Titanfall 2's launch was always going to be a tricky one. The sequel to 2013's Titanfall was always going to be a hard sell to first-person shooter fans finding themselves between the two biggest FPS launches of the year. According to chart tracking website GfK, Titanfall 2 has most certainly not cracked it, landing behind Battlefield 1, Skyrim: Special Edition, and FIFA 17 in the UK's retail game charts for last week.
Despite a lively marketing campaign, this must be a bitter pill to swallow for Titanfall 2's creators. While launching between Battlefield 1 and sci-fi rival Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare was always going to be tough, the game has been critically well received, enjoying a Metascore of 89 at time of writing. Unfortunately, the titan-'em-up seems to have failed to capture the hearts of gamers, with sales failing to surpass the numbers set by its predecessor. In fact, Gamesindustry.biz analysts pointed out that Titanfall 2 has failed to achieve even a quarter of the sales of the first Titanfall, despite the added benefit of launching on the PS4.
But there were some success stories to be told in the UK retail charts, seeing three other new titles enter into the top ten. Despite accusations of lower quality PC audio, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition entered the charts at second place, bumping soccer game FIFA 17 down to third place. The highly anticipated remaster of the five year old game has also become the second fastest selling Elder Scrolls game of all time, behind only the original Skyrim. Algri-sequel Farming Simulator 17 also made its début in the top five, once again proving that a good simulation game is something that gamers love. At the summit, First World War multiplayer mayhem shooter Battlefield 1 continues its dominance over the UK retail market, showing no signs of dropping down the charts.
And the final new entry into the top ten, anime battler Dragon Ball Z Xenoverse 2 ki-blasted its way into seventh place, pushing former fourth place Gears of War 4 down to eighth place. Open world crime-sim Mafia 3 also dropped three places into sixth position, after enjoying third position last week.
Check out the full list for yourself.
Quick take
While I feel that third place should never be thought of as a failure, it's still disappointing to not see Titanfall 2 début further up the chart. Unfortunately, releasing the same week as one of the most beloved entries in the Elder Scrolls series, and during Battlefield 1's honeymoon period was not the best course of action. However, as someone who came to the first Titanfall much later than release - and loved it - I have hope that Titanfall 2 will still find an audience and become a success, despite a stumble out of the blocks.
