2006 Best-Selling Games of the Year
The 100 best selling games in North America last year - Next Generation
1. The stats were compiled using NPD stats as well as various public, analyst and publisher figures and dead reckoning.
2. Reviews were compiled via Metacritic and Gamerankings using the average rating for highest selling platform.
3. Reviews snippets are chosen for representing general view and corresponding with average score. No value is attached to the review chosen. Thanks to those journos and outlets whose snippets we have used.
4. Genres are very broadly defined for analysis purposes.
5. Games or platform versions of games released prior to January 1st 2006 are not included. Expansion packs, remixes and reissues not included. Games released after January 1st 2007 are not included.
6. We have not been able to gain reliable stats on downloaded games. These sales are not included. Games not available at retail are not included. Mobile phone games are not included.
7. Do bear in mind that games released late in the year likely to sell more copies in the months ahead, while those released a year ago are probably just about done. There is nothing ‘final’ about this list.
The entries work like this...
Game Name
Platforms
Copies
Sold in 2006 (North America)
Release Date / Genre / PublisherReview Quote
100. Okami
PS2 Exclusive
200K
93%
September / Action / Capcom
99. Rayman Raving Rabbids
Wii Exclusive
200K
77%
November / Puzzle / Ubisoft
98. Prey
Xbox 360 plus PC
200K
78%
July / Shooter / Take-Two
97. F.E.A.R.
Xbox 360 (PC version released in 2005; not counted here)
200K
85%
November / Shooter / Vivendi
96. Red Steel
Wii Exclusive
220K
63%
November / Action / Ubisoft
95. Battlefield 2142
PC Exclusive
220K
80%
October / Shooter / Electronic Arts
94. Tourist Trophy: The Real Riding Simulator
PS2 Exclusive
230K
74%
April / Racing / Sony
93. Star Fox Command
DS Exclusive
240K
76%
September / Action / Nintendo
92. Daxter
PSP Exclusive
240K
86%
March / Action / Sony
91. Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII
Xbox 360 plus PS3, Xbox and PC
240K
66%
March / Flight / Ubisoft
90. NFL Street 3
PS2 plus PSP
260K
71%
November / Sports / Electronic Arts
89. Family Guy
PS2 plus PSP; Xbox
270K
50%
October / License / Take-Two
88. Top Spin 2
Xbox 360 plus DS; PC; GB
270K
75%
March / Take-Two / Sports
87. Chromehounds
Xbox 360 Exclusive
270K
70%
July / Action / Sega
86. Burnout Revenge
Xbox 360 (PS2 and Xbox versions released in 05; not counted here)
270K
89%
March / Racer / Electronic Arts
85. Kirby Squeak Squad
DS Exclusive
280K
72%
December / Platformer / Nintendo
84. NBA Ballers: Phenom
PS2 plus Xbox
280K
71%
April / Sports / Midway
83. NASCAR 07
PS2 plus Xbox; PSP
300K
70%
September / Racing / Electronic Arts
82. Microsoft Flight Simulator X
PC Exclusive
300K
80%
October / Simulation / Microsoft
81. Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
Xbox 360 (PS2 and Xbox versions released in 05; not counted here)
300K
78%
April / Shooter / Electronic Arts
80. Resistance: Fall of Man
PS3 Exclusive
300K
89%
November / Shooter / Sony
79. Catz
GBA plus DS
310K
44% (limited reviews)
December / Life / Ubisoft
78. Hanna Montana
DS Exclusive
320K
65%
October / License / BVG
77. Tetris
DS Exclusive
320K
84%
March / Puzzler / Nintendo
76. NFL Head Coach
PS2 plus Xbox
330K
64%
June / Sports / Electronic Arts
75. Final Fantasy III
DS Exclusive
330K
78%
November / RPG / Square Enix
74. Arena Football
PS2 plus Xbox
340K
67%
February / Sports / Electronic Arts
73. FIFA Street 2
PS2 and Most Others
340K
59%
March / Sports / Electronic Arts
72. SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals Combined Assault
PS2 Exclusive
340K
77%
November / Shooter / Sony
71. Destroy All Humans 2
PS2 plus Xbox
340K
76%
October / Action / THQ
70. Naruto: Ultimate Ninja
PS2 Exclusive
350K
77%
June / License / Namco Bandai
69. Naruto: Clash of Ninja
GameCube Exclusive
360K
70%
March / License / D3Publisher
68. Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus
PS2 Exclusive
360K
60%
August / Action / Square Enix
67. Superman Returns: The Videogame
PS2 plus Most Others
370K
47%
November / License / Electronic Arts
66. Jaws Unleashed
PS2 plus Xbox
370K
53%
May / License / Majesco
65. Mario Vs Donkey Kong: March of the Minis
DS Exclusive
370K
76%
September / Platformer / Nintendo
64. Super Princess Peach
DS Exclusive
380K
77%February / Platformer / Nintendo
63. Eragon
PS2 plus Most Others
400K
51%
November / License / Vivendi
62. Metroid Prime: Hunters
DS Exclusive
410K
85%
March / Shooter / Nintendo
61. Mario Hoops 3 On 3
DS Exclusive
420K
70%
September / Sports / Nintendo
60. Star Wars: Empire at War
PC Exclusive
420K
80%
February / License / LucasArts
59. Bully
PS2 Exclusive
440K
87%
October / Action / Take-Two
58. Rampage: Total Destruction
PS2 plus Some Others
460K
51%
April / Action / Midway
57. Bratz: Forever Diamondz
DS plus GB; PS2
460K
50% (limited reviews)
September / License / THQ
56. Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning
PS2 plus Most Others
460K
64%
October / Platformer / Vivendi
55. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2
