When Nintendo announced the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection, it confirmed months of rumors that the developer would be re-releasing some of the plumber's most popular games on the Switch for Mario's 35th anniversary. Fan excitement was palpable as pre-orders quickly sold out on Amazon following the announcement, and now it appears the collection is well on its way to breaking 2020 sales records.
The bundle of HD ports for Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy was the top-selling game in the UK for the week of September 13 to September 19, despite releasing on the 18th. In fact, Super Mario 3D All-Stars had the third-biggest launch of 2020 in that region, just behind The Last of Us 2 and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, according to analytics shared by GamesIndustry.biz.
Mario's newest release overturned the Crystal Dynamics game Marvel's Avengers, which previously beat Tony Hawk and NBA to hold a two-week streak at the top of UK's sales charts. It also outperformed titles like New Horizons in the number three spot; newly-released WWE 2K Battlegrounds in the number six slot; and a seemingly ever-present Grand Theft Auto 5 in the number 10 spot.
Sales of Super Mario 3D All-Stars completely overwhelmed the UK charts for last week, but they also give the game a special distinction as the fifth fastest-selling Switch game in the UK. The only titles to surpass it are Super Mario Odyssey, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, New Horizons, and Pokemon Sword and Shield — the third best-selling entries in their franchise.
Despite this success, many have questioned decisions that were made regarding Super Mario 3D All-Stars' release, including the fact that it will only be available to purchase in physical and digital stores for a limited time. Certain elements about the three included games were also retroactively adjusted by Nintendo, yet there are odd errors like a prominent dialogue typo in Super Mario 64 that remain.
That said, many believe the game will herald bigger things to come. Now that Nintendo has opened the floodgates, more Nintendo 64, GameCube, Wii ports could be released on Switch going forward. Given the success of Super Mario 3D All-Stars in the UK, which is likely to be seen in other regions, it would certainly be odd for the popular developer to stop utilizing its back catalogue now and leave money on the table.
Super Mario 3D All-Stars is available now for Nintendo Switch.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz