The 20th anniversary of Pokémon culminated in the release of Pokémon Sun and Moon last week, and it seems to be on its way to being one of the best-selling games of 2016. In a GameStop earnings call it was revealed that the latest Pokémon games are the best performing releases of 2016, with the highest pre-order numbers of the last five years. This comes at a time when other games seem to be underperforming, including the latest Call of Duty game.
Pokémon has had one of the best anniversary celebrations in gaming history. With major milestones including the original games being released on the 3DS Virtual Console, the year’s most popular Super Bowl ad, the global phenomenon of Pokémon Go, and the Detective Pikachu movie announcement. With early signs of Sun and Moon’s success, it not only caps off an amazing year, but also gives hope for an even brighter future. It also seems fitting that one of the most popular games of the year is within a genre near and dear to our hearts: a turn-based Japanese RPG.
