UK Sales Charts: PS5 Exclusive Final Fantasy 16 Debuts at Number One

I've been seeing FF16 Buses and marketing everywhere so glad to see it has paid off for them.

Loool at that thumbnail 😂😂

In all seriousness though this game is sensational it's peak Final Fantasy and I'm so happy I can say that hopefully this game starts a new Renaissance for the series ^__^

My GotY right there at the top. And God of War Ragnarok still in the top ten is crazy. And also Hogwarts Legacy still strong.
This year is amazing.

God of War Ragnarok still charting 8 months later? BOY!

Good to see, though I'm hearing it's doing lower numbers than FF XV, which could be fine, considering that was multiplatform and physical media was a larger percentage of sales back then.

@JustPlainLoco Probably because Sony is still selling PS5 GOW bundles and every bundle is counted as a GOW copy sold

Don't get me wrong. It is great selling game. I just wanted to bring some context to the situation.

Yeah let's see if it can hold that spot for longer than two weeks.

@Sil_Am Keep in mind that you could find FFXV first day edition physical copies (new) at stores years after the game came out. The game simply overshipped.

2016 vs 2023 is a completely different world in how we consume things. Digital has gone way up since then & we had this little thing called COVID that changed our purchasing habits.

Also FFXVI is a PS5 exclusive with a much lower potential install base than PS4+Xbox during FFXV’s launch.

Also didn’t the demo come with a link to pre-order? I imagine that pushed even more into buying it digitally.
I’m sure the game will do great.

@naruball For sure. I bought one of those Day 1 versions 3 years after launch for 5€, yet I bought FF XVI day 1 for 70€ and I regret nothing. 😀

Fantastic game thanks guys well done 👍

74% seems like a huge drop, but until digital is included we just won't know the full picture.

But I can see why Square were concerned before launch of low preorder numbers, 74% is huge, probably should have cut the marketing budget in half at least

Il be picking up my copy after I finish Zelda and Ragnarok

@Sil_Am haha, that's... insane!

Well, FF15 was released in November. I assume that many less-enthusiastic gamers also have other activities in summer rather than sitting in front of a TV with closed curtains to play a single-player game for dozens of hours. Zelda came just early enough, and the Switch is more outdoor friendly (when playing in the shadow of a tree, umbrella or building).

I bought it digitally myself. Mostly enjoying it, kinda like Guy Ritchie's Final Fantasy. Though it hasn't grabbed me completely & I can't explain why that is. Ah well, I'm sure its more a me thing. Very nice music too.

N.i.c.e.final fantasy 16 is a amazing game.a game of the year contender.word up son

Good news. Played it all weekend, could not stop. Battle System opens up nicely later on.

Really digging the battle music.

There is this crazy big fight where the music adds so much to how epic everything Is.

How many copies of FF16 have been sold anyway? I don't believe I've seen the sale figures anywhere.

It does warm my heart a little to see the top 3 selling games in one week in 2023 be Final Fantasy, Legend of Zelda and Sonic the Hedgehog.

Loving the game, so far! Cid is a cruel badass, but that's why he's my favorite in this game! 😂

Bought it digital since I don't plan to sell the game

@Ichiban Same here. I'm roughly 15 hours in and while I'm largely enjoying it, I don't think it's particularly spectacular outside of the Eikon set piece fights. It's good in a number of areas but I'm not sure I'd call the total package great.

It's been a good time so far. The side quests, at least in the first 15 hours I've played so far, have been terrible to be honest but thankfully the main quests and story are top notch for the most part. Combat is well done although I do still think DMC5 has better combat overall.

Overall mostly having a good time with it. I really like Clive too.

Loving the game. according to my PS5 I'm about 40% done, The battle music is excellent, love hearing Clive shout "Not this time" after a dodge and then going in for a counter attack!

I'll get it out there. I still prefer turn based OR the absolutely incredible gambit system in FF12.

