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2009's Million Sellers: 44-31
A countdown of 2009's forty-four million sellers. But who will be number one?
Written by David Scammell, 10 December 2009
At a time when the global recession has caused us to be more frugal with our cash than ever before, it's perhaps surprising to learn that 44 games released this year have already gone on to sell in excess of one million units*.
But that they have, and we're going to tell you which ones have achieved such success in our countdown of 2009's Million Sellers, starting at the bottom and working up to the best-selling game this year. No prizes for working out that might be?
We'll be kicking off the feature with a rundown of number 44 through to 31, with the list counting down consecutively to the top-selling game of 2009 over the next three days.
Because of the limited availability of figures related to PC game sales, with the exception of The Sims 3 we've had to restrict this list to console software sales only, so bear in mind that some titles may have sold substantially more if they put in a good performance on PC.
*Source: VGChartz.com. Figures correct at time of publishing.
44. Red Faction: Guerrilla (360 - 0.61m, PS3 - 0.41m, Total - 1.02m)
Blowing up buildings and running around a dust-ridden Mars proved to be an offer too difficult to refuse for the million of you who picked up Red Faction's impressive resurrection earlier in the year.
43. Left 4 Dead 2 (360 - 1.08m)
One that'll likely go on to sell exceptional amounts, despite selling over one million copies in its first month, Left 4 Dead 2's November release didn't give the zombie shooter enough time to position higher up the chart.
42. Colin McRae: DiRT 2 (360 - 0.45m, PS3 - 0.42m, Wii - 0.10m, PSP - 0.10m, DS - 0.04m, Total - 1.11m)
1.11m of you paid your respects to the late Scotsman by picking up his latest and greatest rally racer, which also happened to be one of the better racing games released this year.
41. Tekken 6 (360 - 0.35m, PS3 - 0.77m, Total - 1.12m)
One of those rare occasions when a multiplatform title performed significantly better on PS3, Tekken 6 attracted 1.12m of you with its button-bashing charms. We blame the 360's pitiful d-pad for its relatively poor sales on the console, but if you all think you're so pro, shouldn't you be picking up a fight stick anyway?
40. inFamous (PS3 - 1.13m)
A disappointingly low placement for one of our favourite games of the year, the PS3-exclusive electricity-riddled sandboxer only managed to charm 1.13m of you into picking it up. Regardless, it's an impressive amount for any new IP, and our fingers are firmly crossed in the hope of seeing more of Cole MacGrath in the near future.
39. Borderlands (360 - 0.85m, PS3 - 0.31m, Total - 1.16m)
The second best-selling new IP of 2009, Gearbox's role-playing shooter not only managed to set an impressive framework for its mishmash of genres, but garner a substantial following too. Don't expect this to be the last you see of Borderlands...
38. Skate 2 (360 - 0.77m, PS3 - 0.42m, Total - 1.19m)
Where's Tony gotten to? Well, he's not in this list, that's for sure. The newfound skateboarding king, Skate continued to go from strength-to-strength in 2009, with the first sequel shifting just shy of 1.2m units. Here's to Skate 3 performing just as well in May.
37. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (360 - 0.12m, PS3 - 0.12m, Wii - 0.37m, PS2 - 0.21m, PSP - 0.12m, DS - 0.3m, Total - 1.24m)
The first movie-licensed game on our list, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince puts in a worse-than-expected, though still impressive performance at number 37. Has Hogwarts lost its magic, or are we just all growing out of Potter? Well, we think those relatively high Wii sales say it all...
36. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride (DS - 1.31m)
Here's a controversial one for you. Although it was released in the US and Europe this year, the DS remake of Dragon Quest V actually only shifted just over 100,000 copies in those territories. It's the Japanese that are Dragon Quest crazy, selling in excess of 1.2m units over there, but it released in the territory back in 2008. Should it be in this list? Yes, it should.
35. Ghostbusters: The Video Game (360 - 0.37m, PS3 - 0.45m, Wii - 0.25m, PS2 - 0.14m, PSP - 0.03m, DS - 0.09m, Total - 1.33m)
Ghostbusters' high PS3 sales can likely be put down to Sony's timed-exclusivity deal in Europe, but just look at those pitiful PSP sales. Was it even worth bothering porting the slimey software to the handheld? We'll leave that discussion for another time...
34. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 (360 - 0.51m, PS3 - 0.4m, Wii - 0.13m, PS2 - 0.16m, PSP - 0.08m, DS - 0.05m, Total - 1.33m)
Boom boom pow! The ultimate comic book team return kicking, punching and super-powering their way to the number 34 spot. Releasing on every format going certainly didn't hurt M:UA 2's chances of becoming one of the better selling games of the year, but those disappointing Wii and handheld sales prove that most comic book fans not only come equipped with X-Ray specs, but the latest bit of kit as well.
33. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (DS - 1.37m)
The only game in our list to feature those instantly recognisable Disney characters, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days boasts impressive sales just shy of the 1.4m mark. Most came from the US, with over 700,000 Americans choosing to pick up the interquel, though it fared slightly worse over here, shifting close to 100,000 in Europe.
32. Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (DS - 1.38m)
Is there no stopping Mario & Luigi, who continue to dominate in any genre they find themselves in? It's just a shame that certain UK retailers chose to bump the asking price for the plumbers' latest RPG above the £30 mark, leading to a relatively slower performance on these shores.
31. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (360 - 0.47m, PS3 - 0.46m, Wii - 0.13m, PS2 - 0.12m, PSP - 0.11m, DS - 0.1m, Total - 1.39m)
A surprisingly marvellous Marvel movie tie-in, X-Men Origins saw our hairy-faced, taloned Wolverine go all God of War on us. Developed by Soldier of Fortune devs Raven Software, X-Men Origins didn't hold back on the gore, going on to become one of those rare movie games slapped with a BBFC 18 certificate. It didn't hurt sales though, selling almost one and a half million copies.
Come back tomorrow when we'll be taking you through numbers 30 to 21 of the best selling games of 2009.
