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Nearly 21 years after release, Age of Empires 2 could well be having its best year ever. Since its HD re-release in 2013 the game has had a steady growth in average player count, but with the release of Age of Empires 2: Definitive edition last year and COVID-19 lockdowns inflating player counts across the industry,  Age of Empires 2 is boasting totals that beat some very big-name games. It’s now by far Steam’s most popular RTS, with both the Definitive Edition and the 2013 HD Edition having higher player counts than closest competitor Company of Heroes 2. This year’s big tournament boasted the largest Age of Empires 1v1 prize pool since 2002.

Last month, in April, the games’ combined average player count was over 50,000 players. April 12 was the definitive edition’s all-time player peak, and the combined total of the games was 59,995 players. That’s well into the top 150 all-time peak player counts on Steam… for a 21-year-old game.

The two games generally average higher player counts than popular free-to-play game War Thunder or industry darling Stardew Valley. They’re on-par with the popular action RPG Path of Exile. Their average is nearly as many as perennially popular premium games like Civilization VI or Terraria. Both versions of Age of Empires 2 sit in the top 100 games on Steam, with the Definitive Edition sitting at #25. Combined, however, the Age of Empires community on average pushes up to the #15 spot—or higher, on peak player count days.

To give you an idea of the scale at work here, Age of Empires 2 sold some 1.5 million copies in the three years surrounding its North American release. Last year, the studio behind the game said that a million people per month were still playing Age of Empires games… and that’s before the huge spike in players this year has seen.

Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition launched last year, and our Fraser Brown quite liked it. Age of Empires 4 is in development and scheduled to release in 2020 or later.

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As per our headline, GTA V did well in Feb. According to the data it sold even better this year (Jan + Feb) than it did during the same period in 2019. This is a rather long in the tooth title, having launched in April 2015 on PCs (it was first made available, on last-gen consoles, in September 2013).

Another big seller of note in Feb 2020 was Ubisoft’s The Division 2. This game was dramatically cut in price to £2.50/$2.99 to get people on board ahead of the release of its first major DLC – The Division 2: Warlords of New York. That likely gave the sales a boost, and the boost probably will carry through to the March sales figures but at the time of writing the price has been increased to £8.58 for the base game Standard Edition. Overall in the charts Ubisoft is the top publisher due to this game at position 4 in the top 20, plus Rainbow Six Siege being at position 5.

Looking at platform splits, the PS4 is the most lucrative platform for software developers in the UK right now. PS4 users made purchases accounting for 40.8 per cent of market share. Xbox One games sales accounted for 25.7 per cent of the market share.

Moving onto hardware sales, over 71,000 consoles were sold in Feb 2020, which is 37 per cent down YoY. This is understandable with Microsoft and Sony fans waiting eagerly for the next gen refresh, which we should know a lot more about in summer and will be available ahead of Xmas if all goes to plan. The Nintendo Switch was the best selling console of Feb 2020 in the UK, its sales remained flat YoY, which is a win when looking at the bigger picture.

You can check out the main chart below. Sadly, Nintendo doesn’t share first party digital download games sales, so this will skew the GSD charts from reality.

February UK Physical & Download Top 20 (Full Games)

1. Grand Theft Auto 5
2. FIFA 20
3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
4. Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
5. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
6. Dreams
7. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
8. NBA 2K20
9. Uno
10. Red Dead Redemption 2
11. Monopoly Plus
12. Mario Kart 8: Deluxe*
13. Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition
14. Spyro Reignited Trilogy
15. Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy
16. Minecraft
17. Just Dance 2020
18. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
19. Star Wars Battlefront 2
20. Need for Speed Heat

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Bandai Namco’s Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot seems to have been really popular in the UK, as the physical charts show that it has entered the top spot above the likes of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (number two) and FIFA 20 (number three).

This data comes from GamesIndustry.biz, with Kakarot selling 13% more than Dragon Ball FighterZ, which launched in the same month of 2018.

In a week of surprises, Nintendo 3DS titles also make an appearance, with Yo-Kai Watch at eight while WarioWare Gold is as high as five. Yo-Kai Watch: Bony Spirits and Flesh Souls are both at number 12 and 13 respectively too, with Metroid Prime: Federation Forces and Harvest Moon: The Lost Valley in the top 50 as well.

With Argos selling UK stock very cheap this likely explains the surge of 3DS titles, and those looking for Tokyo Mirage Session #FE Encore can find it at number 17, marking a 17% increase in sales over the Wii U version.

For the full top 10 look down below. Can Dragon Ball Z stay at the top spot?

1. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot / Bandai Namco
2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
3. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
4. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order / EA
5. WarioWare Gold / Nintendo
6. Grand Theft Auto V / Rockstar
7. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
8. Yo-Kai Watch / Nintendo
9. Just Dance 2020 / Ubisoft
10. Minecraft / Microsoft

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Call of Duty is no stranger to the top spot on the UK physical charts, nor is Modern Warfare in particular, which has sealed yet another week at number one, sitting a mere 3,000 sales above Respawn and EA’s Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz

Modern Warfare actually dipped 10% in terms of sales compared to last week, with last week’s number one – FIFA 20 – falling to number three after a 41% drop in sales. Fallen Order, however, rose 30% compared to last week, putting it agonisingly close to Call of Duty.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has fallen 30% in terms of sales week-on-week, sitting at number four just above Luigi’s Mansion 3, with just 2,000 units separating the two. In fact, there are nine Mario titles in the top 40 overall, so he’s proving to be popular.

Below you can see the full top 10. What can be Christmas number one next week?

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
2. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order / EA
3. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
4. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Nintendo
5. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
6. Pokémon Sword / Nintendo
7. Just Dance 2020 / Ubisoft
8. Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games / Sega
9. Tekken 7 / Bandai Namco
10. Project Cars 2 / Bandai Namco

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Black Friday always has a big impact on the UK charts, not only with the hundreds of individual games that are discounted during the now week-long sale but because retailers and platform holders package up hardware with games to make them more tempting in the run up to the holidays. That’s the reason why Sea of Thieves, which we last saw in the charts early last year when the game first released, is once again in the UK top ten.

FIFA 20 was the biggest seller of the week, helped no doubt by the fact that it was bundled in with the PS4 at retailers up and down the country. In fact, last week’s best-seller Call of Duty: Modern Warfare was also included as part of a PS4 hardware bundle and that helped keep it in the mix, while Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and the aforementioned Sea of Thieves were included as part of Xbox One hardware bundles.

Much of the top ten, however, is dominated by Nintendo, with Minecraft (which appears twice in this week’s chart) and Pokémon (which also appears twice) among the five Nintendo-published games included.

Elsewhere, recent releases such as Shenmue 3 and Football Manager 2020 were completely absent from this week’s top forty, with many gamers taking advantage of generous discounts and going back to snap up some of those titles that were missed before. Check out the top ten below:

1. FIFA 20 / EA
2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
3. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order / EA
4. Sea of Thieves / Microsoft
5. Minecraft (Xbox) / Microsoft
6. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Sword) / Nintendo
7. Mario Kart 8: Deluxe / Nintendo
8. Pokémon Sword/Shield (Shield) / Nintendo
9. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
10. Minecraft (Switch) / Nintendo

Perhaps just as interesting as the games and their respective successes is the news that overall Black Friday sales were down 22% year-on-year (although as Games Industry notes, there was no Red Dead Redemption 2 to buoy sales this year). PlayStation gamers snapped up 500,000 physical games during the week, but that’s 37% fewer than last year, and Xbox was similarly down, with 413,112 games sold representing a 26.7% decline. On the other hand, Nintendo’s growing market share with the Switch meant a 44% bump year-on-year, with 361,967 games sold last week.

What did you pick up in the Black Friday sales this year?

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Pokémon Sword topped the UK physical game charts on release, but after a strong debut Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has launched a counterattack to reclaim the top spot, despite a drop of 16% in sales from last week, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz.

Pokémon Sword had a 58% decline, moving to number three, while Shield dropped 65%, moving to five. Elsewhere in the charts Nintendo Switch titles are staying strong too, with Luigi’s Mansion 3 at six with an 11% rise in sales, Minecraft on Switch at eight with a 43% increase, and Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 at nine after a 4% sales jump.

In fact, the top 10 has six Switch exclusives, and there are another eight in the top 40, following discounts and Black Friday sales.

Boxed sales for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order are also down 47%, but it holds onto the number two position.

Shenmue III, however, is at number 17, failing to crack the top 10 and selling a little over half of the Shenmue I and II package from last year (when comparing just PS4 sales).

For the full top 10, check down below. Are you surprised by Modern Warfare coming in first place again?

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
2. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order / EA
3. Pokémon Sword / Nintendo
4. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
5. Pokémon Shield / Nintendo
6. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
7. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Nintendo
8. Minecraft for Switch / Nintendo
9. Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 / Sega
10. Fortnite: Darkfire Bundle / Epic Games

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With both Pokémon Sword/Shield and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order being big releases in massive franchises last week, people were wondering who’d take the top spot in the UK physical charts this week, and GamesIndustry.biz reports that it’s Pokémon Sword that’s topped the list, with Shield coming in at three and the double pack at seven.

