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[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

The latest UK boxed charts are in and the standings have been a little shaken up since last week, it seems.

Perhaps the biggest change has come in the rise of Mortal Kombat 1 to third place, remaining one space ahead of Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate and pushing Super Mario Bros. Wonder firmly out of the top three — mamma mia!

Speaking of drops, Minecraft, Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Nintendo Switch Sports all find themselves outside of the top ten this week, down at 12th, 13th and 15th respectively — some pretty noteworthy changes considering the games' seemingly unshakable longevity.

Here's your look at this week's top 40 in full, with platform splits for Switch games that also appear on other platforms:

Last Week	This Week	Game	Platform Split
2	1	EA Sports FC 24	PS5 42%, PS4 31%, Switch 17%, Xbox Series 10%
1	2	Hogwarts Legacy	PS5 42%, PS4 31%, Switch 15%, Xbox One 8%
-	3	Mortal Kombat 1	PS5 67%, Xbox Series 22%, Switch 11%
4	4	Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate	PS5 59%, PS4 40%, Xbox Series 1%, Switch 0%
3	5	Super Mario Bros. Wonder
6	6	Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
5	7	Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
8	8	Grand Theft Auto V
7	9	Marvel's Spider-Man 2
21	10	It Takes Two	PS4 57%, Switch 43%, Xbox Series 0%
35	11	Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
10	12	Minecraft
11	13	Animal Crossing: New Horizons
14	14	The Witcher III: Wild Hunt Complete Edition
9	15	Nintendo Switch Sports
27	16	Cyberpunk 2077
22	17	The Witcher III: Wild Hunt GOTY Edition
13	18	Assassin's Creed Mirage
-	19	The Sims 4: Horse Ranch
12	20	Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
-	21	Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
-	22	Red Dead Redemption 2
18	23	The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
15	24	Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope
-	25	FIFA 22	Switch 92%, Xbox One 3%, Xbox Series 3%, PS5 1%
-	26	Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit - Remastered	Switch 100%, Xbox One 0%, PS4 0%
20	27	Wreckfest	PS5 98%, Switch 2%, PS4 0%
23	28	Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
38	29	Bluey: The Videogame	Switch 72%, PS5 12%, PS4 10%, Xbox Series 6%
30	30	Pokémon Violet
39	31	Elden Ring
-	32	Red Dead Redemption	PS4 59%, Switch 41%
26	33	Mario Party Superstars
25	34	LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga	Switch 49%, PS5 40%, PS4 6%, Xbox Series 5%
37	35	The Crew Motorfest
28	36	Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - Definitive Edition	Switch 42%, PS4 36%, Xbox Series 23%
17	37	Just Dance 2024 Edition	Switch 94%, PS5 4%, Xbox Series 2%
-	38	Jurassic World: Evolution 2
33	39	LEGO Harry Potter Collection	Switch 63%, PS4 30%, Xbox One 7%
34	40	New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

[Sales Data Compiled by GfK]

UK Charts: Mortal Kombat 1 Kicks Mario Wonder Out Of The Top Three

It's-a fatality

www.nintendolife.com

 

[Team Andromeda]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

 

[GHG]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

When you don't like the data just dismiss it.

 

[MasterCornholio]

When you don't like the data just dismiss it.

Seems the data looks nice for PS5 and Switch.

 

[GHG]

Seems the data looks nice for PS5 and Switch.

Yep, it looks like people on those platforms are still buying boxed games without any issues.

Maybe its not the highstreet that is in imminent danger in the UK.

 

[kazuyamishima]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

Not Xbox players for sure.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Not Xbox players for sure.

Given the lack of shops in the UK, I doubt many PS fans are buying games either. Like with cash, physical games are dying the slow death in the UK

I miss the days of cash

 

[Team Andromeda]

When you don't like the data just dismiss it.

Walking aroiund the high streets of the UK tells its own picture, even my local Tesco has given up on games.
Mind you I live in Wales.. Thanks to the dictatorship you couldn't even buy games during COVID in the supermarkets

The only growing business in my highstreet are Take Way's

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

I believe boxed games saw a rise in sales in 2023 compared to 2022. Most people are buying them online, Amazon, GAME, Shopto, Hit, The Game Collection etc...

