Gamasutra posts a list that first appeared in British newspaper The Independent, a list of the supposedly 20 best-selling video game franchises of all times.
Here's the list, as it appears in the Gamasutra piece (challenge: can you count the number of games/characters in top 10 created by Japanese designers?) :
1. Mario (Nintendo): 193 million
2. Pokemon (Nintendo): 155 million
3. Final Fantasy (Square Enix): 68 million
4. Madden NFL (Electronic Arts): 56 million
5. The Sims (Maxis/Electronic Arts): 54 million
6. Grand Theft Auto (Rockstar): 50 million
7. Donkey Kong (Nintendo): 48 million
8. The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo): 47 million
9. Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega): 44 million
10. Gran Turismo (Sony): 44 million
11. Lineage (NCsoft): 43 million
12. Dragon Quest (Square Enix): 41 million
13. Crash Bandicoot (Sony/Vivendi): 34 million
14. Resident Evil (Capcom): 31 million
15. James Bond (Various): 30 million
16. Tomb Raider (Eidos Interactive): 30 million
17. Mega Man (Capcom): 26 million
18. Command & Conquer (Westwood Studios/Electronic Arts): 25 million
19. Street Fighter (Capcom): 25 million
20. Mortal Kombat (Midway): 20 million
The large number of Mario games does justify why the franchise is on top (Mario's on top? ewww...I hope for my welfare's sake that you didn't get this joke) and Pokemon isn't a big surprise either. What is a surprise though is that Madden NFL sells better than FIFA. Well, I'm European, go figure. Also, notice how The Sims made #5? People bloody love life sims. It's why Second Life is so popular.
You may be also wondering where the Warcraft franchise is. Well, keep in mind that the first Lineage game was released in 1998 and it achieved huge popularity in Korea. And while WoW and the Burning Crusade may be all over the news, Lineage II has twice as many subscribers (according to various articles).
I end this with expressing my regret on seeing Mortal Kombat defeated by Street Fighter. Damn you. Damn you!! Sub-Zero shall live again!
Just kidding, I actually haven't played a fighting game in at least six years. What do I care?
1. Mario (Nintendo): 193 million
2. Pokemon (Nintendo): 155 million
3. Final Fantasy (Square Enix): 68 million
4. Madden NFL (Electronic Arts): 56 million
5. The Sims (Maxis/Electronic Arts): 54 million
6. Grand Theft Auto (Rockstar): 50 million
7. Donkey Kong (Nintendo): 48 million
8. The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo): 47 million
9. Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega): 44 million
10. Gran Turismo (Sony): 44 million
11. Lineage (NCsoft): 43 million
12. Dragon Quest (Square Enix): 41 million
13. Crash Bandicoot (Sony/Vivendi): 34 million
14. Resident Evil (Capcom): 31 million
15. James Bond (Various): 30 million
16. Tomb Raider (Eidos Interactive): 30 million
17. Mega Man (Capcom): 26 million
18. Command & Conquer (Westwood Studios/Electronic Arts): 25 million
19. Street Fighter (Capcom): 25 million
20. Mortal Kombat (Midway): 20 million
The large number of Mario games does justify why the franchise is on top (Mario's on top? ewww...I hope for my welfare's sake that you didn't get this joke) and Pokemon isn't a big surprise either. What is a surprise though is that Madden NFL sells better than FIFA. Well, I'm European, go figure. Also, notice how The Sims made #5? People bloody love life sims. It's why Second Life is so popular.
You may be also wondering where the Warcraft franchise is. Well, keep in mind that the first Lineage game was released in 1998 and it achieved huge popularity in Korea. And while WoW and the Burning Crusade may be all over the news, Lineage II has twice as many subscribers (according to various articles).
I end this with expressing my regret on seeing Mortal Kombat defeated by Street Fighter. Damn you. Damn you!! Sub-Zero shall live again!
Just kidding, I actually haven't played a fighting game in at least six years. What do I care?
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