Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee! and Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu! have hit the ground running in Japan, with the latest entry in the long-running franchise soaring to the top of the Japanese charts after selling 664,198 copies in just three days.
As reported by Famitsu (via Gematsu), that figure includes physical copies, Poke Ball Plus Packs, download cards, and Switch hardware bundles -- but not straight up digital sales.
Speaking of hardware, the launch of Pokemon: Let's Go more than tripled Switch hardware sales in Japan, with the system selling 180,585 units between November 12 to 18, compared to just 53,385 units the previous week.
It's also interesting to note how well the game is selling compared to other Pokemon titles, given Let's Go is a more casual re-imagining of Pokemon: Red and Blue, rather than a brand new mainline release.
Indeed, despite that apparent handicap, Let's Go compares favorably to previous entries, with games industry analyst Dr. Serkan Toto pointing out that it sold over 660,000 copies in three days against an install base of 5.5 million Switch consoles -- which is an attach rate of around 12 percent.
By contrast, Pokemon: Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon launched in November last year and sold 1.2 million units over three days against an install base of 24 million 3DS consoles -- achieving an attach rate of roughly 5 percent.
It's a comparison that highlights just how well Pokemon: Let's Go has been received on the Switch, and there's more where that came from over on Dr. Toto's full Twitter thread (pasted below).
Another comparison.
— Dr. Serkan Toto (Kantan Games Inc.) (@serkantoto) November 21, 2018
Initial pickup rates of Pokemon games over time:
X/Y: 15.8%
Omega/Alpha: 9%
Sun/Moon: 8.6%
Ultra: 5%
Let's Go: 12%
Mind you, these are only (rounded) numbers for the first 3 days and only in Japan.