While sales aren't the only indicator of game quality, the number of units sold is a strong predictor of the influence of titles over time. In this list, we'll take a look at the highest selling video games of all time, reviewing the most famous titles.
10. Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe — 35.19 million
Compared to other bestselling titles, Mario Kart 8 did not sell very well, moving only 8 million units. The very less figures of Wii U suggest weak sales figure of the game.
This is a phenomenon that's been seen before with other first-party exclusives for the Wii U and Switch. For example, New Super Mario Bros. for Nintendo DS. U, originally released on the Wii U, sold over five million copies. The Wii Remote. Despite releasing on the ninth anniversary of the Wii console, U Deluxe has already sold five million units.
9. Mario Kart Wii — 37.24 million
Another console-bundled, accessory-bundled title, "Mario Kart Wii" has sold over 40 million units in its lifetime. The base game also came with a wheel that operates with the control of a Wii controller. Besides, the black Wii kit also included a game and the built-in Wii MotionPlus controller.
It is difficult to know how many copies of the Nintendo Wii were sold on its own. In addition to a standard Wii bundle and the black Wii bundle, there was also a red Wii mini bundled with the game. Neither this edition, nor the other one involved a wheel.
8. Wii Fit and Wii Fit Plus — 43.8 million
An inspection of a thrift store's electronics aisle will reveal just how common Wii Fit was. Wii Fit mixed physical workouts with videogames, providing its users a wide range of yoga exercises and strength training routines. The WiiFit attracted many viewers by motivating people from the sofa.
Wii Fit alone sold 22 million units. Wii Fit Plus, another upgraded version of Wii Fit, sold over 21 million units worldwide. Combined, Wii Fit is one of the bestselling games on Wii.
7. Pokémon Gen. 1 — 47.52 million
The top 5 generations of Pokémon games accounted for almost 20% of Pokémon's sales. Collectively, the first Pokémon games reached more than 50 million participants.
Surprisingly, more than sixty percent of Game Boy revenue came from cartridges (around 46 million). 1.5 million Nintendo 3DS Classic Version has been distributed through the Nintendo eShop, half of it through the American eShop, and half of it through the European eShop.
6. Super Mario Bros. — 48.24 million
Super Mario Bros. was released on the NES in the 1980s, and has since been ported to several other video game platforms. Given the limited scale, the NES version of Super Mario was a success selling over 40 million copies. 8 million sales came from re-releases for Nintendo Wii, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance.
48 million registered users in the physical and digital sales of the game. As for how many people have played Super Mario Brothers, the amount is possibly much greater. The game released along with other NES games on Nintendo Switch Online in 2018 to provide memories and friendships for all players.
5. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds — 70 million
The game that popularized the battle royale genre, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, has sold more than 70 million copies. These figures only accounted for PC and Xbox One's revenue. Thanks to the release on PS4, the number of downloads is likely higher.
The number of PUBG players is much higher than 70 million. According to an announcement by PUBG Company, the game has a maximum player base of over 400 million. Around 350 million of those players are on mobile devices, where PUBG can be downloaded for free.
4. Wii Sports — 82.9 million
Wii Sports entry in the list was aided by some partners distribution. The game “sold” as many units as the Wii, even though the users did not want a copy. Continuing Nintendo's practice of piggybacking one product's revenue on the back of another, more than 80 million Wii remotes were sold.
Despite the 100 million sales of the Wii itself, the last 20 million or so likely went to improving sales of the Wii Mini. The Wii Mini did not come with a pre-loaded game when it was first launched, but it was eventually repackaged with a copy of Mario Kart Wii.
3. Grand Theft Auto V — 135 million
According to Take-earnings Two's report, Grand Theft Auto V currently has over 135 million copies sold, with 15 million sold in the first two quarters of 2020 alone. The figure accounts for all game sales across all generations of game consoles. The main reason it has garnered such popularity (other than the fact that it has a great single-player mode) is thanks to Grand Theft Auto Online.
This multiplayer environment takes users through the game's world of San Fierro, offering the most comfortable life possible. The key component of the game is the opportunity to buy items with real money. You can purchase physical currency (in the form of Shark cash) or you can buy GTA V with Shark cash for less than it would cost if you purchased the digital currency outright. Thus, players are known to double or even triple dip, to get discounts and premium currency in-game.
2. Minecraft — 200 million
We'll visit Tetris next, where the sales aren't clear. The only thing for certain is the large number of instances. In the sales of handhelds, consoles, and PCs, the app has reached 200 million users. Including the widely available free-to-play mobile title, Minecraft has more than 500 million global players.
The game was released in 2009, however, they are still free to play without paying. In the midst of its growth, Minecraft reached profitability as a pre-ordered game. Xbox players also receive access to the free game version, though. It is worth doing because Xbox Game Pass has one of the best service on Xbox One.
1. Tetris — 495 million+
Tracking sales of Tetris isn't the easiest job to perform. The game has sold up to 70 million copies across all platforms (with 35 million of these originating from the Game Boy release). But if you accept all revenues, then Tetris is the simple winner.
A January 2014 VentureBeat article revealed that Tetris had over 425 million paying app downloads. We should also bear in mind that Tetris is also available in free-to-play versions which have accounted for about 425 million paying sales. It should be remembered that the statistic is from seven years ago. Regardless of how you like to calculate revenue, Tetris is the best selling game in history.