Pokémon Legends: Z-A Smashes Expectations Due to Nintendo's Exclusivity Strategy

It's been a big week for Nintendo and Pokémon, its golden child. Pokémon Legends: Z-A has officially hit the ground running, and the numbers are something we didn't see coming, in both good and bad ways: 5.88 million units sold in its first week. Let that sink in for a minute. Given it's only available on Nintendo platforms, these are great numbers.  

To just give you a rough idea, Battlefield 6, which released around the same time, sold around 7 million units in its first week. And that number's huge, yes, but you must also see that Battlefield 6 is a multi-platform game. So, Pokémon Legends: Z-A hitting nearly 6 million on Nintendo systems alone is just another example of Nintendo talking the talk and walking the walk. 

Nintendo likely pulled in close to $500 million from the game. And that's on a reported budget of just $13 million, which, if I am being honest, is just pennies in today's gaming world. It's no rocket science to know that Pokémon games are basically guaranteed hits, but seeing these figures just makes you appreciate how evergreen Pokémon is. 

There's also an interesting conversation to be had about market tracking and lists like Circana's. Many casuals might think these lists accurately reflect game sales, but the truth is Nintendo doesn't even provide their data to such trackers.  

If they did, Pokémon Legends: Z-A, along with titles like Mario Kart and Donkey Kong, would dominate the charts. The difference is that Nintendo reports actual units sold directly to players. This makes a world of difference when you care about business just as much as you do about gaming. 

Legends Z-A's performance offers insight into how Nintendo's dual console strategy, Switch and Switch 2, is impacting its first-party titles. 

5.88 million units is nothing to look down upon, but when you put it side by side next to past Pokémon debuts, it's clear that this is a bit of a downturn. And that just goes to show how successful the series is, so much so that I am having to say 5.88 million is a lower peak than usual.  

For instance, Pokémon Arceus sold 6.5 million copies in its debut week back in 2022, and the Diamond and Pearl remakes also topped 6 million. Even Scarlet and Violet, which were released on the Switch alone, sold 10 million units in their first week. 

For starters, the reason for the hit in numbers could be that Pokémon Legends: Z-A had a higher price tag than previous Pokémon games, especially on the new Switch 2. With the standard first-party game now costing $80 USD, Legends ZA launched at $100 CAD in Canada. That's a price point that will get you to second-guess, especially when we are so used to the $60 norm. 

Then there's the performance angle. Legends Z-A isn't exactly optimized for the Switch. Visually and technically, it's a game designed for the newer Switch 2, which might have put off Switch owners from purchasing.  

Nintendo's approach here seems as clear as day for anybody with eyes to see: hang a carrot in front of the rabbit (the players) and get them toward the new hardware while still releasing a title on older systems. But it comes at the cost of some potential first-week sales from the legacy console. 

Also, for a series that rarely gets any backlash, Legends Z-A has sparked a fair bit of online rage, mostly about its graphics and performance. In an era where PS5 and PC visuals set a high bar, you wouldn't be wrong to have expected more. The Pokémon DNA remains strong, but perception plays a role in sales, and it seems that the online "bullies" may have worked their magic. 

Despite these factors, Legends Z-A still proved massively profitable.  

And the thing about Nintendo is that they don't necessarily need universal praise to make their games huge money-makers. They can do this all day (no glaze). The combination of strong IP and a dedicated fanbase ensures a significant return on investment. In short, Nintendo is making money moves, getting their bread up. 

Now, as for competition, this brings me to Palworld, one of the few non-Nintendo titles that's been capturing attention since it first came into the world. Released in 2024 by Pocket Pair, Palworld hit over 5 million units on Steam within just three days and crossed 8 million in its first week.  

By September 2025, it had sold 25 million units on Steam alone, with concurrent players reaching 2 million. Add in Xbox Game Pass, which gave another 10 million players access to the game, and you can see why Nintendo is watching this carefully. Palworld is a potential threat to Nintendo's pocket-monster-style franchises. 

Former Activision CEO Mike Ybarra also had his say on the exclusives discussion recently. He thinks that Nintendo should think about becoming a third-party company.  He said all that in response to Xbox's Sarah Bond, who agreed; he contended that exclusives are losing their significance in a cross-platform environment.   

Unfortunately, Mike Ybarra and Sarah Bond, while that is something interesting you have suggested, it falls short when you take into account Nintendo's continued success.  

Their first-party exclusives —Pokémon, Zelda, Mario, and Fire Emblem —remain the big boys in the market right now. Going third-party would only reduce Nintendo's control over its revenue—why would Nintendo ever want that, in its right mind? 

Phil Spencer has also said that exclusives like Halo remain central to Xbox's identity. Yet, Microsoft still struggles (as it has been doing of late) with live-service projects and high-budget titles that sometimes get delayed or just never see the light of day at all. Titles like Fable, Last of Us multiplayer projects, God of War live-service, and even Twisted Metal have faced that fate.  

Nintendo rules the exclusive business by consistently delivering first-party titles without relying on outside studios or live service. They are not in the gaming business only; they are in the empire business (don't sue me, Walter White). It's a strategy Nintendo will always live by because it pays dividends—not only financially, but also for fans who get their money's worth from not just the games but also the consoles. 

So that leads me to say that Pokémon Legends: Z-A isn't just another Pokémon release. It's a testament to Nintendo's vision and how exclusive titles are still the king of the jungle. Nintendo continues to show that exclusivity is a proven path to massive sales. What that means for us is more Pokémon adventures ahead; for competitors, it's a reminder of just how difficult it is to challenge the head of the table, Nintendo.