A recent study reveals Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain made an impressive $179 million in global sales within the first 24 hours, more than doubling its cost.

It’s no secret that Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was a huge success at launch, but until now it was unknown just how successful Konami’s latest title was. However, thanks to a new report, we now know Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain made a whopping $179 million globally on its opening day.

That number puts the game’s total day-one sales right around 3 million units globally. That’s an impressive feat for an RPG game, even one with such a major following.

What makes Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’s success even more remarkable is that the game was made for $80 million, meaning it paid for itself twice over within the first 24 hours. And considering the fact that the remaining new releases slotted for this year have yet to launch, there’s a good chance Konami's Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’s total sales numbers will easily clear 10 million units sold globally.

The incredible sales numbers of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain show the strength of the gaming industry as an ever-growing powerhouse entertainment producer. Moreover, that sentiment will be reconfirmed over the next few months, as game developers release highly anticipated titles like Fallout 4, Halo 5, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, Star Wars Battlefront, and Rise of the Tomb Raider.

Tamara Gaffney, principal analyst and director at Adobe, who provided the report, offered her perspective on the success of gaming:

“The gaming industry is a lot bigger than most marketers realize. These games get more social buzz on opening day than most movies do, and the revenue for one of the top games this year outdid the highest-grossing movie start [Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 with $91 million] by nearly double.”

The one downside to this story is the fact that Konami is shifting away from major game titles, and turning its focus to mobile gaming. Granted, there’s a lot of money in that part of the industry, but it’s hard to see the developer walking away from traditional game development.

What do you think about Adobe’s report on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’s success? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is available now for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

Source: Adobe Digital Index