‘FIFA 22’ leads UK boxed games charts but Nintendo dominates

FIFA 22 leads the UK’s boxed games charts for the week ending 4 December but Nintendo dominated the top 10, according to GfK.

The latest instalment in EA’s football simulation returned to the top of the UK’s physical games charts last week, despite its sales being down 33% from the previous week. 

PlayStation 4 copies made up 41% of FIFA 22 sales for the week, with PlayStation 5 versions contributing 23%. 

However, Nintendo had six exclusives in the top 10, with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe falling to second. 

The racing game’s Black Friday success put it at the top of the charts but it saw a 59% decline in sales last week. 

Call of Duty: Vanguard came in at third, an improvement from its former position of fourth. 

PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 copies comprised 64% of its weekly sales.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond moved from sixth to fourth, with counterpart Pokémon Shining Pearl scraping back into the top 10. 

Selling more copies on the Nintendo Switch than on any other console, Just Dance 2022 climbed to fifth spot. 

Nintendo exclusive Animal Crossing: New Horizons followed in sixth, with the Switch version of Minecraft falling from third to seventh.

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy dropped from fifth to eighth and Mario Party Superstars, previously 10th, jumped up to ninth.

Although FIFA 22 leads the UK’s boxed games charts, physical sales are 35% less than they were for FIFA 21 last year, and these were 42% less than those for FIFA 20 the preceding year. 

This suggests that more consumers are choosing to purchase the franchise’s annual editions digitally. 

Far Cry 6 is no longer in the top 10, falling from ninth to 12th.

Market movers outside of the top 10 include Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury which jumped from 21st to 13th and Sonic Colours Ultimate which rose from 28th to 20th after a 52% sales boost.  

Cricket 22: Official Game of the Ashes launched at 30th, with Nintendo’s Big Brain Academy: Brain vs Brain debuting at 36th.

Here are the UK’s 10 bestselling physical titles for last week: 

1. FIFA 22
2. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
3. Call of Duty: Vanguard 
4. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond
5. Just Dance 2022
6. Animal Crossing: New Horizons
7. Minecraft (Nintendo Switch)
8. Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
9. Mario Party Superstars
10. Pokémon Shining Pearl

Featured image credit: JESHOOTS.com