As the gaming market has matured over the years so have the franchises which support it, to such an extent in fact that today original IP releases are far outweighed in terms of sales numbers by old favourites such as Mario Bros, Call of Duty and Final Fantasy.
But which of these beloved franchises are the largest? Below My Gaming lists the ten biggest gaming franchises ever in terms of sales figures.
1) Mario – 222 million units
The Mario franchise has spawned over 200 titles since its first release in 1981. Originally known as Jumpman in Donkey Kong, Mario has moved on to become the official mascot of Nintendo.
2) Pokemon- 193 million units
Created in 1995 as a game for the original Game Boy console the franchise has since spawned over 43 titles, anime, toys, books and movies.
3) Tetris – 125 million units
Although it may appear somewhat bland, Tetris, created by Alexey Pajitnov in 1985, boasts some of the greatest cross platform reach in the gaming world and has sold 35 million units for the original Game Boy alone.
4) The Sims- 100 million units
Created by legendary developer Will Wright, this life simulator is EA’s greatest success, if not for any other reason that it single handedly tapped into the mainstream – largely female – PC gaming market in the early 21st century.
5) Need for Speed – 100 million units
Having been initially released in 1994 Need for Speed is arguably one of the oldest and certainly the most successful racing franchise ever. It has spawned a number of unique features including police pursuits and street orientated car tune ups.
6) Final Fantasy – 85 million
Created by one Hironobu Sakaguchi and now owned by Square Enix the Final Fantasy series comprises of twelve released titles with a number of spin offs. Expect the next instalment to hit shelves early next year.
7) Madden NFL -75 million
Those crazy Americans sure love their sports, so much so that Madden NFL (named after Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee John Madden) has sold 75 million copies since its first release in 1988.
8) Grand Theft Auto – 70 million
Despite catching a fair amount of flak for its violent, sandbox style gameplay Grand Theft Auto is still one of the largest franchises to have ever dotted the gaming landscape. Created by Dave Jones and published by Rockstar Games the series includes 8 stand alone releases and 2 expansion packs.
9) FIFA – 65 million
Need we say more? FIFA has engendered itself into the general gaming psyche to such an extent that it is arguably regarded by most as the definitive sporting franchise. Originally released in 1993 it has since spawned 17 dedicated titles and numerous spin offs.
10) The Legend of Zelda – 65 million
Despite featuring a decidedly wimpy protagonist The Legend of Zelda, published by Nintendo, still remains one of the largest fantasy based franchises to have ever existed. Originally released in 1986 it now features games, books, music cartoons and comics as part of its core franchise base.
Worth mentioning:
12) Tom Clancy – 55 million
13) Gran Turismo – 52 million
18) Call of Duty – 48 million
22) Guitar Hero – 40 million
24) Resident Evil – 40 million
31) Command and Conquer – 30 million
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