Bayonetta was a huge critical darling when it first released back in 2009 for the Xbox 360 and PS3. However, it never caught on in sales, with the game building a niche audience but never becoming a huge hit. Still, the game grew in popularity and prestige over the years with the Wii U sequel helping cement the series as one of gaming’s best action titles.
Now it seems like PlatinumGames might be getting the sales recognition that the game deserves, with Bayonetta becoming the top selling new game released on Steam for its launch week. This puts Bayonetta above the highly anticipated, though poorly received Yooka-Laylee.
The info comes from Reddit user davidklemke, who has been compiling this info for some time. The chart shows all the new games that were released on Steam, as well as some sales info for each. This includes top trending games, which went to Dropzone, which just released into Early Access. It’s also interesting to see how many people buy games without playing them, something that I know I’m guilty of for many titles.
16.4$ of players who bought Bayonetta during its first week have yet to actually start the game. This compares to 15.5% for Yooka-Laylee, and a massive 33.8% for third place finisher, Skyforge. Steam is especially prone to these types of purchases, with many buying the game for a sale or pre-order bonus and planning to start it up later. Of course, looking over my Steam library I know that often that later never actually comes.
For Bayonetta it’d be even easier for me to pick up the game on Steam, hoping to support the developer and any possibility of a Bayonetta 3 release, then not actually play it for months or even years. This is kind of what I did with the game on Wii U, with the initial bundle of Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 selling out and becoming a big collector’s item. I’ve got a copy, but haven’t given it the time it deserves just yet.