FF7 Rebirth is £69.99 digitally on the PS store, or £53.85 on Hit with free delivery...

That's a hefty saving and then factoring in if you resell the game it's basically half the price or less than that compared to the digital version.

 

[yazenov]

Xbox fans after the continued slump in hardware sales:

Who buys physical consoles anyway? You can subscribe to Gamepass and play games. There is no need to spend money on console hardware.

 

[Gaelyon]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

Smart peoples who cares about price.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Smart peoples who cares about price.

Price, ownership and ability to resell if it's a game that you won't touch again, share with friends etc... I purchased GOW Ragnarock for £55, completed it but didn't enjoy it so sold it for £40 a few weeks later.

 

[TheGodfather07]

Given the lack of shops in the UK, I doubt many PS fans are buying games either. Like with cash, physical games are dying the slow death in the UK

I miss the days of cash

Shops? This isn't 1997. Majority buy online now.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Shops? This isn't 1997. Majority buy online now.

The irony of that post isn't lost on me. Digital games and online consoles are bad, but we need the internet to buy games in the 1st place

 

[Woopah]

I believe boxed games saw a rise in sales in 2023 compared to 2022. Most people are buying them online, Amazon, GAME, Shopto, Hit, The Game Collection etc...

FF7 Rebirth is £69.99 digitally on the PS store, or £53.85 on Hit with free delivery...

That's a hefty saving and then factoring in if you resell the game it's basically half the price or less than that compared to the digital version.

Exactly, I've been able to get Switch and PS4 games noticeably cheaper by buying physical from online retailers instead of digital.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

I believe boxed games saw a rise in sales in 2023 compared to 2022. Most people are buying them online, Amazon, GAME, Shopto, Hit, The Game Collection etc...

FF7 Rebirth is £69.99 digitally on the PS store, or £53.85 on Hit with free delivery...

That's a hefty saving and then factoring in if you resell the game it's basically half the price or less than that compared to the digital version.

Yeah, I think I bought around 200 physical games last year, with approximately 70% of them being new and 30% used. And I think I ordered over 95% of them online instead of purchasing them in-store.

 

[dead monkey uk]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

Me, often boxed games are much cheaper than buying digital. Does a boxed sale have to be from the highstreet, Amazon, Argos etc seem to still sell plenty of boxed games.

Looks like Xbox is hurtling to its new 'adorable all digital future'. Especially if all digital Series X leak still happens.

 

[clarky]

Yep, it looks like people on those platforms are still buying boxed games without any issues.

Maybe its not the highstreet that is in imminent danger in the UK.

Are you from the UK? The "high street" is completely fucked.

Slightly off topic but i see Game are stopping buying/selling second hand games.

Game to stop selling pre-owned titles

The firm's owner, Frasers Group, told the BBC trade-ins would be phased out in "the coming months".

www.bbc.co.uk

From the article above: "According to figures from the digital entertainment and retail association (ERA) trade body in 2023, digital sales now account for almost nine out of every 10 video games sold in the UK."

Zero point paying any attention to boxed sales in the UK.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Me, often boxed games are much cheaper than buying digital. Does a boxed sale have to be from the highstreet, Amazon, Argos etc seem to still sell plenty of boxed games.

Looks like Xbox is hurtling to its new 'adorable all digital future'. Especially if all digital Series X leak still happens.

Argos are dying a death in my area and aren't cheap for what little selection of games they have.

If you shop on the likes of Amzone you need the internet, which sort of goes against the point of issues over a digital future

 

[Team Andromeda]

Are you from the UK? The "high street" is completely fucked.

Slightly off topic but i see Game are stopping buying/selling second hand games.

Game to stop selling pre-owned titles

The firm's owner, Frasers Group, told the BBC trade-ins would be phased out in "the coming months".

www.bbc.co.uk

Unless you want haircuts or takes ways that is LOL

 

[clarky]

Unless you want haircuts or takes ways that is LOL

There's literally a Turkish barbers every 3rd shop, in-between sunbed's and kebab's

Unless you want to be fat & orange with a shit haircut the high-street is best avoided.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Are you from the UK? The "high street" is completely fucked.

