Top 20 selling videogames (March 2002) (1 Viewer)

[Steven_V]

North America:
Top 20 Videogames of March 2002
1. Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 (Nintendo, GBA)
2. Grand Theft Auto 3 (Rockstar Games, PS2)
3. Virtua Fighter 4 (Sega, PS2)
4. Sonic Advance (THQ, GBA)
5. Sonic Adventure 2 Battle (Sega, GC)
6. Bond: Agent Under Fire (Electronic Arts, GC)
7. Grand Theft Auto 2—Greatest Hits edition (Rockstar Games, PS)
8. Motocross Mania—Greatest Hits edition (Take 2 Interactive, PS)
9. Knockout Kings 2002 (Electronic Arts, PS2)
10. Tiger Woods PGA 2002 (Electronic Arts, PS2)
11. Triple Play 2002 (Electronic Arts, PS2)
12. Max Payne (Rockstar Games, PS2)
13. All-Star Baseball 2003 (Acclaim, PS2)
14. State of Emergency (Rockstar Games, PS2)
15. Crash Bandicoot: The Huge Adventure (Universal,GBA)
16. Final Fantasy X (Square, PS2)
17. Super Smash Brothers Melee (Nintendo, GC)
18. Driver 2—Greatest Hits edition (Infogrames, PS)
19. Bond: Agent Under Fire (Electronic Arts, Xbox)
20. Halo (Microsoft, Xbox)
source:
TRSTS NPDFunworld

 

[BrianB]

Anyone else pleased to see three Sega games in the top five? Looks like the plan to go thirdparty is working.

7. Grand Theft Auto 2—Greatest Hits edition (Rockstar Games, PS)

Wheee... Wonder how well the original is selling in the US these days.

 

[Steven_V]

Sony:
The dominace of the PS2 continues. GTA 3 falls only one spot after five months at number one! Sega's Virtua Fighter 4 opens strong at number three.
Nintendo:
We should have known Nintendo's Mario would be the one to "pimp slap" GTA 3 out of the the number one spot. Mario shows he still rules the videogaming scene. Sonic Adventure 2 for Gamecube is showing strong staying power on the charts. The GBA/GCN connection between Sonic Gamecube and Sonic GBA seems to be paying off for Sega. 007 for Gamecube lands at number six, proving "mature themed" games can sell on Gamecube.
Microsoft:
007 for Xbox debuts at number nineteen on the sales chart. It is lower than the Gamecube version but it does face competition from another Xbox FPS, the mighty Halo. Sadly, RalliSport Challenge, Jet Set Radio Future, and Gunvalkyrie all failed to make the top 20. :frowning:

 

[BrianB]

I wish there was a way to accurately judge the amount of returns, trade-ins & 'sell ons' via eBay etc, as well as how quickly they occur.

For instance, I wonder how many Agent Under Fire GC buyers were people hoping for a Goldeneye quick fix & got disappointed.

GTA3 is selling extremely well for a game that's "BANNED! YOU CAN'T BUY THIS IN STORES!!" according to eBay sellers.

 

[Kelley_B]

It is sad to not see JSRF, GV, and RC on the charts...it just goes to show that the majority of the buying public would much rather buy established titles than take risk and get something different. Atleast I did my part by buying all three of those games, along with VF4, Sonic GC, Sonic Advanced, REZ....Sega gets my luv, wish they'd give me the love and release Space Channel 5 Part 2 here in the states.

 

[Masood Ali]

Brian, I only see 2 Sega games on the whole list. Did they publish another?

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Kelly,

Agreed. The fact that 'Agent Under Fire' is outselling those games is a real indictment of the (general) poor taste of the american gaming public.

Then again, McDonalds sells more burgers than anybody.

 

[BrianB]

3.Virtua Fighter 4 (Sega, PS2)

4. Sonic Advance (THQ, GBA)

5. Sonic Adventure 2 Battle (Sega, GC)

Those games were all developed by Sega - Sonic Advance is published by THQ like all of Sega's GBA games. THQ have a much better GBA distribution setup than most publishers, so it's appealing to a lot of companies to 'farm out' the work to them. For instance, even EA have done deals with THQ for them to publish FIFA GB games.

