Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes’ first week Japanese sales are the worst the franchise has seen

There was a lot of controversy regarding the asking price for Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes. While it’s an enjoyable experience for a prologue, there’s no shaking the feeling that we’re paying $30 for a demo. I can’t help but wonder if Japanese consumers felt the same way, because the first week sales are in and it’s not looking good.

Ground Zeroes brought in an estimated 221,000 copies. Compared with the rest of the franchise’s proper entries (i.e. Metal Gear Solid titles, not including Metal Gear Acid), that’s good enough for dead last place. Here’s a handy dandy list for your reading pleasure, in order from highest sales to lowest:

·         Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater – 493,827

·         Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots – 480,695

·         Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty – 469,683

·         Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker – 445,138

·         Metal Gear Solid – 349,921

·         Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes – around 221,000

While the PS4 may have just launched a month ago in Japan, let’s not forget that Ground Zeroes is also available on the PS3 and Xbox platforms, meaning we can’t use that as an excuse for poor sales. Are people really that turned off by the story’s short running time? It’s’ very possible. It’ll be interesting to see how the game sells in the long run.

[Dual Shockers]