The Sales of the Year Awards - 2024 Edition Results

Overview Discussion (23)

The Sales of the Year Awards - 2024 Edition Results
Hello everyone !

Thanks to our community votes over the past week, we are able to bring back Install Base's Sales of the Year Awards !

This is our own take on the usual GOTY formula, which will reward the sales success of the year and the most impactful actors of 2024. We hosted a first edition in 2021 (that was quite fun to revisit!) and made some improvements to make this celebration a mainstay every year :D

Without further ado, let's share the first results of the Awards:

Niche Success of the Year Award
rewards a game from an ongoing franchise that never crossed 1m before

This proved to be a very difficult award to grant because there are less and less franchises that qualify to this criteria. With rising dev costs, franchise that never crossed 1m are mostly dormant. Still, there was a clear winner and it is one of the good early 2024 story:

1. Shiren The Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island - 27 pts

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Last known milestone: 200.000 units in Japan (first two weeks)


Rookie of the Year Award
rewards a new IP that successfully set up the potential for a strong and enduring franchise

Lots of amazing debut in 2024, which contrasted greatly with the struggles of existing IPs during the year. The top 5 ended up very varied and showcase once more that there's not a single unique formula to succeed.

5. Stellar Blade - 13 pts

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Last known milestone: 1.000.000 units worldwide (first two months)

It had a strong start and I can see it developing into more collabs, a la Nier, so there is potential.

4. Balatro - 14 pts
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Last known milestone: 3.500.000 units worldwide (first 8 months)

I think it deserves the top spot not only due to the link to its budget, but also for getting casual audiences and a perception outside the typical gamer or sports crowd. And it'll keep selling for years without needing a sequel.

3. Metaphor ReFantazio - 19 pts

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Last known milestone: 1.000.000 units worldwide (first day)

While Soul Hackers 2 soured my view of Atlus expanding its portfolio, ReFantazio exceeded all expectations. Its quality was exceptional and silly name a nonissue, making it an instant hit.
While a sequel might not be in the cards at the moment (and I dont think it needs one, imo), it could result in an anthology type series with more emphasizes on humane themes (versus SMT with its philosophy and Persona with its inter-personal themes)

2. Palworld - 22 pts

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Last known milestone: 15.000.000 units worldwide on Steam, 10M Xbox players (first month)

While the developer in question is known for their... derivative works, Palworld picked the right ingredients to make something exciting. Still, their penchant for borrowing has (rightly or not) earned Nintendo's wrath. Palworld still needs to walk its own development (and legal) path, with a sequel not even a whisper at the moment. But the potential is certainly there.
From the pokemon with memes we were seeing in the previous PC Gaming Shows to completely blow up.
might be among the most profitable games of the year just on sheer cheapness of development? And certainly punching above its weight.

1. Black Myth: Wukong - 41 pts

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Last known milestone: 20.000.000 units worldwide (first month)

Wiki: “… first installment in a Black Myth series, which would explore different stories in Chinese mythology.”, so yeah, I’d say this is not only a potential, but a certainty.
objectively good results and could be viewed as a milestone for Chinese game dev
A breakout of game, considering its getting DLC (if I remember correctly), the potential for future adaptations is looking good.
While the success of the game cannot be doubted, it rests on the shoulders of the Chinese market. That market in particular has been known to be volatile, but if the developers continue to lean on what made the first successful then the sky's the limit for the Black Myth universe.

Worst Publisher of the Year Award
goes to the publisher that had the biggest issues of the year through its market share, games, services or overall health

3. Embracer - 26 pts

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Turns out that hoarding and collecting IPs like trophies does nothing for competency, creativity, and talent. The publisher has been shuttering its studios, projects, IPs, and axing its workforce until its bloated corpse finally blew apart.
The amount of talent and projects loss to the leadership of this company is unprecedented and it feels like 2024 they have been laying low in the public eye, but this was the year they split into 3 entities lol

2. Square-Enix - 31 pts

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The changes Kiryu wants to implement speak for themselves
The company continues in their spotty pattern of mismanaged IPs and unreliable QA, on top of persistent mistakes in their forecasting and ability to read the demand for their games. Trully the company with the most wasted potential in the industry.
They still believe it's the year 1998. Still churn out undercooked AA projects and rely on DQ and FF and legacy remakes. Still think arbitrary exclusivity makes them stronger. A publisher stuck in the past.
Kind of the same, the title isn't really that accurate (they released good games, did good things, etc). But their old strategy finally hit them and they're only now getting that timed exclusives isn't working out for them, especially on the big budget side. I'm confident they'll have a good turnaround and keep their identity, but it's insane they took this long dragging their feet to understand that. Maybe in some years they'll understand their issues with FF too?

