After 'Failing to Meet Expectations' at Launch, Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth Shoots to No.3 in U.S. Charts With Steam Debut

January 2025 marked a typically quiet month in the video game industry, with only one new release making it into the top 20 and the usual strong performance from Call of Duty. However, the month brought a notable resurgence for Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, a game that had been seen as a sales disappointment in 2024.

Initially released in February 2024, Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth entered the market at No.2 on Circana's charts, which rank video games by dollar sales in the U.S. It then saw a decline, reaching No.7 in March and ending the year at No.17. Despite these respectable figures, Square Enix expressed disappointment in the game's sales, withholding specific numbers and suggesting that the performance did not meet their expectations.

A significant shift occurred in January 2025 when Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth became available on Steam, breaking its exclusivity to the PS5. This move propelled the game from No.56 in December to No.3 on the January charts. The Final Fantasy 7: Remake & Rebirth Twin Pack also saw a dramatic rise, moving from No.265 to No.16. Circana analyst Mat Piscatella highlighted the success of the Steam launch, noting that Rebirth was the best-selling game of the week ending January 25th in the U.S. market, with the Twin Pack ranking third.

This resurgence on PC suggests a broader appeal and could influence Square Enix's strategy for future releases. Piscatella commented on the trend, indicating that launching on PC is increasingly vital for third-party publishers, especially without significant incentives from platform holders to remain exclusive.

As we await Square Enix's next earnings call in May for further insights, the industry watches closely to see if this success will lead to a shift towards more cross-platform releases.

In other news, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 continued its dominance as the best-selling game of January, followed by Madden NFL 25. The only new release to break into the top 20 was Donkey Kong Country: Returns on Nintendo Switch, which reached No.8 based solely on physical sales. It Takes Two also made a return to the top 20 at No.20, buoyed by ongoing promotions and anticipation for Hazelight Studios' upcoming game, Split Fiction, set for release in March.

Overall, January 2025 saw a decrease in spending compared to the previous year, with a 15% drop to $4.5 billion, influenced by a shorter tracking period. Content spending was down 12%, with console content seeing a 35% decline. Hardware spending fell by 45%, with significant drops across all major platforms: PS5 down 38%, Xbox Series down 50%, and Switch down 53%. Despite these declines, PS5 remained the best-selling hardware in both dollars and units.

The top 20 best-selling games in the U.S. for January 2025, based on dollar sales, are as follows:

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
2. Madden NFL 25
3. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
4. EA Sports FC 25
5. Minecraft*
6. Marvel's Spider-Man 2
7. EA Sports College Football 25
8. Donkey Kong Country Returns*
9. Hogwarts Legacy
10. Sonic Generations
11. Helldivers II
12. Astro Bot
13. Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
14. Super Mario Party Jamboree*
15. Elden Ring
16. Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth Twin Pack
17. Mario Kart 8*
18. The Crew: Motorfest
19. UFC 5
20. It Takes Two*

• Indicates that some or all digital sales are not included in Circana's data. Some publishers, including Nintendo and Take-Two, do not share certain digital data for this report.