It has been revealed thatHogwarts Legacyhas the already almost outsoldElden Ring. Strong reviews and positive fanfare have led toHogwarts Legacyhaving one of the strongest launches for a game in a long time.The sales numbers are made even more impressive by the controversy that embroiled the game pre-launch. A string of controversial comments from J.K. Rowling about the transgender community left many feeling they had no choice but to boycott the game. Speedrunning eventGames Done Quick even bannedHogwarts Legacyfrom its charity marathons, a position that currently remains unchanged. However, developer Avalanche Software made an effort to distance itself from Rowling’s comments, even including a transgender character in the game.RELATED:Hogwarts Legacy Player Defeats River Troll Without Using Any SpellsThe report comes from Christopher Dring of GamesIndustry.biz, who claims thatHogwarts Legacyhas is on the brink of outselling FromSoftware’s hitElden Ring. As well as this, in EuropeHogwarts Legacywas the fasting-selling game at launch for a generation, when excluding theFIFAseries. The launch sales so far are even bigger than everyCall of Dutygame in the last six years, a remarkable feat given the popularity of Activision’s flagship franchise. It was clear from thefirst two weeks thatHogwarts Legacy’s sales would be huge, but it has kept up the impressive momentum throughout the month to become the fifth best-selling game in total of the last 12 months. It only hasFIFA 23,Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,GTA 5, andElden Ringto catch now.
What makes the numbers even more impressive is the lack of release on previous-gen consoles.Hogwarts Legacy’s PS4 and Xbox One versions were recently delayed again, so it’ll be some time yet before previous-gen players get their hands on the game. When they do, those numbers will surely shoot up even further, withElden Ringhaving the advantage of launching on both generations simultaneously. Many gamers have struggled to get their hands on the PS5 and Xbox Series X due to a lack of availability over the past few years. While it’s becoming less of an issue as of late, it remains an important factor in the enduring popularity of the PS4 and Xbox One.
It remains to be seen how the success ofHogwarts Legacyaffects the future of the series. Ultimately, theHarry Potterfranchise will always guarantee a certain level of interest, butHogwarts Legacyhas particularly engaged audiences in a way that the recentFantastic Beastsseries struggled to achieve. It’ll be some time before apotentialHogwarts Legacysequelmaterializes, and for now players will have to hope that Avalanche Software is hard at work producing DLC for the game. No matter what happens, there’s no doubt that audience appetite for more Wizarding World content is alive and well.
Hogwarts Legacyis available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, with PS4 and Xbox One versions launching May 5 and a Switch port releasing July 25.
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