Skyrim: 3.5 million sold in just 48 hours
7 million shipped, Bethesda predicts $450 million in launch sales
Bethesda's fantasy epic The Elder Scrolls V:Skyrim has sold 3.5 million copies globally in just 48 hours.
The publisher shipped 7 million copies for launch and reported that 50 per cent of those copies sold in within two days. It's expecting worldwide retail sales from launch units of around $450 million.
"We are grateful for the fans' response to Skyrim," said ZeniMax Media CEO Robert Altman.
"Todd Howard and his team at Bethesda Game Studios have crafted a very special game. Anticipation for Skyrim has surpassed any game in our company's history, and we are pleased that sales and reviews have reflected the quality and hours of amazing gameplay it provides."
The game also set records on Steam, with 280,000 concurrent players in the first 24 hours of release.
Recently Sony reported that PS3 exclusive Uncharted: Drake's Deception had shipped 3.8 million copies on day one, while Activision's Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 recently achieved launch sales of 6.5 million copies in UK and US territories, making $400 million in one day.
"Without a doubt, this has been our most ambitious project ever," added the Skyrim game director Todd Howard.
"After over three years of development, we're finally excited to get it into everyone's hands."
The game currently has a score of 95 on Metacritic.