Now that's said, I don't think anyone can deny a slow start in game for FF16 but now I'm running around grinding wind beasts and soldiers for xp and skill points it's taking on a unique lease of life for me. There appears to be a big whirlwind on the far side of the forest I'm in....
What on earth could that be?....I'm off to find out...laters all...

@themightyant Indeed, but I really think that a bulk of those sales were due to sheer hype (as opposed to a lot of FF feeling burnt and thus being more cautious with 16), plus they shipped so many copies that retailers simply had to cut the price several times to get rid of unwanted copies to the point that even people who were on the fence were tempted to get it.

FF15 started out well, but didn't have strong legs, if memory serves. Hopefully, word of mouth will help FF16 keep selling for much longer than 15.

@NintendoEternity Good for it, if it does. Also, quite ironic.

@NintendoEternity Go touch grass dude

It's a huge console exclusive for PlayStation so I'd expect exceptional game sales. Starting off real strong.

I’m still waiting for my Collector’s Edition from Square. No status updates, no tracking, no customer service. Only money withdrawn a month ago.

Square is really an uncool company through and through.

@bozz Agreed. Whilst I greatly enjoyed it and its magnificent story (finished it yesterday), it’s hardly the whole package, at least not for me. Take the side quests for instance, 90% of them were Ubisoft-level fetch quests. I would recommend cherry picking the ones worth doing and focus on the story, which is amazing.

I'm about halfway through and it's been a great spectacle so far. I even did a couple of side quests that were decent and emotionally rewarding. Clive could do with a major injection of wit and charisma, though.

@Keyblade-Dan My Deluxe edition came in and oh my god the boss battles are AMAZING! This is possibly my GOTY.

It's the best FF entry since X.
I am 70% in and i really see much of FFXIV in it's construction plus the combat system that clearly had a lot of focus put on it.
I am enjoying it a lot. I rarely play a game on release even if i may buy it on release. But, i have bought this one and been playing it since day 1 ignoring my backlog.

With that said, i am also of the opinion that this is not exactly what i want from a mainline FF and i miss the party dynamic/gameplay that turn based offers.
This simply feels like a really good spin off.
Also, there are pieces on the story that look rushed and have the feeling of a hole left behind to fill with DLC like FFXV did. Was the only thing that irked me. It feels incomplete, even though Yoshi promised a complete game. FFXIV expansions come out complete so i wonder if it was an executive decision to carve pieces out to maybe sell as DLC later. They are not essential but are pieces of story that would have big pay-offs and characters that we get to meet for the first time, but in the main game they just show up as acquaintances met outside the game. It doesn't feel right.

Let's have a bit of context. FFXV released on a Tuesday compared to a Thursday? And last week in November when people will be buying Xmas gifts. And if course digital sells a bit more now

Nice to see that SONIC Origin + is doing well too!

Not sure if I read it wrong, but why are digital sales more than physical sales? I thought that the majority of people buy physical.

XV has also really damaged the brand. It was so disappointing for so many. Then there was a huge gap of 7 years before this came out. And then I think XVI has put itself in an odd position of not actually being a JRPG but basically fantasy DMC with some open areas, so that's likely to put off older fans and general JRPG fans. So it's going for the casual, mainstream audience - but the gamers I know like that wouldn't touch fantasy stuff, or giant monsters having anime fights, with a 9999 foot bargepole.

I'm enjoying it, especially after some parts where the game stops being Hallway Fantasy XVI and starts letting you explore, starts making the world look like an actual environment and not a corridor that delivers you to the next movie. There are some really magical bits I'm sure I'll remember forever. And then sadly quite a few bits that feel like they're from a PS2 beat 'em up but with shinier graphics.

@CutchuSlow
"Almost 90% of games sold in UK in 2022 were digital - ERA"
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-64187547

That said, the article says 30 percent of sales were mobile games, which no actual gamer counts as games, so it's more like 60:40 in favour of digital.

I still prefer physical discs because I don't have the luxury of downloading 100GB of game data every time I buy a game digitally

@Matroska I'd be interested in seeing the full price day one sales split, I'd imagine physical is still putting in a strong show there.