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

January's video game market mirrored the typical quiet start to the year, with only one new title cracking the top 20 sales charts and Call of Duty maintaining its predictable dominance. However, a potential comeback story emerged: Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth.

Initially released in February 2024, Rebirth debuted at No. 2 on Circana's US dollar sales charts, eventually settling at No. 17 by year's end. While respectable, Square Enix publicly acknowledged the game's underperformance against internal sales projections, fueling speculation about its success compared to contemporaries like Dragon's Dogma 2. The initial PS5 exclusivity was cited as a potential contributing factor to lower sales.

The January 2025 Steam release, however, dramatically altered the narrative. Rebirth surged to No. 3 on the Circana charts, a significant jump from its December position at No. 56. The accompanying Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth Twin Pack also experienced a substantial rise, moving from No. 265 to No. 16. Circana analyst Mat Piscatella highlighted the game's "fantastic" Steam launch, noting it was the best-selling game for the week ending January 25th in the US.

This US success likely reflects a global trend, potentially prompting Square Enix to reconsider its future release strategies. Piscatella commented that the Steam launch provided another data point supporting cross-platform releases, suggesting that single-platform exclusivity is increasingly challenging for third-party publishers without significant platform incentives.

The rest of the January 2025 charts showed Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Madden NFL 25 leading the pack. Donkey Kong Country: Returns (Switch) was the only new entry in the top 20, reaching No. 8 based solely on physical sales due to Nintendo's withholding of digital sales data. It Takes Two's re-entry at No. 20 was attributed to ongoing promotions and sustained sales throughout the month, possibly linked to the upcoming release of Hazelight Studios' Split Fiction.

January 2025's overall spending figures showed a 15% decrease compared to the previous year, partly due to a shorter tracking period (four weeks versus five). This decline extended to accessories (down 28%), content (down 12%), and hardware (down 45%). While PS5 remained the best-selling console in both units and dollar sales, Xbox Series and Switch experienced significant hardware sales drops.

Top 20 Best-Selling Games (US, January 2025, by dollar sales):

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.

Square Enix's response to Rebirth's PC success remains to be seen, with their next earnings call scheduled for May.