Tears of the Kingdom’s latest numbers show it and BoTW are gaining on the rest of the Zelda series’ sales

Nintendo’s latest financial numbers show that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Breath of the Wild are definitely inching closer to matching the rest of the Zelda series in terms of combined sales.

According to the Japanese publisher’s results for the second quarter of fiscal year ending in March 2024, which came to an end on September 30, 2023, the latest entry in the Zelda series racked up unit sales of 19.5 million by that date. The number means the game has already vaulted itself onto the all-time list of top selling Switch titles.

In its release, Nintendo acknowledged that both of its big releases during the first half of the 2024 fiscal year have sold well, with the impressive number for May’s Zelda release sitting alongside 2.61 million unit sales for Pikmin 4, which arrived in July. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which continues to lead the Switch’s cumulative sales leaderboard – having shifted just over 57 million units since its release in April 2017 – sold 3.22 million units in the same period.

When added to the over 30 million units sold by predecessor Breath of the Wild to this point, this latest number for Tears of the Kingdom puts the most recent two Zelda games even closer to matching the combined sales numbers accumulated by their older predecessors in the series. With all of those titles having sold under ten million units individually as of writing, it’s no surprise that the massive total of just over 50 million amassed by ToTK and BoTW so far already serves as a huge chunk of the series’ overall lifetime sales.

Then again, given that Breath of the Wild is well-documented as being a huge turning point for the series’ from a financial perspective, having brought an end to a long period of fluctuating sales numbers that didn’t build strong momentum for Zelda as a big, reliable money-maker.

While it might have since been surpassed in terms of Metacritic rating among 2023 releases by Baldur’s Gate 3, Tears of the Kingdom’s sales have blown away even BoTW’s numbers. The former even claimed the title of “fastest-selling game in the history of The Legend of Zelda series” by shifting ten million copies in the first three days following its release.

Though its numbers may say a dip going forwards – especially with no DLC on the horizon to draw non-hardcores back in or attract new players – it’s clear that ToTK proves that Nintendo’s finally onto a financial winner with its adventures in Hyrule.

If you’re looking for something new to fire up on Nintendo’s handheld between Tears of the Kingdom building sessions, make sure to check out our list of the best Switch games to play this month.