Final Fantasy 16: Unprecedented Sales Dive Rocks Gaming Industry

After just one week on the market, Final Fantasy 16 has seen a drastic decline in sales in Japan. Despite receiving critical acclaim and breaking sales records on the PS5, the highly-anticipated action-RPG is struggling to gain traction in its home country.

During its initial week of release, Final Fantasy 16 managed to sell approximately 336,000 physical copies in Japan. While this achievement secured the title as the fastest-selling PS5 game in the region, it falls significantly short compared to previous installments in the franchise. For instance, Final Fantasy 7 Remake sold 702,853 units in its first week, while Final Fantasy 15 reached 716,649 units sold in the same time frame.

Not only did Final Fantasy 16 fall behind its predecessors by a significant margin in terms of debut unit sales, but the game also suffered a drastic decline in just one week. As per Famitsu, only 37,763 physical copies of Final Fantasy 16 were sold in Japan during its second week on the market, which accounts for a staggering 90% drop. Adding to this blow, the game was dethroned from the top-selling position by the new Switch game Master Detective Archives: Rain Code. Undoubtedly, this is a disappointing turn of events for Final Fantasy 16. However, there may still be a glimmer of hope amidst the prevailing challenges.

Final Fantasy 16 faces a challenge due to its exclusivity on PS5. The previous installments, FF7 Remake and FF15, benefited from being available on PS4, which gave them a larger potential audience compared to FF16. Notably, these sales figures only account for physical copies, while digital game sales continue to rise annually. This suggests that in Japan, there is a likelihood that more gamers opted to purchase FF16 digitally rather than physically, unlike FF7 Remake and FF15. Moreover, it should be noted that both FF7 Remake and FF15 experienced similar percentage drops in their second week of sales, yet they still outperformed FF16. Despite considering these factors, a 90% drop remains concerning. Given Square Enix's recent financial setbacks, it is evident that the publishing giant would not want to encounter such a significant decline. However, with the increasing availability of PS5 consoles and the eventual release of a PC version, Final Fantasy 16 may experience a boost in sales in the region.

Final Fantasy 16, despite being critically acclaimed and a contender for Game of the Year, is not meeting Square Enix's sales expectations. It is possible that the game's performance is better in other regions or that its digital sales surpass its physical sales, suggesting that the drop in sales may not be as significant as it appears. Until Square Enix releases more details regarding the overall sales figures of Final Fantasy 16, fans can only speculate about its global performance. The game is currently available for the PS5.

Source: Famitsu (via Gematsu, Push Square)