Slightly off topic but i see Game are stopping buying/selling second hand games.

Game to stop selling pre-owned titles

The firm's owner, Frasers Group, told the BBC trade-ins would be phased out in "the coming months".

www.bbc.co.uk

From the article above: "According to figures from the digital entertainment and retail association (ERA) trade body in 2023, digital sales now account for almost nine out of every 10 video games sold in the UK."

Zero point paying any attention to boxed sales in the UK.

There's many digital only releases + Mobile and PC are 99.9% digital which heavily skews the data being interpreted and reported here.

We already know from Chris Dring that games that release both digitally and physically still sell well across all Europe which also includes UK.

 

[clarky]

There's many digital only releases + Mobile and PC are 99.9% digital which heavily skews the data being interpreted and reported here.

We already know from Chris Dring that games that release both digitally and physically still sell well across all Europe which also includes UK.

See my post above:

"According to figures from the digital entertainment and retail association (ERA) trade body in 2023, digital sales now account for almost nine out of every 10 video games sold in the UK."

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

See my post above:

"According to figures from the digital entertainment and retail association (ERA) trade body in 2023, digital sales now account for almost nine out of every 10 video games sold in the UK."

See my post above as well:

There's many digital only releases + Mobile and PC are 99.9% digital which heavily skews the data being interpreted and reported here.

We already know from Chris Dring that games that release both digitally and physically still sell well across all Europe which also includes UK.

 

[Team Andromeda]

There's literally a Turkish barbers every 3rd shop, in-between sunbed's and kebab's

Unless you want to be fat & orange with a shit haircut the high-street is best avoided.

That's what it's like in my part of Rural Wales. No money for feeding the kids at school or heating the house, but apparently plenty of money for takeaways and haircuts LOL

 

[clarky]

See my post above as well:

There's many digital only releases + Mobile and PC are 99.9% digital which heavily skews the data being interpreted and reported here.

We already know from Chris Dring that games that release both digitally and physically still sell well across all Europe which also includes UK.

9 out of 10 games in the UK are digital, its there in black and white. You posts refers to japan and Europe nothing about the UK. Unless I'm missing something, X is a bit weird on the work PC.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

9 out of 10 games in the UK are digital, its there in black and white. You posts refers to japan and Europe nothing about the UK. Unless I'm missing something, X is a bit weird on the work PC.

You're missing the point where that 9 out of 10 games being sold digitally includes PC and Mobile which are 100% digital platforms which skews the data.

Also, we know that physical games still sell well in UK. These are the numbers for 2022.

UK top video games by physical unit sales 2023 | Statista

Hogwarts Legacy ranked first among the top-selling physical video games in the United Kingdom in 2023 with boxed sales of roughly 847,000 units.

www.statista.com

 

[demigod]

Looks like era boycott worked. No xbox series sales.

 

[clarky]

You're missing the point where that 9 out of 10 games being sold digitally includes PC and Mobile which are 100% digital platforms which skews the data.

Also, we know that physical games still sell well in UK. These are the numbers for 2022.

UK top video games by physical unit sales 2023 | Statista

Hogwarts Legacy ranked first among the top-selling physical video games in the United Kingdom in 2023 with boxed sales of roughly 847,000 units.

www.statista.com

Got the stats for the digital sales that year also? Then we could compare a bit better.

Why would you not include PC digital sales also? I buy my games on steam primarily, which takes away a boxed sale on console.

And I don't see why you are including Europe in with the UK a vastly different market in both size and platform splits.

 

[Porticus]

How can be the sales on Xbox being so trash, honestly embarassing, literally a burden on the videogame industry.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Got the stats for the digital sales that year also? Then we could compare a bit better.

I don't see why you are including Europe in with the UK a vastly different market in both size and platform splits.

I've linked the UK data for 2022 with regards to physical sales but here's a more comprehensive report from GiBiz with includes PC and console sales for 2022 (digital + physical).

UK games sales dropped 6% in 2022 and console sales plunged 29%

LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga beat Elden Ring

www.gamesindustry.biz

We also saw that the transition from physical media to digital downloads slowed considerably in the UK last year. If we look purely at the games that were released both digitally and physically (so discounting all physical-only and digital-only games), 66% of games sold in the UK last year were downloaded. In 2021, the figure was 65%. This follows significant growth for digital downloading during the COVID-19 lockdown years of 2020 and 2021.