PS2 plus Wii
460K
76%
November / License / Atari
54. Spongebob Squarepants: Creature From Krusty Krab
PS2 plus DS; Wii; GB; GC
470K
55%
October / License / THQ
53. Thrillville
PS2 plus Xbox; PSP
470K
69%
November / Life / LucasArts
52. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas
Xbox 360 plus PC
480K
89%
November / Shooter / Ubisoft
51. Happy Feet
PS2 plus Most Others
500K
49%November / License / Midway
50. DDR Super Nova
PS2 Exclusive
500K
77%
September / Music / Konami
49. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
GameBoy plus DS and PSP
550K
70%
June / License / Vivendi
48. Yoshi’s Island DS
DS Exclusive
550K
82%
November / Platformer / Nintendo
47. X-Men: The Official Game
PS2 plus Most Others
550K
56%
May / License / Activision
46. Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
PS2 plus Xbox
550K
76%
October / Fighting / Midway
45. Lord of the Rings: Battle For Middle Earth II
PC plus Xbox 360
550K
84%
March / License / Electronic Arts
44. The Sims 2: Pets
DS plus P2, GC, PP, GB
580K
51%
October / Life / Electronic Arts
43. Nintendogs: Dalmation & Friends
DS Exclusive
600K
82%
October / Life / Nintendo
42. Tomb Raider: Legend
Xbox 360 plus Most Others
600K
80%
April / Action / Eidos
41. Dead Rising
Xbox 360 Exclusive
600K
85%
August / Action / Capcom
40. Saints Row
Xbox 360 Exclusive
610K
82%
August / Action / THQ
39. Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
PS2 plus Most Others
630K
70%
March / License / Vivendi
38. Hitman: Blood Money
Xbox 360 plus PS2; Xbox; PC
650K
82%
May / Action / Eidos
37. MVP 06 NCAA Baseball
PS2 plus Xbox
700K
78%
January / Sports / Electronic Arts
36. NBA 2K7
Xbox 360 plus PS2; Xbox; PS3
700K
85%
September / Sports / Take-Two
35. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Double Agent
Xbox 360 and Most Others
700K
85%
October / Action / Ubisoft
34. Avatar: The Last Airbender
PS2 and Most Others
720K
65%October / License / THQ
33. Big Brain Academy
DS Exclusive
750K
75%
June / Puzzle / Nintendo
32. Sonic Riders
GameCube plus PS2; Xbox
780K
62%
February / Action / Sega
31. FIFA Soccer 07
PS2 and All Others
800K
82%
October / Sports / Electronic Arts
30. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07
PS2 plus Most Others
800K
80%
October / Sports / Electronic Arts
29. The Godfather: The Game
PS2 plus Xbox; Xbox 360; PC
880K
77%
March / License / Electronic Arts
28. Tony Hawk’s Project 8
PS2 plus Most Others
900K
71%
November / Sports / Activision
27. Over The Hedge
PS2 plus Most Others
910K
58%
May / License / Activision
26. MLB ’06: The Show
PS2 plus PSP
910K
83%
March / Sports / Sony
25. Black
PS2 plus Xbox
950K
80%
March / Shooter / Electronic Arts
24. FIFA World Cup 2006
PS2 plus All Others
950K
77%
April / Sports / Electronic Arts
23. Major League Baseball 2K6
Xbox 360 plus PS2; Xbox; GameCube; PSP
950K
63%
April / Sports / Take-Two
22. Scarface: The World Is Yours
PS2 plus Xbox; PC
970K
77%
October / License / Vivendi
21. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
PS2 (PSP version released in 2005; not counted here)
1 million
77%
June / Action / Take-Two
20. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
PS2 and Most Others
1 million
82%
October / License / Activision
19. Brain Age
DS Exclusive
1.1 million
78%
April / Puzzle / Nintendo
18. NBA Live 07
PS2 plus Xbox 360; Xbox; PSP; PC
1.2 million
65%
September / Sports / Electronic Arts
17. WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2007
PS2 plus Xbox 360; PSP
1.2 million
79%
November / Sports / THQ
16. Final Fantasy XII
PS2 Exclusive
1.2 million
93%
November / RPG / Square Enix
15. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Red & Blue
DS plus GB
1.3 million
66%
September / RPG / Nintendo
14. Guitar Hero 2
PS2 Exclusive
1.3 million
92%
November / Music / Activision
13. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
Xbox 360 plus Xbox; PS2; PC
1.4 million
91%
March / Shooter / Ubisoft
12. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Xbox 360 plus PC
1.4 million
94%
March / RPG / Take-Two
11. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Wii plus Gamecube
1.5 million
95%
November / RPG / Nintendo
10. Need For Speed Carbon
PS2 and All Others
1.6 million
75%
November / Racing / Electronic Arts
9. Fight Night Round 3
Xbox 360 plus PS2; Xbox; PSP; PS3
1.6 million
85%
February / Sports / Electronic Arts
8. Call of Duty 3
Xbox 360 plus Most Others
1.7 million
84%
November / Shooter / Activision
7. Kingdom Hearts II
PS2 Exclusive
1.7 million
87%
March / RPG / Square Enix
6. Gears of War
Xbox 360 Exclusive
1.8 million
94%
November / Shooter / Microsoft
5. New Super Mario Bros
DS Exclusive
2 million
89%
May / Platformer / Nintendo
4. NCAA Football 07
PS2 plus Xbox 360; Xbox; PSP
2.2 million
87%
July / Sports / Electronic Arts
3. Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
PS2 and All Others
2.5 million
85%
September / License / LucasArts
2. Cars
PS2 and All Others
2.6 million
71%
June / License / THQ
1. Madden NFL 07
PS2 and All Others
6.5 million
85%
August / Sports / Electronic Arts
Source - Next Generation
