In a battle between Activision’s purple dragon and Nintendo’s cute critters, it was Activision that emerged triumphant – Spyro Reignited Trilogy, which we reviewed yesterday, is the UK’s new no.1.
Or it is? Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu debuted at #4 while Pokemon Let’s Go Eevee claimed #6. If sales of the two were combined, it would be this week’s ‘true’ no.1.
Either way, it’s a win-win for both Activision and Nintendo. Spyro hasn’t taken the UK top spot since the PSone original back in 1998. GI.biz reports sales were split 75% on PS4 and 25% on Xbox One, which doesn’t come as much of a surprise given the character’s roots.
Spyro’s sales were strong enough to topple Red Dead Redemption 2 from the top spot, in fact, causing it to fall to #2.
At #3 it’s another new arrival – Fallout 76. While this position may sound impressive, sales were down a colossal 82% over Fallout 4. Incidentally, the Metacritic for the PS4 version currently stands at a miserable 43%. Ouch!
FIFA 19 is at #5, while Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 dropped five places to #7.
At #8 it’s a new release you may not be expecting – the Fortnite: Deep Freeze Bundle. It’s a download code in a box, bestowing new equipment and a stash of V Bucks.
The evergreen Mario Kart 8 Deluxe hangs around at #9. Then at #10 it’s the final new arrival of the week – Hitman 2. Yes, this sadly means Agent 47’s latest outing was outsold by a Fortnite add-on.
Warner Bros. publishes both, so we doubt they’re too concerned. We imagine Io Interactive expected their first standalone debut to chart slightly higher, though.
Elsewhere, early Black Friday discounts have helped a few recent releases climb the chart. Just Dance 2019 is up from #39 to #14, Astro Bot bounces back at #22, and both The Crew 2 and Starlink: Battle for Atlas reappear at the lower end of the top 40.
With retailers cutting prices ahead of Black Friday, expect to see a good old shake-up in the top 20 next week. Spider-Man, God of War, and Detroit: Become Human are all likely to make a return, already heavily discounted at Argos and Amazon.