 

[Masood Ali]

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

It is sad to not see JSRF, GV, and RC on the charts

Actually, based on the little time I spent playing all 3, they weren't THAT good. They were OK, if not a little disappointing. There are many people who would agree with me, so the fact that these games are not from established series' might not be the only thing to blame...

And that goes for every game not on the Top 20.

 

[Gary King]

hey weren't THAT good. They were OK, if not a little disappointing. There are many people who would agree with me

RSC and JSRF were (are) definitely that good. At least as much as Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, State of Emergency, and Bond: Agent Under Fire (leave it to good old EA to lower the bar for Xbox games). Actually, that statement is true for Gunvalkyrie, as well.

Gunvalkyrie isn't the best game I've played (I give it a B-), and it's ridiculously hard (with some off-putting controls), so I'm not too disheartened it didn't sell very well. JSRF and RalliSport are too damn good to be ignored, though.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

If I had the money and an X-Box, I would not purchase any of those 3 games. And the sad thing is, I know a lot of people who would agree with me.

Also, if this list was in a game/console accurate ratio, it would be different. The PS2 has a huge installed base, while the XB and GCN totals are nowhere near as high, so the PS2 will certainly have more games sold.

 

[Michael St. Clair]

JSRF and Rallisport are stunningly good. Sales figures are about the worst possible indicator of the quality of a game.

If I had the money and an X-Box, I would not purchase any of those 3 games. And the sad thing is, I know a lot of people who would agree with me.

It's not the right system for you, the game lineup is more targeted towards the adult crowd. As much as all teenagers want to believe they are adults, the truth of the matter is that there are games that an 18-34 year old is far more likely to 'get' and appreciate. The average magazine game reviewer is in his 20s, so its not surprising to see that they understand the games like JSRF and RSC and give them the excellent ratings that they deserve.

 

[walter wagers]

Morgan, why do you always feel the need to express your disdain for the XBOX? I think we get it already.

 

[BrianB]

And that goes for every game not on the Top 20.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Didn't we cover this in another thread? High sales != high quality.
You honestly prefer Driver 2 to JSRF or Rallisport Challenge?
Of course, it also means GTA2 is better than your beloved FFX )))

 

[Morgan Jolley]

What I was saying is not that those games suck because of sales, but the sales suck because either the games aren't popular or the games suck. I can see why people would love those games, but I, along with many people, don't care about those games and wouldn't buy them.

It should be noted that I like some games that aren't that popular or that are usually mocked or ripped on by people. Just because a game is good doesn't mean it will sell good, and just because a game is bad doesn't mean it will sell bad. It all depends on the crowd it's aimed at and how well it's perceived and accepted.

I don't like those three games. I know a lot of people who would agree with me. I know a few people who would disagree with me.

The X-Box has a very low number of "installed" units in comparison to the GBA and PS2, so it makes sense that it doesn't have as many games on the Top 20. If we saw a Top 20 for the X-Box, or even a Top 10, then those three games would be on it, but in comparison to the more popular consoles that have more units sold, in addition to the lack of interest in many X-Box games (as sad as it is for a brand new console from an new entrant in the console business), the X-Box should have less games in the overall Top 20 sold for the month. It just makes sense.

 

[Dan B]

Morgan, you have a real talent for angering me. I don't have a problem with you expressing your negative opinions about nearly every game made for the Xbox or a Sega system, but your tendency to argue your point over and over is very tiresome.

...I just realized that this post is likely to add to the problem, but I wanted to state my feelings once more for the record.

-Dan B.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I don't hate MS, the X-Box, or Sega. It just so happens that I have more reasons to not get an X-Box than to get one and I haven't liked some of Sega's recent games.

And besides any personal thoughts, there are technical reasons why the X-Box (and actually the GameCube moreso) should have few games in the Top 20.

 

[Peter Manojlovich]

There's always one in every crowd. A self-proclaimed expert on a system and games he doesn't own. Not much you can do about people like this, except ignore them. Responding to them just gives them the mistaken notion that their opinions have validity.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I'm not an expert. I have played those three games and didn't like them. That's my opinion.

Based on the facts, the three games logically shouldn't be in the Top 20 list. There are several factors, some of which I said, that would back up my reasoning, whether the games are good or not.