Back in 2006, Bethesda's first-person fantasy RPG, Oblivion, garnered near-universal critical praise and sold 1.6 million copies.  While the developer has tried to discredit the idea that their newest offering, Fallout 3, is little more than Oblivion with guns, it's tough to deny that the games are very similar.  With a Metacritic rating of 93, including 10 perfect scores, Fallout 3 is certainly keeping up with Oblivion, 2006's game of the year.  But what about sales?  Are people as interested in dystopian future fantasy as they are medieval fantasy?

Apparently, they are WAAAAAY more interested.  like, three times as interested.  Bethesda has issued a press release celebrating the sale of approximately 4.7 million copies across all consoles in the first week.  This represents bout $300 million in retail sales.  To get a sense of just how impressive these numbers are, the first two Fallout titles, which were both financially successful and widely considered classic games, sold less than two million copies combined.  That 4.7 million mark puts the game in some impressive company; Gears of War topped out at 4.7, the original Super Smash Bros. sold a total of 4.9 million, and Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Genesis moved only 4 million.  And all of those games had a lot more than a week to do so.  We have no idea what the breakdown by console might be, but these numbers are truly staggering.

4.7 million copies.  One week.  Wow.

Here's the press release:

Bethesda Softworks Announces Successful Launch of Fallout 3
$300 Million Worldwide Launch Across Three Platforms

November 6, 2008 (ROCKVILLE, MD) – Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax Media company, announced that its hit title, Fallout® 3 has enjoyed record sales at launch, reflecting the huge consumer demand for the game. Approximately 4.7 million units of Fallout 3 were shipped worldwide last week for the Xbox 360®video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, and Games for Windows® representing retail sales in excess of $300 million. Released on October 28 in North America at midnight store openings in over 2,000 retail outlets nationwide jammed with fans eager to get the game, Fallout 3 quickly became one of the industry’s top sellers around the world. For example, in the United Kingdom where it was not released until Friday, October 31 the rapid sales of Fallout 3 have led the game to be ranked number one among all video games, as well as being the number one game on each of its three platforms. Hailed as one of the most anticipated games of 2008, Fallout 3 received a 10 out of 10 review score from Official Xbox Magazine, a result then repeated around the world with perfect scores by some of the industry’s most influential and respected critics including: Gamespy, GamePro, UGO, the Associated Press, MSN, The Washington Post, Guardian, FHM, Scripps Howard, G4-TV, The Toronto Star, MSN, and Eurogamer. MSNBC’s review offered the observation that it viewed “Fallout as a no-brainer for game of the year.” The Daily Star in the UK echoed that conclusion, saying “You can hold all bets on game of the year – I think we have a winner.” The successful launch of Fallout 3 by Bethesda Softworks follows the success of The Elder Scrolls® IV: Oblivion®, which remains one of the highest scoring games ever published and earned “Game of the Year” honors in 2006. Fallout 3 has been featured on over 100 magazine covers across the globe and is available in eight languages. The initial retail shipments of Fallout 3 included both the Regular version of the game as well as a limited “Collector’s Edition.” A Fallout 3 Official Game Guide in both the regular and collector’s edition versions has also been a strong seller. Fallout 3 is slated for release in Japan on December 4th. Fallout 3 features one of the most realized game worlds ever created. Set more than 200 years following a nuclear war, you can create any kind of character you want and explore the open wastes of Washington, D.C. however you choose. Every minute is a fight for survival as you encounter Super Mutants, Ghouls, Raiders, and other dangers of the Wasteland. Fallout® 3 has been rated Mature by the ESRB. For more information on Fallout 3, visit http://fallout.bethsoft.com and www.prepareforthefuture.com.

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