In fact, it’s the biggest exclusive game of the entire year, being the third-biggest physical game launch, sitting just behind multi-platform games FIFA 20 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

These figures have been taken from combining the sales of all three listings, and taken together, these have made the second biggest launch for Pokémon games in UK history, selling 33% (or 43% if you count the dual pack as double games) more than Black and White, also shifting 53% (or 64.6%) more than Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee from last year.

That said, sales are actually down 39% (or 34.5%) from Pokémon Sun and Moon, released in 2016.

As for Star Wars, Respawn’s game was the fourth-biggest physical game launch of the year, with sales 33% lower that Star Wars Battlefront II. PS4 made up 66% of sales, with Xbox One making up the rest.

This week also sees Death Stranding drop 71% in sales, moving from two to eight, with Need for Speed Heat also dropping from five to 11.

For the full top 10 look down below. Can Pokémon stay at number one?

1. Pokémon Sword / Nintendo
2. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order / EA
3. Pokémon Shield / Nintendo
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
5. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
6. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
7. Pokémon Sword and Shield: Dual Edition / Nintendo
8. Death Stranding / Sony
9. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Nintendo
10. Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 / Sega

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Death Stranding has only just been released after years of speculation and anticipation, and now GamesIndustry.biz reports that it has debuted at number two on the UK physical charts, with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare still holding onto the top spot.

It’s actually the second-biggest exclusive and second-biggest new IP released this year, behind Bend Studio’s Days Gone, with Death Stranding selling 36% fewer units at launch.

Elsewhere Luigi’s Mansion 3 drops 59% compared to last week, sitting at number four, and Need for Speed Heat is parked up at number five, selling 41% fewer copies than Need for Speed: Payback in 2017.

In a throwback, the Nintendo Wii version of Just Dance 2020 is actually the second most successful version, accounting for 21% of all sales. The game itself is at number 15 in the charts, with 55% of these sales being on the Nintendo Switch.

For the full top 10 check down below. Are you surprised that Death Stranding isn’t top?

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
2. Death Stranding / Sony
3. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
4. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
5. Need for Speed Heat / EA
6. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Nintendo
7. Fortnite: Darkfire Bundle / Epic Games
8. Mario & Sonic at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 / Sega
9. Minecraft / Microsoft
10. Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville / EA

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In the UK physical game charts this week, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is holding onto the top spot (thanks, GamesIndustry.biz), although Luigi’s Mansion 3 has become the fastest-selling Nintendo Switch physical game of 2019, landing at number two.

This sold faster than The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and Super Mario Maker 2, and physical sales are 140% more than the last game in 2013. As a reminder, this doesn’t include digital sales either.

Sales for Modern Warfare are down 49% from its launch week, and at number 12 we have the return of the classic Aladdin and Lion King platformers, selling best on Switch, which is where 48% of sales were.

WWE 2K20 falls from number three to 14 this week, dipping 81% in terms of sales, and EA’s Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville has actually sold more in its third week than it managed in its first.

For the full top 10 look down below. What can topple Modern Warfare?

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Activision
2. Luigi’s Mansion 3 / Nintendo
3. FIFA 20 / EA Sports
4. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Nintendo
5. The Outer Worlds / Private Division
6. Ghost Recon: Breakpoint / Ubisoft
7. Ring Fit Adventure / Nintendo
8. Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville / EA
9. Grand Theft Auto V / Rockstar
10. MediEvil / Sony

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It might not come as a surprise, but Call of Duty: Modern Warfare dominated the Brittish charts last week, and actually sold 39% more than Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 did last year (this is only physical copies), according to Games Industry. The sales did, however, not meet those of Call of Duty: WWII from 2017, even if it should be noted that digital sales are way higher today.

Despite fairly low grades (our review is brewing right now) and criticism on social media for a plethora of bugs, WWE 2K20 debuted right behind FIFA 20. It was followed by The Outer Worlds, and Games Industry notes that many probably expected a better position from this game, but reminds that it has very high digital downloads as it is a part of Xbox Game Pass. A prime example of this is the fact that the game has 78% of the physical sales on PS4 and only 22% on Xbox One.

Finally, Games Industry notes that MediEval also did fairly well considering that it generally got average scores and that both Ring Fit Adventure and Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville are continuing to sell well during their second week on the market.

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
2. FIFA 20
3. WWE 2K20
4. The Outer Worlds
5. MediEvil
6. Mario Kart 8: Deluxe
7. Ring Fit Adventure
8. Ghost Recon: Breakpoint
9. Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville
10. Minecraft (Switch Edition)

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