How Pokémon Pokopia’s Success Compares To Previous Pokémon Games

1 week ago 9

Published Mar 13, 2026, 7:01 AM EDT

Kyle Gratton is an editor and writer based out of Kansas City. He received a bachelor's degree, dual majoring in English and History with a minor in Film and Media Studies, and has been a senior staff writer and reviewer for Screen Rant's Gaming section since 2021, with roles in editorial, and various freelance projects.

A terminal Midwesterner who graduated from the University of Kansas, Kyle also has knowledge and interest in literature, film, film adaptions of literature, and history.

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It's not at all astonishing to hear that Pokémon Pokopia sales are off to a blistering start. Barring unmitigated disasters, if you slap the Pokémon name on something, it's going to be a hit. The franchise is such a phenomenon that Vincent van Gogh-themed Pikachu cards caused a theft scandal, resulting in four museum employees being fired. But success is relative when it comes to Pokémon, and the game series often struggles to produce spin-offs that match the profits of the mainline entries.

Pokopia is about a best-case scenario: a cozy game released at a time when the genre is in constant demand, co-developed by the team that made the similar, well-received Dragon Quest Builders 2, Omega Force. Glowing Pokémon Pokopia reviews indicate Omega Force and Game Freak hit the nail on the head, and a deluge of sales in its first week reinforce the notion that it has significant widespread appeal. Even by Pokémon's lofty standards, Pokopia is a big hit.

Pokopia Is Outselling Other Pokémon Spin-Offs As A Switch 2 Exclusive

On March 12, Nintendo announced that Pokémon Pokopia surpassed 2.2 million sales in four days. It's not the most eye-watering number – Pokémon Scarlet and Violet famously flew past 10 million in just three days – but it's important to remember that Pokopia is exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2. As of the end of 2025, 17.37 million Switch 2 units had been sold. If we do some rough math, around 12.6% of Switch 2 owners (about one in eight) have also purchased Pokopia almost immediately upon its release.

It's even more impressive when you compare it to other spin-offs. New Pokémon Snap sold 2.4 million in its whole first year, and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX moved 1.99 million copies in just under two years, while the middling Detective Pikachu Returns doesn't even appear to have public worldwide sales data. Pokopia is already on track to outperform all the premium spin-offs from the Switch era, and is doing it with a much smaller audience, given how recent the Switch 2 was released.

Pokémon Pokopia Is Already The Switch 2’s Fourth Best-Selling Game

Perhaps even more surprising is that Pokopia may be keeping a competitive pace with the most recent mainline game, Pokémon Legends: Z-A. In all fairness, it's not a perfect comparison – the Legends games aren't quite as popular as the standard dual releases, and Z-A is a cross-generation game. In Nintendo's year-end data, however, we can see that the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of Z-A specifically sold 3.89 million units in about two-and-a-half months.

With Pokopia's incredible start and continued word-of-mouth praise, it's not inconceivable that it will also be approaching four million sales by late May. Pokopia is already the Switch 2's fourth best-selling Nintendo game, coming behind Mario Kart World (14.03 million), Donkey Kong Bananza (4.25 million), and Z-A. Its exclusivity makes it a potential system seller; it's a very enticing title for cozy gamers and Pokémon fans alike.

The main Pokémon formula was refined years ago, proving eternally popular with mostly non-transformative additions in each new generation (SV's open world is arguably the single most impactful). Spin-offs have been mostly a mixed bag, though. There weren't any outright failures on the Switch, but the Switch 2's first go is already a resounding success, with Pokémon Pokopia on its way to becoming a series classic.