Danial Norjidi
The top 30 best-selling Nintendo Switch games on the Japanese eShop for 2022 were recently unveiled, with titles across a wide range of genres making the list.
Splatoon 3, the latest entry in Nintendo’s Switch exclusive multiplayer third-person action shooter series, was the top best-selling game from the eShop for Japan.
Released on September 8 last year, Splatoon 3 sees players assume the roles of ‘Inkling’ or ‘Octoling’ characters, wielding weaponry that shoots coloured ink, with the aim of covering an arena with as much of their ink as possible.
Games from the Pokémon franchise occupied the next few spots on the list, beginning with Pokémon Legends Arceus in second place. Described as blending “action and exploration with the role-playing game roots of the Pokémon series”, Arceus features an adventure that takes place in a region called Hisui, where the player embarks “on survey missions from your main base in Jubilife village. You are tasked with studying Pokémon to complete the region’s first Pokédex”.
Third and fourth place went to Pokémon Violet and Pokémon Scarlet respectively. Violet and Scarlet see players catch, battle and train Pokémon in the Paldea Region, “a vast land filled with lakes, towering peaks, wastelands, small towns and sprawling cities”. Players “explore a wide-open world” and “traverse land, water and air by riding on a form shifting Legendary Pokémon – Koraidon in Pokémon Scarlet and Miraidon in Pokémon Violet”.
Monster Hunter Rise took the fifth spot on the list. Set in the ninja-inspired land of Kamura Village, Monster Hunter Rise sees players “explore lush ecosystems and battle fearsome monsters to become the ultimate hunter”. The game allows players to hunt solo or with friends to earn rewards that they can use to craft a wide variety of weapons and armor.
Sixth place went to 3D platforming adventure title Kirby and the Forgotten Land. As described on the Nintendo website, “Float off on an all-new adventure as the powerful puffball, Kirby. Explore in 3D stages as you discover a mysterious world with abandoned structures from a past civilisation.”
Seventh in the chart was Nintendo Switch Sports, a game featuring a collection of sports that use the Switch’s Joy-con controllers for controlled motions, such as “golf, soccer, volleyball, tennis, badminton and chambara (swordplay)”.
This was followed with the eighth-placed Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, 2017’s enhanced Switch version of Mario Kart 8, which initially launched on the Wii U in 2014. Featuring all previously released downloadable and additional content, the game sees players engage in kart racing, controlling various characters from Nintendo franchises and making use of an array of items they can collect and use to gain an advantage against opponents.
The ninth game of the list was Overcooked! 2, a cooperative cooking simulation title where up to four players work together or go against each other to get the highest score. The game sees players journey across an overworld map by land, sea and air, as they cook in “themes ranging from sushi restaurants, magic schools, mines and even alien planets”.
Rounding up the top 10 was Xenoblade 3. As described on the Nintendo website, “Join Noah and Mio, members of the two opposing nations of Keves and Agnus, on a heartfelt journey through a warring world with a dark secret. Traverse massive, fantastical landscapes and master seamless real-time role-playing game combat as you expose the true enemy pulling the strings.”
The next 10 titles on the list are: multiplayer party game Kirby’s Dream Buffet in 11th place; online multiplayer social deduction game Among Us in 12th; fighting game Super Smash Bros Ultimate in 13th; life simulation game Animal Crossing: New Horizons in 14th; open world adventure game The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in 15th; sandbox game Minecraft in 16th; light-hearted physics platformer Human: Fall Flat in 17th; Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics, a collection of board games, card games and sports games, in 18th place; Mario Party Superstars, which features a collection of classic Mario Party gameboards and minigames, in 19th; and role-playing game Mon-Yu in 20th.
The final 10 titles in the top 30 chart are: sports game eBaseball Powerful Pro Baseball 2022 in 21st place; strategy game Together! The Battle Cats in 22nd; indie puzzle platform title Inside in 23rd; Momotaro Dentetsu: Showa, Heisei, Reiwa mo Teiban!, the latest entry in a long-running series of board-game style video games in 24th; role-playing games Dragon Quest X Offline and Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation in 25th and 26th respectively; action survival horror title Resident Evil 6 in 27th; multiplayer action game Splatoon 2 in 28th; platform game Unravel Two in 29th; and indie role-playing game Undertale in 30th.