1. Ubisoft - 47 pts

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between the flops of Skull & Bones, Prince of Persia, Star Wars Outlaws and the delay of Assassin's Creeds Shadows, it has been an awful year for Ubisoft.
Skull and Bones flopped, we expected that. Star Wars Outlaws flopped, that's already enough of a stumble to warrant a spot on this list. But the dismantling of the team behind their most critically successful game in over 10 years after they took a dormant IP and made it a milion seller in less than a year is the final nail in the coffin. RIP Prince of Persia.
Just Dance and what else?
From life service games tanking, to the stock tanking, its a company that has its reputation below ground. Big layoffs, possible buyouts, scandals, it does not seems to be a healthy company at the moment. Hoping Shadows bring new light.
I wouldn't call them "worst publisher" in the sense we usually say or even said in the past for them, but they had a year so bad it led them to rethink quickly their future strategy (which is good, something they always had issues with in the past).

Publisher of the Year Award
rewards the publisher that had the most successful year through its market share, games, services or overall health

3. Nintendo - 17 pts

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Switch is in its 8th year and still relevant, both hardware and software. Evergreens are evergreening and yes, they ”bought Japan” (actually in Japan it’s a walkover).
There are a number of conversation to be had about their year, but the fact that they published a game a month in what it looks like their final year with the switch as the main console, its pretty solid. Plus in terms of health, they are looking good for their future endeavors.

2. Bandai Namco - 18 pts

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Even a DLC got the world talking about Elden Ring again. That, Tekken 8, Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, and a plethora of anime games saw a lot of success. Just ignore Sand Land or head scratching Switch support in Japan.
While there are some stumbles, Elden Ring DLC and DBZ Sparking Zero were hits. And it seems that they have a solid lineup in the works.

1. SEGA - 52 pts


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From Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth getting a GOTY nom, to Sonic X Shadow Generations, to Persona 3 Reload, to Metaphor: ReFantazio, to Unicorn Overlord, SEGA/Atlus have had possibly their best year ever, topped off with the announcement of the revival of Virtua Fighter and a brand new IP from RGG Studio. Add to all this the reboots of beloved franchises currently in the works with the likes of Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, Shinobi and the inevitable Persona 6 and the future of SEGA is very bright.
A lot of their games published this year (9 last time I checked) reached record sales (in terms of fastest out of the gate) and they seems to have a decent pipeline working.
They had a fantastic year, not only thanks to Atlus (P3R, SMTVV, Metaphor, Unicorn...) but also RGG that keeps firing on all cylinders and that shows they have a clear strategy in the future.

Most anticipated release Award
rewards the game/hardware/publisher/service (etc) expected to release in 2025 that generates the most anticipation from a sales perspective

4. Pokémon Legends Z-A - 7 pts
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The follow-up to 2022 surprise pokemon game. Arceus last figures were in the 15-16 million range, and given how that game was well received and still talked about, its understandable the "hype" for this one. Also its cool they picked Kalos because that gives boost to a more underrepresented batch of the franchise.
I believe there are bigger plans with this one than just a Pokémon Legends sequel.

3. Monster Hunter Wilds - 19 pts

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it's the most wishlisted game on Steam. The fact that the pre-orders are already among the best-sellers on Steam for the year 2024 hints at a massive launch (likely >1M CCU). The Beta test also did massive numbers on Steam.
Was World the peak for the franchise? Or can Wilds continue the series' ascent?
Lots of things to watch and expect for this one. Sales in Japan, PC proportion, comparisons with World (I don't think it'll sell as much but it'll obviously sell really well), legs, etc.

2. The Nintendo Switch successor - 33 pts

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After years of speculation and rumors, it seems that its finally time for it to be released. With a possible solid lineup of first ant third parties, its gonna be fun to track.
Could go plenty of ways as seen in the past, but so far it'll seem hard to fail. The Switch didn't have the same trajectory as the Wii, its successor won't have a dumb name, seems like it will have support, etc.
It's Switch 2. You know, the sequel to gaming's most successful hardware?

1. Grand Theft Auto VI - 48 pts

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Obviously, come on. It'll be the biggest sales event easily.
One of the hyped games ever. Its been 3 console cycles since the last one, so people are ready for a new one.
It's GTA VI. You know, the sequel to gaming's most successful software?

Flop of the Year Award
goes to the game/hardware/service that disappointed the most

3. Skull & Bones - 15 pts

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Remember this one? The AAAA game? In development for a decade? Few hundred million on development? Remember? No? Me neither.
So Ubisoft is still supporting this game, but the amount of money and time wasted on this game, I doubt it made any money back.

