With a global sales volume of over 31.38 million units, Pokémon Red/Green/Blue was the franchise’s best-selling video game worldwide as of December 2021. The first generation’s successor series Pokémon Gold/Silver came in second, having sold approximately 23.1 million units on the Game Boy and Game Boy Color since its release in 1999. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl, the most recent series entry for Nintendo's current Switch console, has sold approximately 13.97 million units worldwide.
Pokémon: a global success story
Pokémon is an immensely popular Japanese video gaming series published by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, centering around an ever-expanding universe of fictional creatures that players can collect, train, and battle. Since launching its first generation of console games on Nintendo’s Game Boy back in 1996, Pokémon has grown to become one of the world’s most successful media franchises. Pokémon is also one of the most persistent brand names in the gaming industry, with its Red/Green/Blue Version placing among the five best-selling console games of all time in 2021 - 25 years after its release.
Venturing into the mobile games market
While Pokémon has been a household name for console gaming for several decades, the franchise ventured into the world of mobile gaming for the first time in 2016. With the launch of Pokémon GO, a location-based augmented reality (AR) mobile version of the original hit gaming series, the franchise adapted to the latest trends in the video game market that center around the growing popularity and profitability of mobile games. Pokémon GO is one of the top-grossing mobile gaming titles worldwide.
Best-selling Pokémon video games worldwide as of March 2022, by units sold
(in millions)
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VGChartz, & Nintendo. (April 25, 2022). Best-selling Pokémon video games worldwide as of March 2022, by units sold (in millions) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved May 19, 2022, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1072224/pokemon-unit-sales-worldwide/
VGChartz, und Nintendo. "Best-selling Pokémon video games worldwide as of March 2022, by units sold (in millions)." Chart. April 25, 2022. Statista. Accessed May 19, 2022. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1072224/pokemon-unit-sales-worldwide/
VGChartz, Nintendo. (2022). Best-selling Pokémon video games worldwide as of March 2022, by units sold (in millions). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: May 19, 2022. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1072224/pokemon-unit-sales-worldwide/
VGChartz, and Nintendo. "Best-selling Pokémon Video Games Worldwide as of March 2022, by Units Sold (in Millions)." Statista, Statista Inc., 25 Apr 2022, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1072224/pokemon-unit-sales-worldwide/
VGChartz & Nintendo, Best-selling Pokémon video games worldwide as of March 2022, by units sold (in millions) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1072224/pokemon-unit-sales-worldwide/ (last visited May 19, 2022)