As you can see boxed sales are still relevant for the UK market regardless of what you're trying to claim.

 

[dead monkey uk]

Argos are dying a death in my area and aren't cheap for what little selection of games they have.

If you shop on the likes of Amzone you need the internet, which sort of goes against the point of issues over a digital future

Not sure how you know Argos are dying in your area, but you can order from their website for collection. They often have games that are cheaper than purchasing digitally. The Callisto Protocol is currently £54.99 on PSN and £13.99 from Argos.

 

[clarky]

I've linked the UK data for 2022 with regards to physical sales but here's a more comprehensive report from GiBiz with includes PC and console sales for 2022 (digital + physical).

UK games sales dropped 6% in 2022 and console sales plunged 29%

LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga beat Elden Ring

www.gamesindustry.biz

As you can see boxed sales are still relevant for the UK market regardless of what you're trying to claim.

Interesting, takeway is that they must sell a fuck-ton of mobile games.

I thought the mobile market was mostly free to play, guess i was wrong.

Obviously a 60-40 split makes box sales still relevant, i stand corrected.

 

[T-0800]

Who buys boxed games in the UK, even cash is a thing of the past in the UK. like the highstreet LOL

I can tell you who doesn't. Starts with an 'X' and ends with a 'Box owners'.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Interesting, takeway is that they must sell a fuck-ton of mobile games.

I thought the mobile market was mostly free to play, guess i was wrong.

Obviously a 60-40 split makes box sales still relevant, i stand corrected.

Glad that people on GAF are still sensible and can see reason when provided with hard data.

People should consider taking those hyperbolic reports about physical games being dead with a grain on salt since like we've seen here the data is being presented in a somewhat misleading way by piling up mobile which is 100% digital together with PC and console sales.

 

[yazenov]

34% of all games sold in 2023 were titles released the same year, a slight drop on the 35% reported in 2022.

In terms of platforms, PC was No.1 in terms of game sales, ahead of PS5 (No.2), Switch (No.3), PS4 (No.4) and Xbox Series S and X (No.5). Out of those five, Switch and PS4 were the only platforms to post a drop in game sales year-on-year.

Video game sales up 1.7% in Europe during 2023 | European Annual Report

Small growth for game sales across Europe, but console sales up significantly due to PS5

www.gamesindustry.biz

This is from the annual 2023 report which included digital and physical software.

XBS consumers aren't buying games period. Its software sales are behind the PS4 which is laughably bad. The combination of Game pass, day one games on PC, and low hardware sales are the results of low software sales. It's not just physical games.

 

[GHG]

Walking aroiund the high streets of the UK tells its own picture, even my local Tesco has given up on games.
Mind you I live in Wales.. Thanks to the dictatorship you couldn't even buy games during COVID in the supermarkets

The only growing business in my highstreet are Take Way's

People still buy physical games online.

Are you from the UK? The "high street" is completely fucked.

I was being facetious. The high street isn't the only place people can purchase physical games. Its likely that if there were data available most new physical games are purchased via online retailers.

There is only one console platform where physical games are dying (and it's not just physical game sales that are dying there either).

Video game sales up 1.7% in Europe during 2023 | European Annual Report

Small growth for game sales across Europe, but console sales up significantly due to PS5

www.gamesindustry.biz

This is from the annual 2023 report which included digital and physical software.

XBS consumers aren't buying games period. Its software sales are behind the PS4 which is laughably bad. The combination of Game pass, day one games on PC, and low hardware sales are the results of low software sales. It's not just physical games.

Yep, and that includes digital. But some people don't want to face reality unfortunately. This should come as no surprise to anyone that's been paying attention, it's actually all by design on the Xbox platform, what they didn't expect however is that it would result in only them being screwed.

 

[clarky]

I was being facetious. The high street isn't the only place people can purchase physical games. Its likely that if there were data available most new physical games are purchased via online retailers.

There is only one console platform where physical games are dying (and it's not just physical game sales that are dying there either).

