The Zelda Series Overperforms in Canada, According to Reggie Fils-Aimé
Posted on June 21 2018 by Rod Lloyd
Canadians may just be the biggest Zelda fans. As part of a recent interview with the Toronto Star, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé shared about Nintendo’s sales successes in Canada, especially in regards to a few specific game series. According to him, The Legend of Zelda, alongside other popular series like Pokémon, has consistently overperformed in Canada as compared to other territories.
Fils-Aime stated that “the Canadian audience is the very tip of the mountaintop when it comes to Zelda games,” and continued to expound upon Nintendo’s success in the country:
“There are certain franchises that overperform in the Canadian market. Legend of Zelda is one. I can’t tell you why but the Canadian consumer loves it. Every single game in the series has done better with the Canadian audience than the U.S. audience, and the U.S. audience does better than Europe or Japan. Another phenomenon, and this is a recent trend, over the last 10 years is Pokémon. Pokémon games do exceptionally well (in Canada).”
The Nintendo of America president did not point to specific sales data to make his point. So while he may be referring to total game sales in Canada, some have speculated that he is more likely referring to game sales proportional to Nintendo’s install base. In this case, a larger percentage of Nintendo console owners in Canada may buy Zelda and Pokémon games than those in other territories.
Why do you think The Legend of Zelda has seen such a strong reception in Canada? Are you a Canadian Zelda fan? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
Source: Toronto Star (via Game Informer)
Rod Lloyd is the Editor-In-Chief at Zelda Dungeon, overseeing the news and feature content for the site. Rod is considered the veteran of the writing team, having started writing for Zelda Informer in 2014 as a Junior Editor. After ZD and ZI officially merged in 2017, he stepped into the Managing Editor role and has helped steer the ship ever since. He stepped up to lead the writing team as Editor-In-Chief in 2023.
You can reach Rod at: rod.lloyd@zeldadungeon.net
