Pokemon Sword and Shield sold 16 million copies in one month

Pokemon Sword and Shield is 16-time platinum hit, selling over 16 million copies during the holiday 2019 quarter.

Nintendo is doing tremendously well right now. The Switch selling huge numbers (lifetime Switch sales just broke 52 million) and software is likewise exploding thanks to a particular billion-dollar pocket monster IP. To no one's surprise, the first mainline Pokemon on Switch moved an astronomical number of copies during the holidays and helped propel Switch sales to 10.8 million units.

The new Pokemon Sword and Shield duo managed to sell 16.06 million copies combined worldwide in a single month, putting it instantly onto the Switch's top five best-selling games of all time. In little over a month, the Pokemon duo is almost beating lifetime sales of hits like Zelda Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

The Kyoto-based company sold 64 million copies of games in the holiday quarter, up a huge 21% YoY. Nearly a quarter of those games sold were Pokemon Sword and Shield.

Nintendo is poised to make even more cash from the Pokemon games outside of full game sales. A new $30 expansion pass adds two DLC packs that dramatically expand the game, and gamers can also buy the optional Pokemon Home subscription for $16 a year and import legacy Pokemon into the Switch RPG.

Another interesting tidbit: 73% of Pokemon Sword and Shield sales were from overseas countries, or roughly 11 million copies. This cumulative number has helped the Switch platform reach a staggering 310 million games sold to date.

Luigi's Mansion 3 was also a big hit with 5.37 million copies sold in the quarter. The debut sales of Luigi's ghost adventure beat Super Mario Maker 2 right out of the gate.

Here's how Pokemon Sword and Shield's sales compare to the lifetime sales of the Switch's top games:

• Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - 22.96 million
• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate - 17.68 million
• Super Mario Odyssey - 16.59 million
• Zelda Breath of the Wild - 16.34 million
• Pokemon Sword/Shield - 16.06 million
• Pokemon Let's Go Eevee/Pikachu - 11.76 million
• Splatoon 2 - 9.81 million
• Super Mario Party - 9.12 million
• New SUper Mario Bros. U Deluxe - 5.85 million
• Luigi's Mansion 3 - 5.37 million
• Super Mario Maker 2 - 5.04 million
• Link's Awakening - 4.19 million