Marvel's Wolverine spent weeks getting criticized for its gameplay, excessive handholding, and disappointing review scores. You'd think that might hurt sales, especially for a $70 game exclusive to PS5. Apparently, not enough to keep it from the top.

New figures from Circana confirm that Marvel's Wolverine was the best-selling game in the United States during September 2026, finishing ahead of NBA 2K27 and EA Sports FC 27. That's a pretty impressive result considering the game launched on September 15, giving it only part of the month to compete.

What's interesting isn't just that Wolverine sold well. It's how little the negative conversation surrounding its release seems to have mattered to its initial commercial performance.

Players Didn't Agree With All the Criticism

Wolverine's reception was never entirely negative. The game received a Metacritic score around 78, which is respectable, but noticeably below the scores Insomniac earned with its Marvel's Spider-Man games.

Much of the criticism focused on repetitive combat, restrictive level design, and how frequently the game tells players exactly what to do. Its highly visible scent trails and forgiving quick-time events became particularly popular targets online.

However, not everyone found those problems nearly as frustrating.

In one Reddit discussion, a player questioned why their experience was so different from the reviews, praising the game's brutal combat, visuals, and story. Others agreed that a shorter, more straightforward action game was exactly what they wanted.

There were plenty of disappointed players, too. Some enjoyed Wolverine's presentation but felt the gameplay became repetitive, while others struggled to justify paying full price for the experience.

That divide makes the sales figures especially interesting. A mechanic that frustrates one player might barely register as a problem for someone else.

Insomniac's Reputation May Have Done Some Heavy Lifting

It's also worth considering just how much Wolverine had going for it before anyone played the finished game.

Insomniac already had a successful history with Marvel's Spider-Man, and Wolverine is one of Marvel's most recognizable characters. A violent, cinematic single-player adventure starring Logan was always going to attract attention.

That combination likely helped build interest long before review scores became part of the discussion. Plenty of players may simply have wanted a Wolverine game from the studio behind Spider-Man, regardless of whether critics considered it another masterpiece.

There's also an important detail about these rankings. Circana measures full-game dollar sales, not the total number of copies purchased. Wolverine's $70 price contributes to its revenue position, so topping the chart doesn't automatically mean it sold more individual copies than every competing game.

Even with that distinction, the numbers are difficult to dismiss.

Wolverine Gave Sony Its Biggest Launch in Over Two Years

According to Circana analyst Mat Piscatella's September market report, Wolverine generated the highest launch-month full-game revenue for a Sony-published title since Helldivers 2 arrived in February 2024.

The game also entered 2026's year-to-date US sales rankings at number 11, despite being available for less than a month during the reporting period.

Sony's own PlayStation Store download charts tell a similar story. Wolverine ranked first among PS5 downloads in the US and Canada for September, while placing second in Europe behind EA Sports FC 27.

Those are strong results for a game that attracted so much criticism before and after launch.

Of course, a huge opening doesn't tell us how Wolverine will be remembered a year from now. Sales numbers can't settle arguments about repetitive combat or whether its more guided approach was the right decision.

But they do suggest that the online backlash didn't represent everyone interested in playing the game.

Maybe some players wanted something more ambitious from Insomniac. Others were perfectly happy with a straightforward Wolverine adventure where they could tear through enemies and enjoy the spectacle.

Whatever the explanation, one thing is clear: Wolverine didn't need universal praise to become September's biggest seller.