UK Switch Sales Rise In September Thanks To Splatoon 3’s Meteoric Opening

The latest GfK data for September’s UK console sales is now in and the figures show that the Nintendo Switch had a healthy boost thanks, in large part, to a little game called Splatoon 3.

Now, we’re not certain whether you have heard of this one – admittedly, the release was a pretty small affair. Over the course of its first month, Splatoon 3 managed to become Japan’s best-selling video game of 2022, and make up around 70% of the country’s boxed sales – not bad going for a little indie title.

The GfK data shows that a similar feat was achieved in the UK last month. According to the report (thanks, GamesIndustry.biz), September saw a 44% uplift in sales of Switch consoles on August’s totals, thanks to Splatoon 3’s huge popularity.

The game ranked fourth in the overall highest selling games of the month (behind Fifa 22, Grand Theft Auto V and NBA 2K23) although it is worth bearing in mind that Nintendo does not disclose its digital data for these counts, so the total sales will undoubtedly be higher. If we were looking at boxed sales alone, Splatoon 3 ranked second overall.

The full chart for the UK’s best-selling games of September can be found below:

The report shows that while yearly console sales are still down 35.5% in the UK, September was a good month across the board, with over 176,000 machines sold between Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft.

Yes, it was a huge month for Splatoon 3 overall, but it is nice to see that this directly impacted Switch sales as the console undoubtedly moves into the final chapter of its lifespan.

Did you get a Switch especially for Splatoon 3? Let us know in the comments below!