Which games have sold the best at Christmas in the last 38 years? Among the leaders are EA and Activision titles
A representative of GfK Entertainment shared data on the best-selling video games during the Christmas holidays over the past 38 years. The chart only counts copies sold in the UK. EA and Activision have the most titles on the list.The information was shared by the senior director of Customer Relations at GfK Dorian Bloch on his LinkedIn page.
Later, the table drew the attention of gaming expert Simon Carless (Simon Carless).
The Christmas chart is the last one of the year. It covers the week before the Christmas holidays. The table below shows all the best-selling “Christmas” games in the UK since 1984 (only physical copies are taken into account).
The leader of the list is Electronic Arts. Over the past 38 years, 13 games of the company have topped the chart at Christmas. Nine times the championship went to the FIFA series, twice — Need for Speed. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Medal of Honor: Rising Sun took the first place once more.
Activision ranks second among all publishers in the number of Christmas bestsellers. Nine times the first place went to the games of the Call of Duty series, and in 1984 Ghostbusters topped the chart.
EA and Activision also lead the chart in the number of games of the same franchise that occupied the first lines. We are talking about FIFA and Call of Duty. At the same time, the last series once led for four years in a row — from 2014 to 2017.
Over the past 20 years, only three companies, besides EA and Activision, have managed to top the Christmas chart. Last year, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla from Ubisoft came in first place. In 2018 and 2002, Take-Two took the lead — with Red Dead Redemption 2 and GTA 3. And in 2011, the first place was taken by TES V: Skyrim from Bethesda.
