Capcom announced that Resident Evil 3 Remake has shipped 2 million units five days after release. This is the combined number for total worldwide shipments and digital sales for the game that launched on April 3.
In Capcom’s words, “digital versions of the game accounted for nearly 50% of sales due to promoting Capcom’s digital sales strategy, resulting in shipments passing the 2-million-unit mark five days following release.”
This ‘digital strategy’ included the release of the “Raccoon City Demo” for Resident Evil 3 and an open beta test for Resident Evil Resistance, which “generated attention and a strong reception from fans.”
Capcom also announced that Resident Evil 2 Remake has achieved 6.5 million cumulative units shipped since its release. That’s an additional 700,000 copies sold since last December.
Resident Evil 3 originally launched back in 1999 for the Playstation and went on to sell 3.5 million units. From the looks of things, the remake will soon surpass the original sales and then some. Resident Evil 3 remake launched April 3 for PC, PS4 and Xbox One. The new game incorporates fresh ideas and utilizes the latest technology, leveraging Capcom’s proprietary RE Engine. It also includes Resident Evil Resistance, a new 1 vs 4 online multiplayer games set in the Resident Evil universe where four survivors face-off against a sinister Mastermind.
Resident Evil 3 received mixed reviews upon release, with strong criticisms aimed at cut content, a short length of the campaign and the AAA price. Still, the tides look like they favor Capcom and RE3 will soon join the company’s list of strong-selling games this fiscal year.
Capcom seems to be taking its success in developing remakes seriously. If rumors are true, then the company is working on a remake to Resident Evil 4, probably the most popular game in the franchise. Here’s hoping that they take the lessons learned from RE3 Remake’s reception into its development.