see the differences between the Japanese market and the American NPD charts: over there handhelds are dominant over home consoles, and the Xbox 360’s presence is non-existant, where as the 360 has dominated software and hardware sales for the better part of 2012 here in America.

It’s also worth noting that a lot of Japan’s best selling games of the year aren’t out in America yet. In case you’re interested in picking any of these games up, their current release dates on our shores are as follows:

Animal Crossing: City Folk (New Leaf in Japan) – Q2 2013

Fire Emblem: Awakening – February 4, 2013

Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate – March, 2013 (ditto for the HD Wii U port as well)

Tales of Xillia 2 doesn’t have a US release date yet, but that’s probably because the original Tales of Xillia hasn’t come out here yet; while Tales of Xillia 1 has been confirmed for a US release, Namco Bandai still has it listed as a nebulous “2013” release.

Source: 4Gamer.net

Share
Tweet
Email
Prev Article
Next Article

Related Articles

Retro Round-Up is a weekly article (which I never get …

Retro Round-Up 07/11/12 – A summer of 8-bit E-Shop releases

According to Microsoft’s Aaron Greenberg, the relaunch of the Xbox …

Xbox Sales on the Rise in June – 88% Increase

About The Author

Michael Lacerna

Search Website

Let’s Get Social

Latest Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyHy9X1M9a4

Popular Posts

    Recent Comments

    • Vinny Parisi on Review: TMNT: Out of the Shadows
    • Narduckleson on Review: TMNT: Out of the Shadows
    • Candy on Tropico 5 set to finally make Communism fun again next year
    • Vinny Parisi on Insomniac Games Reportedly Working on Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus
    • Adam Magulick on Insomniac Games Reportedly Working on Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus

    Get more stuff

    Subscribe to our mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox.

    Thank you for subscribing.

    Something went wrong.

    we respect your privacy and take protecting it seriously

    IGXPro

    Video Game News, Tech News, Geek Resource

    Useful Links

    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Staff
    • Terms of Use

    Popular Categories

    • Blog
    • Reviews
    • Console News
    • Tech
    • Video Gallery
    • Gaming News

    Work For Us!

    • Contact
    Copyright © 2023 IGXPro

    Ad Blocker Detected

    Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.

    Refresh