The Last of Us Part 1 sales rise more than 230% in the UK after TV show debut

Sales of The Last of Us Part 1 rose dramatically in the UK following the airing of the first episode of its TV adaptation.

According to GfK UK boxed game sales figures (as published by GamesIndustry.biz), the PS5 remake saw a surge in sales, rising 238% week-on-week.

The spike brought the game back into the UK charts at number 20, while The Last of Us Remastered also returned at number 32 after seeing a similar surge of 322% sales week-on-week.

GfK’s figures are only based on physical game sales so it’s not yet known what impact the HBO series had on digital sales.

Following its premiere on HBO in the US, the first episode of The Last of Us reportedly enjoyed healthy viewer figures, with parent company Warner Bros. Discovery announcing an audience of 4.7 million viewers.

According to Warner, this makes it the second-largest debut for HBO, behind only House of Dragon, since Boardwalk Empire premiered with 4.81 million viewers back in 2010.

Elsewhere in the UK charts, Fire Emblem Engage took the number one slot this week.

Despite sales being 31% lower than Fire Emblem Three Houses, Engage was still the second biggest launch for any Fire Emblem game in the UK.

Further reading

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Review: Fire Emblem Engage is a great strategy game, but can't quite top Three Houses

The long-awaited Switch follow-up largely strips back its social life for a fast-paced, action-heavy adventure

In VGC’s Fire Emblem Engage review, we said: “Fire Emblem Engage is a great strategy game, but we don’t think it’s a great modern Fire Emblem game.

“Whether the reverence for the social elements of Three Houses came as a surprise to the team or not, the dearth of those moments in Engage makes it feel like it’s missing half of its core at times.

“While the anniversary cameos will please the hardcore fans at first, we worry that, much like the weak social aspects, their largely minor impact on the game itself will disappoint.”