The rather unknown game Suika Game has become a huge success in Japan, even surpassing Zelda and Mario. MyMMO reveals what it’s all about.
What game are we talking about? It is a simple fruit-stacking fun game that has taken the gaming world by storm, but hardly anyone here really knows. We are talking about Suika Game
from 2021, a watermelon game by Aladdin X for the Nintendo Switch.
A puzzle game costing 2.99 euros that became a hit in Japan in 2023 and even surpassed classics like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Pikim 4, and Mario Bros Wonder.
The success is probably also due to the low price, but let’s take a closer look at the whole thing.
Here you can get a little insight into the game:
Suika Game surpasses Zelda and Mario in Japan
How is the success demonstrated? The game celebrated its release in 2021, but only two years later did it achieve great successes. Especially after it was streamed by Japanese live streamers and VTubers such as those from Hololive Production.
Currently, Suika Game is ranked 1 in the annual download ranking of Nintendo Switch
in Japan, followed by The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Pikim 4, and Mario Bros Wonder. You can read the complete ranking on the official Japanese website of Nintendo. The ranking only takes into account eShop downloads, not physical sales, and only sales figures in Japan.
Although it was initially only available in the store in Japan, it was also released for download in other countries – including Germany.
If you look at the monthly ranking for the German Nintendo eShop, you will also find Suika Game, but almost at the end of the list.
The new Zelda game was a huge hit but couldn’t keep up with Suika Game everywhere.
A look at the gameplay
What kind of game is this? In Suika Game, the goal is to stack different fruits in a box without them falling over the edge. The game has a simple but difficult-to-master mechanic that you won’t let go of quickly:
- Combine fruits: You need to combine two identical fruits by stacking them on top of each other. This creates the next larger fruit in the cycle. The largest fruit possible is the coveted watermelon in this game.
- Plan placement strategically: Since you cannot predict which fruit will fall next or whether one nearby will pop, the game requires strategic planning when placing the fruits.
- Prevent overflow: The main goal is to prevent the fruits from falling over the edge of the box. If this happens, the round ends and your points are displayed.
- Ongoing play: The game continues as long as you successfully combine fruits without them overflowing. You can try to beat your high score and the high scores of other players and create larger and larger fruits.
Support from international streamers
The success of Suika Game outside of Japan can also be attributed to the support from popular English-speaking streamers like Ludwig, LilyPichu, and QTCinderella, who contributed to the further spread of the game.
Despite its initial obscurity, Suika Game has developed into a phenomenon that has surprised the gaming world. There are also some clones of Suika, including My Suika on Steam, which was released this November.
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