This is a list of
video games
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
that have sold the highest number of
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
units worldwide. The best-selling video game to date is ''
Minecraft
''Minecraft'' is a sandbox game developed by Mojang Studios. The game was created by Markus "Notch" Persson in the Java programming language. Following several early private testing versions, it was first made public in May 2009 before being ...
'', a
sandbox game
A sandbox game is a video game with a gameplay element that provides players a great degree of creativity to interact with, usually without any predetermined goal, or alternatively with a goal that the players set for themselves. Such games may ...
released by
Mojang
Mojang Studios is a Swedish video game developer based in Stockholm. The studio is best known for developing the sandbox and survival game '' Minecraft'', the best-selling video game of all time.
Mojang Studios was founded by the independ ...
in May 2009 for a wide range of
PC,
mobile
Mobile may refer to:
Places
* Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city
* Mobile County, Alabama
* Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S.
* Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels
* Mobile ( ...
and
console
Console may refer to:
Computing and video games
* System console, a physical device to operate a computer
** Virtual console, a user interface for multiple computer consoles on one device
** Command-line interface, a method of interacting with ...
platforms, selling more than 238 million copies across all platforms. ''
Grand Theft Auto V
''Grand Theft Auto V'' is a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the seventh main entry in the Grand Theft Auto, ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2008's ''Grand Theft Auto IV'', and ...
'' and
EA's ''Tetris'' are the only other known video games to have sold over 100 million copies. The best-selling game on a single platform is ''
Wii Sports
''Wii Sports'' is a 2006 sports simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The 1.0 (pre-release) version of the game was released in North America along with the Wii on November 19, 2006, and the ...
'', with nearly 83 million sales for the
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
console.
Among the top 50 best-selling video games on this list, over half were developed or published by
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
, including four of the top ten; four Nintendo titles were published with their affiliate,
The Pokémon Company
The Pokémon Company (株式会社ポケモン, ''Kabushiki gaisha Pokemon'') is a Japanese company responsible for brand management, production, publishing, marketing, and licensing of the '' Pokémon'' franchise, which consists of video game ...
. Other publishers with multiple entries in the top 50 include
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
and
Rockstar Games
Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...
with five games each,
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...
with three games, and
Namco Bandai
is a Japanese multinational video game publisher headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Entertainment America and Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe, are respectively headquartered in Irvine, California and ...
with two games.
Nintendo EAD
commonly abbreviated as Nintendo EAD and formerly known as Nintendo Research & Development No.4 Department (abbreviated as Nintendo R&D4), was the largest software development division within the Japanese video game company Nintendo. It was pr ...
is the developer with the most games in the top 50, with thirteen titles on the list, followed by
Game Freak
is a Japanese video game developer, best known as the primary developer of the mainline ''Pokémon'' series of role-playing video games published by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company.
History
Predating the video game company, ''Game Freak'' ...
with six ''
Pokémon
(an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise.
In terms of ...
'' games. The oldest game in the top 50 is ''
Pac-Man'', released in May 1980, while the most recent is ''
Animal Crossing: New Horizons'', released in March 2020.
Games reported on by player count instead of official sales figures, such as registered accounts, subscriptions, or
free-to-play
Free-to-play (F2P or FtP) video games are games that give players access to a significant portion of their content without paying or do not require paying to continue playing. Free-to-play is distinct from traditional commercial software, which ...
ownership, are included on the
list of most-played video games by player count
This is a list of the most-played video games ordered by their estimated player count, which include downloads, registered accounts, video game subscription services, and/or monthly active users. This list does not include games with official ...
instead. For the best-selling video game franchises, see the
list of best-selling video game franchises
This is a list of List of video game franchises, video game franchises that have sold or shipped at least twenty million copies. Unless otherwise stated, numbers indicate worldwide units sold, ordered alphabetically whenever two or more list the ...
. Games reported on by gross revenue are included on the
list of highest-grossing arcade games
An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an ar ...
and
list of highest-grossing mobile games
This is a list of the highest-grossing mobile games. This is a list of mobile games that have generated at least $100 million in gross revenue. Among them, there are more than 30 mobile games that have grossed more than . The video game company ...
.
List
See also
*
List of best-selling video game franchises
This is a list of List of video game franchises, video game franchises that have sold or shipped at least twenty million copies. Unless otherwise stated, numbers indicate worldwide units sold, ordered alphabetically whenever two or more list the ...
*
List of fastest-selling products
This is a list of the fastest-selling product superlatives. The definition of "fastest-selling" typically refers to sales results in the first week of a product's release, (i.e., which product had the biggest launch). Sometimes, rather than compa ...
*
List of highest-grossing media franchises
This article lists notable highest-grossing media franchises. Due to companies and corporations rarely reporting the total revenue(s) figures of their franchises, the list uses estimated figures based on publicly available data and includes th ...
*
List of most-played mobile games by player count
This is a list of the most-played mobile games ordered by their player count, which include reported player data, registered accounts, and/or monthly active users. For non-mobile games, see the list of most-played video games by player coun ...
*
Lists of best-selling video games by platform
The following are lists of best-selling video games by individual platform.
Platforms Atari
*List of best-selling Atari 2600 video games
Microsoft
* List of best-selling Xbox video games
* List of best-selling Xbox 360 video games
*List of best- ...
*
List of highest-grossing mobile games
This is a list of the highest-grossing mobile games. This is a list of mobile games that have generated at least $100 million in gross revenue. Among them, there are more than 30 mobile games that have grossed more than . The video game company ...
*
List of highest-grossing arcade games
An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an ar ...
Notes
References
{{Vgbestsellers, state=expanded