The first week of January is notoriously quiet for boxed video game sales. It is rare to see a launch of any kind during this window and, of course, most players will still be busy with their Christmas presents.
However, this is not a normal start to the year, with the UK entering another total blockade to try to stem the spread of the coronavirus. This may explain why more than 260,000 boxed games were sold in the UK last week, which is a third more than what was achieved during the same week last year.
The main driver of growth was the Nintendo Switch, with games for the console dominating the charts last week. In fact, sales of the Switch game increased by more than 123% compared to the same week in 2020. Animal Crossing: New Horizons remains in first place, despite sales falling 47% (it is important to note that sales fell during the first week of the year are totally normal), followed by Mario Kart 8: Deluxe at No.2 (sales below 43%). In third place is Just Dance 2021, which climbs two positions, despite a drop in sales of 24%. Just Dance 2021 is available on all platforms, of course, but almost 90% of the game’s sales so far have been on the Nintendo Switch (physical sales only, digital sales not included).
There are 15 exclusive Switches in the Top 40 this week, including Ring Fit Adventure at No. 6 (sales of 24%), Minecraft at No. 7 (sales of 35%), and New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe at No. 9 (drop) 32% in sales). New Super Mario Bros has returned to the Top Ten in recent weeks after a new marketing campaign for the game.
Everything is very close, but a 42% drop in sales for Super Mario 3D All-Stars means that the collection ends its stay in the Top Ten, dropping to 11th position.
Otherwise, it’s a pretty normal chart in general, with no new releases until Hitman 3 at the end of the month. For those who follow the history of Cyberpunk 2077, the CD Projekt game dropped to 20th position, after a 59% drop in sales.
Here’s the week’s Top Ten GfK ending on January 9:
| Last week | This week | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Animal Crossing: New Horizons |
| 3 | two | Mario Kart 8: Deluxe |
| 5 | 3 | Just Dance 2021 |
| two | 4 | FIFA 21 |
| 4 | 5 | Assassin’s Creed Valhalla |
| 18 | 6 | Ring Fit Adventure |
| 7 | 7 | Minecraft (switch) |
| 9 | 8 | Grand Theft Auto 5 |
| 10 | 9 | New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe |
| 6 | 10 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War |