Fully aware of this, but not of the facetiousness.

 

[yazenov]

Yep, and that includes digital. But some people don't want to face reality unfortunately. This should come as no surprise to anyone that's been paying attention, it's actually all by design on the Xbox platform, what they didn't expect however is that it would result in only them being screwed.

Yes, some people were in denial that releasing their 1st party games on the PC on day one wouldn't affect console sales, and Gamepass aka the best value in gaming would increase game sales.

Both of the results came opposite of their expectations / wishful thinking. Reality and dreams collided in the opposite direction

Those of us with common sense knew this would be the result.

 

[Team Andromeda]

People still buy physical games online.

No don't the same people who say consoles needing to be online is bad.
The irony of it all

 

[GHG]

No don't the same people who say consoles needing to be online is bad.
The irony of it all

That's not remotely the same thing.

Stop crying.

 

[Team Andromeda]

I can tell you who doesn't. Starts with an 'X' and ends with a 'Box owners'.

Even this XBot buys physical games now and again

 

[Team Andromeda]

That's not remotely the same thing.

Stop crying.

You can bet some of the ones who are saying consoles or games needing internet are terrible are also the ones who shop online to buy their physical games

 

[GHG]

You can bet some of the ones who are saying consoles or games needing internet are terrible are also the ones who shop online to buy their physical games

Explain to me how needing Internet for a few minutes to complete an online transaction is the same as needing a sustained online connection for hundreds of hours to play a game that should ordinarily be able to be played completely offline.

 

[Three]

Argos are dying a death in my area and aren't cheap for what little selection of games they have.

If you shop on the likes of Amzone you need the internet, which sort of goes against the point of issues over a digital future

The issues of the digital future are not "I don't have internet to buy things" it's mainly ownership, resale and being able to play offline even when the licence servers are fucked/shutdown.

 

[Team Andromeda]

The issues of the digital future are not "I don't have internet to buy things" it's mainly ownership, resale and being able to play offline even when the licence servers are fucked/shutdown.

Severs being shut down is an issue for physical games too, since more and more games need to log in to a server, physical or not.
Try playing the physical version of StarBlood Aera on PS4 a so-called offline console.

 

[Woopah]

Interesting, takeway is that they must sell a fuck-ton of mobile games.

I thought the mobile market was mostly free to play, guess i was wrong.

Obviously a 60-40 split makes box sales still relevant, i stand corrected.

Glad that people on GAF are still sensible and can see reason when provided with hard data.

People should consider taking those hyperbolic reports about physical games being dead with a grain on salt since like we've seen here the data is being presented in a somewhat misleading way by piling up mobile which is 100% digital together with PC and console sales.

I don't think mobile downloads are included in that calculation.

Retail is still very important for games that have retail releases, but its also true that many PC and indie games are digital-only, which obviously impacts the digital ratio.

 

[Team Andromeda]

Explain to me how needing Internet for a few minutes to complete an online transaction is the same as needing a sustained online connection for hundreds of hours to play a game that should ordinarily be able to be played completely offline.

Explain to me the issue of a console needing to go online to check if a game is real or not in the modern era . And before you hit back what if the internet goes down, well if the internet goes down you can't buy games either, but we all have smartphones right?

Pathetic point scoring aside I'm sure most people have all their election devices hooked to their Wi-Fi 24 hours a day 7 days a week, even the brave eco-warriors of this world, will have their modems on 24 hours a day 7 days a week for yet more added Irony

 

[Three]

Severs being shut down is an issue for physical games too, since more and more games need to log in to a server, physical or not.
Try playing the physical version of StarBlood Aera on PS4 a so-called offline console.

And before you hit back what if the internet goes down, well if the internet goes down you can't buy games either, but we all have smartphones right?

I mean sure online multiplayer game servers shut down but I don't understand why you're conflating that with other single player games and an entire console requiring an online connection to function. These are not the same thing and neither is online shopping. It would be like saying you bought your microwave oven online so why complain if it requires an online connection to function?

 

[Horseganador]

That Xbox sells so little physical software very directly affects hardware sales, when you enter any store it seems that only Playstation and Nintendo exist, leaving Xbox as if it did not exist for the mass market.