2. Suicide Squad - 17 pts

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Rocksteady's first AAA game since Knight, the choice to pick the SS was not bad at the time, but considering the amount of time in dev and the decision to go life service was a mistake. Not to mention the amount of talent drained from the studio, it was bound to come up short.
we all knew this was gonna happen, yet it's still scary to see one of the most affirmed studios in the industry fall so hard from grace, and now they're likely never gonna recover from this due to how much talent they bled over this project.
the fact it's already sold for $3.49 says it all.

1. Concord - 61 pts

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spooked the entire industry on live services in a very definitive way.
Everything has been said about this expensive game that had less shelve life than fruit flies.
Obviously, come on lol. It'll be there in history just like ET was.
(literally nothing else comes close)

Sales of the Year Award
rewards a new IP that successfully set up the potential for a strong and enduring franchise

10. PC/Steam & Marvel Rivals - both at 10 points

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Last known milestone: CCU all-time peak record for Steam and 481.000 CCU peak for Marvel Rivals in December 2024

another huge growth this year, global CCU peaked at 33M in January 2024, will likely peak at very close to 40M CCU by January 2025.

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It's F2P and hard to know, but despite all the criticism it got (for good reasons), it also seems to be doing really and be the best replacement for Overwatch that was impressive in its own time. Obviously will have to watch over time.

9. Super Mario Jamboree - 12 pts

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Last known milestone: fastest selling Mario Party game in Europe, 900K+ sold at retail in Japan in less than 3 months

8. Path of Exile 2 - 14 pts

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Last known milestone: 579.000 CCU peak worldwide on Steam

Despite the game being F2P (next year with the 1.0) the game has peaked at almost 600K CCU on Steam alone (their launcher is also big and also released on consoles). The game is and will continue to be massive.
Yeah it's not been long but I think it deserves to be in the top, great start.

7. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero - 24 points

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Last known milestone: 3.000.000 units worldwide (first day)

Massive launch in the West.

6. Pokémon TCG Pocket - 27 points

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Last known milestone: 403.000.000$ in revenue worldwide (first 10 weeks)

Didn't think I'd see Pokemon recreate the casual craze of Pokemon Go. But imagine my shock seeing children, teens, and adults swiping their fingers to open a pack everywhere I go. Happy to see folks enjoying those Pesky Pocket Monsters.
printing money.

5. Balatro - 32 points

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Last known milestone: 3.500.000 units worldwide (first 8 months)

It might not be the biggest in terms of sheer numbers, but a one-man game selling over 3 million is impressive and rare.
I think it deserves the top spot not only due to the link to its budget, but also for getting casual audiences and a perception outside the typical gamer or sports crowd. And it'll keep selling for years without needing a sequel.

4. EA Sports College Football 25 - 82 points

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Last known milestone: best-selling Sports game ever in the US, top 50 best-selling game ever in the US

Now that's a comeback. Not just a return of college football, but quite literally *the* best selling sports game in the US ever. Ever.
the reason why so many people in the USA decided to buy a console
adds another recurring sports title, so will have ramifications beyond just this year

3. Palworld - 83 points

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Last known milestone: 15.000.000 units worldwide on Steam, 10M Xbox players (first month)

What's to say that hasn't been already said? Despite its controversies, the game is uniquely its own (just ignore the blatant Pal-design plagiarism). Can the game create a platform that will keep players coming back? Time will tell, but it was quite the entrance.
might be among the most profitable games of the year just on sheer cheapness of development? And certainly punching above its weight.
Another surprise of the year.

2. Helldivers II - 99 points

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Last known milestone: 12.000.000 units worldwide (first 12 weeks)

Finally a GaaS blowing up like Sony wanted. Since Magicka they know how to make very fun coop games, it was a matter of time and resources to finally blow up.
PlayStation fastest-selling game of all time with >12M units sold in 12 weeks.
Post release has been badly handled by both dev and publisher, but it deserves to be in the top.
Even with the Concord failure and The Last of Us cancelation, this must have made Sony determined to go after live service no matter what.

And the Sales of the Year Award goes to...

1. Black Myth Wukong - 123 pts

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Last known milestone: 20.000.000 units worldwide (first month)

Became bigger than anyone imagined.
it's certainly the biggest success in years (20M units sold in 1 month). It also has great legs despite its explosive launch.
objectively good results and could be viewed as a milestone for Chinese game dev
Unexpected, at least for me. We need more games from China.
For better or for worse, the Chinese market is a sleeping giant. Appease it and you will be greatly rewarded.
They are also smart with the regional prices, specially in China.

This wraps up the 2024 edition of the Sales of the Year Awards!

Thanks for everyone than participated. 2024 will be remembered as a year of struggles and surprises, with games coming from established publishers mostly underperforming, to comical degrees sometimes, and a lot of unexpected huge hits coming from all over the world.
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