Pokémon Fever Returns to the UK

Four years after Pokémon Ruby, the series and Nintendo are on top again.

There are still a few months to go until Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl, the next pair in the series proper, arrive in the UK. In the meantime Britons are making do with the franchise's latest side-game on the DS.

Pokémon Ranger took the No. 1 spot in the UK in its second week of release, beating movie do-gooders the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the process.

This is the sixth No. 1 for the Pokémon franchise in its 10-year history and the first since Pokémon Ruby for the Game Boy Advance topped the chart in 2003, according to research firm Chart Track.

Pokémon Ranger's performance marks a return to form for the DS, which also saw Harvest Moon DS enter the Top 5. Even Dr Kawashima's Brain Training, which came out last June, made it into the Top 10.

Elsewhere, Ubisoft's glut of budget-priced PC games continues to wash over the chart.

The Top 20 games for the week ending 21 April, as determined by Chart Track, are below:

1. Pokémon Ranger (Nintendo)
2. TMNT: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Ubisoft)
3. Wii Play (Nintendo)
4. Harvest Moon DS (Nintendo)
5. Rayman 2: The Great Escape (Ubisoft)
6. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training (Nintendo)
7. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 (EA)
8. Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (Ubisoft)
9. Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (EA)
10. Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 (Codemasters)
11. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (Rockstar)
12. Virtua Tennis 3 (Sega)
13. Medal of Honor: Vanguard (EA)
14. The Sims 2 (EA)
15. UEFA Champions League 2006-2007 (EA)
16. Heroes of Might & Magic IV (Ubisoft)
17. F.E.A.R. (Sierra)
18. MotorStorm (Sony)
19. New Super Mario Bros (Nintendo)
20. Rainbow Six 3 Gold (Ubisoft)

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo