Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas everybody! Welcome to part 2 of this year’s Notable Events special edition of New Game Releases. I hope you enjoyed reading yesterday’s write-up on 1985 & 1995 (check it out if you didn’t see it), today we are going to focus on all of the major video game industry events from 2005 & 2015.

Sit back, relax, enjoy a cup of egg nog, and get lost in the sea of nostalgia…

2005:

2005 was another year that contained a major, game changing console release. This time, we have Microsoft’s Xbox 360, the first seventh-generation console, releasing on November 22nd, 2005, beating both Sony and Nintendo to the market by nearly one full year. This was Microsoft’s second console, following the original Xbox which debuted in 2001, and the company had a lot riding on its success. While the Xbox wasn’t the outright failure that some had predicted, it certainly wasn’t as successful as Microsoft had hoped, failing to capture the top spot in the marketplace from Sony. While it did well against the Nintendo GameCube, at least in North America, Nintendo still trounced the company due to its strong grip on the handheld gaming market.

In desperate need of a hit, Microsoft began work on the 360 very soon after the launch of the original Xbox, hoping to get to the market before their rivals. This proved costly, however, as the rush to market meant that the console was not properly stress tested, leading to the infamous “red ring of death” problem that would plague early versions of the console. Still, it paid off in other ways, as players began getting acclimated to the Xbox ecosystem, creating their Gamer Tag and joining their friends online to play Call of Duty 2 together, one of the 360’s first big sellers.

While the Xbox 360 was not the best-selling console of its generation (that distinction would go to the Nintendo Wii; more on that next year), the ideas it brought to the industry, such as a digital marketplace to buy games, downloadable content, online multiplayer functionality, player profiles, achievements, these all became the standard norm across every major gaming platform. Microsoft would run into trouble with later iterations of the Xbox, losing customer loyalty in droves with the Xbox One, and are currently in deep trouble of becoming a software-only company. However, the strides made by the Xbox 360 have helped shape the modern video game landscape, and we owe Microsoft their flowers for it.

While Microsoft was busy starting the seventh-generation, Sony was still riding high on the success of the PlayStation 2 which is well on its way to becoming the best-selling video game console of all-time. Still, Sony can’t stick with the PS2 forever so, at E3 2005, the company announces that they are expecting to release their next console, the PlayStation 3, in 2006. While they don’t have any games to announce for it, nor do they have a machine to show, they are more than happy to discuss the incredible processing power of the PS3, as well as its high definition capabilities.

Sony spend nearly their entire two-hour presentation spouting a plethora of impressive sounding numbers, showing off graphs and bar charts indicating how much more powerful the PS3 would be than every other console in existence, and even giving us glimpses of 3D models created in the hard ware (including a remade Final Fantasy VII intro). It’s all very impressive but very, VERY boring. Surely there’s no need to worry, Sony knows what they’re doing, right? The PS3 launch won’t be a disaster, right…RIGHT?!

At Nintendo’s E3 press conference, the company spends a good amount of time discussing their hot new handheld, the DS, touting the many third-party developers they’ve been able to court, including EA who is gonna totally put Madden on it; WOOOOO!! One of the stand out games, however, is the adorable looking Nintendogs, in which players take care of their own virtual pup. Nintendo also announce that the DS will soon have online capabilities, with players able to play various games together over the internet as part of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. The first games to feature this will be Mario Kart DS and Tony Hawk’s American Sk8land.

The big news, however, is that Nintendo are also hard at work on their new console, which they have codenamed “Revolution” (it will eventually be known as the Wii). Nintendo’s president, Satoru Iwata, would grace the stage, holding the new console in his hands. Immediately, you can see how small it is in comparison to current consoles, including the absolutely humungous Xbox 360 shown off by Microsoft. Unlike the Sony conference, where numbers and stats were thrown around to impress you, Iwata instead noted that Nintendo’s new console would be a powerful device, but they weren’t too hung up on the specs. In hindsight, it’s clear that they were avoiding having to make any comparisons on power because the Wii was, undoubtedly, the lowest spec’d console in the seventh-generation.

Instead of talking specs, Iwata spoke about the capabilities of the device, saying that it would have online functionality with built-in wi-fi, that it would strive to appeal to gamers of all ages and play levels, and that it would completely change the way we would all play games. However, one of the biggest promises was that players would be able to purchase and download classic Nintendo games that were released on the NES, SNES, and N64 (what would eventually be known as the Virtual Console). Iwata also noted that the Revolution would contain a controller unlike anything seen before in video games, but that the public would need to wait a little longer to find out what they looked like.

Jump cut to Tokyo Game Show in September of 2005, Nintendo finally reveals the controller, a slender, remote control device that has a separate thumbstick attachment you can plug into the bottom of it. In the trailer for the controller, which we now know as the Wii Remote, Nintendo is careful not to show any actual gameplay footage. Instead, the trailer shows you HOW you’ll be using it, with the controller appearing to function as a sword, a gun, a frying pan handle, a tennis racket, and so on. The hype for the Revolution was on, with the world needing to wait just a few more months before they would learn more.

While new consoles, both present and future, took up a lot of the video game news cycle in 2005, there was one story in particular that transcended games and reached the public at large; I’m referring to the “Hot Coffee scandal from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. In December of 2004, a group of game modders discovered several files on the PS2 game’s disc with sexually explicit names, including “SEX”, “KISSING”, “SNM”, and “BLOWJOBZ”, even going as far as reviewing character model sheets that depicted them performing these acts. However, due to the nature of the PS2, they were unable to run these files, keeping things vague for the time being. Later, when the PC version of San Andreas was released in June of 2005, the modders were finally able to run the files and see what they were all about; the result was shocking.

What they discovered was a mini-game in which the player character, CJ, would engage in various sex acts with each of the game’s girlfriend options. These were not simply cut scenes in which players would watch the act, no, these were full on, playable activities where you would press buttons and move the thumbsticks to simulate the act of sexual intercourse. This mini-game, which the modders dubbed “Hot Coffee”, was completely locked out from players on the PS2 and could only be accessed on PC through modifying the game’s source code; the fallout was devastating. After going viral online, the ESRB conducted an investigation to determine if this warranted a re-rating, with Rockstar employees being instructed not to respond to any media questions or to discuss the matter publicly.

Following their investigation, the ESRB did change the game’s rating, from M to AO (Adults Only) prompting major retailers like Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and others, to pull the game from their shelves. While the ESRB acknowledged that the explicit content was inaccessible to regular users, the ability to see the content through modification undermined the integrity of the ESRB’s rating. Rockstar halted all production of San Andreas until a version could be put out that removed the offending content.

There were strong reactions from various politicians, the first was from now disgraced California State Senator Leland Yee who demanded that the ESRB give San Andreas an AO rating. Lee was, at the time, trying to pass a bill in the state that would require warning labels to be placed on violent video games, as well as require retailers to card anyone purchasing an M rated video game (why is Yee now disgraced? He was found accepting bribes, as well as being part of a largescale racketeering scheme, which included money laundering and illegal arms dealing, in connection with organized crime in San Francisco).

Senator Hillary Clinton (who was eyeing a 2008 Presidential candidacy bid) was similarly incensed at the lack of oversight and demanded more accountability from the video game industry. Partnering with Senator Joe Lieberman (one of the key people responsible for the industry creating the ESRB in the first place) and another Senator, Evan Bayh, they would draft a bill called the Family Entertainment Protection Act. Clinton’s proposed bill would ban the sale of M and AO rated games to anyone under the age of 18, it would require the federal government to fully investigate the ESRB an on annual basis and determine its usefulness, it would require the FTC to investigate the “Hot Coffee” situation and find out if any other current games had hidden sexual content, it would make it easier for consumer to lodge complaints against video game companies & retailers, and it would require the federal government to conduct annual audits of retailers to ensure they were in compliance with the M/AO rating ban for minors.

Despite their efforts, the bill failed spectacularly, not even being heard on the floor of congress. It would eventually expire at the end of the term, in January of 2007. This isn’t to say that there were no repercussions. The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly for the FTC to investigate Rockstar and its parent company, Take-Two, to see if they intentionally misled the ESRB. The FTC ruled that the companies had violated the FTC Act of 1914 which requires entities to disclose any unused but potentially viewable nude imagery & sexual content. Take-Two & Rockstar settled with the FTC, promising to fully disclose any future sexual content in the future. The FTC opted not to fine the company the standard $11k fee, as they felt the nearly $25 million they lost in recalling the game was sufficient enough punishment.

In the aftermath of “Hot Coffee”, the modding community felt alienated and disrespected by Rockstar, particularly after the company declared that they would take measures in the future to make their games very difficult to mod. The ESRB began stricter investigations into currently rated games and discovered that the upcoming Bethesda title, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, contained more graphic violence that originally seen and that, like San Andreas, contained inaccessible sexual content in the form of a “topless woman” skin, which could be made public by modders. This caused the game to be re-rated from T to M.

Take-Two would cancel an upcoming drug trafficking game, Snow, fearing it would be targeted for its content. The move would led to the closure of the game’s developer, Frog City Software. In 2008’s Grand Theft Auto IV, Liberty City’s version of the Statue of Liberty bore a striking resemblance to Senator Clinton, with the statue holding a large cup of coffee in lieu of the traditional torch. GTA IV also contained an achievement called “Warm Coffee”, which players get when they are invited into a girlfriend’s home for (unseen) sexual intercourse. In the 2021 release of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One, the PC version was temporarily removed from digital marketplaces as it contained files that should have been removed. While Rockstar claimed it had to do with unlicensed music, modders claimed that the “Hot Coffee” files were present. While I’m certain this won’t be the last time the government tries to ban and/or restrict video games in some way, this does feel like the last major attempt by the United States government to fundamentally control the video game industry, after a nearly 15 year attempt.

In notable business events, Titus, the French developer/publisher founded in 1985, declares bankruptcy and ceases all operations. Their assets are purchased by Interplay. Troika, a studio made up of former Interplay developers and the creators of three well received RPGs, Arcanum, The Temple of Elemental Evil, and Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, shut down their studio after failing to acquire the rights to Fallout, which ultimately go to Bethesda. Our last major closer of the year is Working Designs, an American publisher founded in 1986 who are best known for localizing and releasing several niche Japanese games in North America. Their most high-profile releases are, arguably, the Lunar series of RPGs.

Activision purchases the independent studio Vicarious Visions, best known for releasing licensed titles for handheld consoles. Activision still uses the company for these purposes, but also has them work as a support team on various other franchises, such as Guitar Hero, Skylanders, Call of Duty, etc. Vicarious Visions is now, officially, a subsidiary of Blizzard Entertainment and has had their name changed to Blizzard Albany.

Vivendi Universal purchases Radical Entertainment, best known for developing The Simpsons: Hit & Run. In a related story, the San Diego based developer Sammy Studios breaks away from their parent company, Sega, and rename themselves High Moon. The company is later purchased by Vivendi Universal in 2006, just before they merge with Activision in 2007. I guess we’ll talk more about all of this in the next couple of years. The Australian developer Pandemic merges with BioWare in 2005. Four years later, and two years after BioWare is purchased by EA, the Pandemic studio is shut down.

British developer Creative Assembly, creators of the Total War franchise, are purchased by Sega, I guess they have some extra dough after Sammy Studios jumps ship. Square Enix continues to grow its portfolio, purchasing Taito, giving them ownership of decades of arcade classics, including all-time greats like Space Invaders and Bubble Bobble. Namco merges with Bandai in 2005, forming Bandai Namco Holdings. This makes them the third largest video game company in Japan.

After EA signed their exclusive deal with the NFL in 2004, which effectively killed Take-Two’s NFL 2K series, Take-Two signs an exclusive deal with Major League Baseball, killing EA’s MVP Baseball series. The deal, however, only gives Take-Two “third-party” rights, which allows major first party developers, i.e., Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, to make their own MLB licensed games (which is why MLB: The Show was allowed to exist). The partnership is not fruitful, however, with the MLB 2K series failing to bring in the kind of revenue that Take-Two was expecting. The publisher lets the exclusive deal expire in 2014, with MLB 2K13 being the last entry in the series.

Take-Two isn’t done, though, purchasing Visual Concepts after working with the company on several of the 2K sports titles. Take-Two doesn’t change much here, they still continue to use Visual Concepts as their sports studio, where they make (or made) games in the following franchises: MLB 2K, NHL 2K, NBA 2K, College Hoops 2K, and, in the future, WWE 2K. Oh, and just to make things nice and round, Take-Two also acquires Firaxis, creators of the Civilization and X-COM franchises.

Perhaps the biggest business news in 2005, though, is the launch of YouTube. While not necessarily made with video game content in mind, the platform nonetheless attracts many content creators who have a passion for video games. Some of the first video game related channels and programming to gain large followings include James Rolfe/The Angry Video Game Nerd, Rooster Teeth, Mega64, and Brentalfloss. Today, it is almost impossible to think of YouTube existing without video game content, the platform and the hobby seem to go hand in hand.

When it came time to bestow the various awards for game of the year, the Spike VGA’s crowned Resident Evil 4, the Golden Joystick Awards crowned Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the DICE Awards crowned God of War, and the GDC Awards crowned Shadow of the Colossus. IN terms of sales, Madden NFL 06 was the best-selling video game in the U.S., followed by Nintendogs, Pokémon Emerald, Star Wars: Battlefront II, Gran Turismo 4, NCAA Football 06, MVP Baseball 2005, World of Warcraft, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and NBA Live 06.

Top games of 2005:

• Advance Wars: Dual Strike
• Advent Rising
• Animal Crossing: Wild World
• Area 51 (remake)
• Battalion Wars
• Battlefield 2
• Black & White 2

• Call of Duty 2
• Castlevania: Curse of Darkness
• Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
• Civilization IV
• Condemned: Criminal Origins
• Conker: Live & Reloaded
• Darkwatch
• DK King of Swing

• Destroy All Humans!
• Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
• Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
• Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade!
• Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil
• Dragon Quest VIII
• Dungeon Siege II

• Dynasty Warriors 5
• F.E.A.R.
• Fatal Frame III: The Tormented
• Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
• Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
• FlatOut
• Forza Motorsport

• Geist
• Genji: Dawn of the Samurai
• The Getaway: Black Monday
• God of War
• Gran Turismo 4
• Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PC version)

• Guild Wars
• Guitar Hero
• Indigo Prophecy
• Jade Empire
• Kameo: Elements of Power
• killer7
• Kirby: Canvas Curse

• The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
• Lego Star Wars: The Video Game
• Lost in Blue
• Lumines
• Lunar: Dragon Song
• Maple Story
• Mario Kart DS

• Mario Party 7
• Mario Party Advance
• Mario Superstar Baseball
• Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time
• Medal of Honor: European Assault
• Metal Gear Acid
• Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition

• Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks
• Nintendogs
• Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath
• Perfect Dark Zero
• Phantom Dust
• Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
• Playboy: The Mansion

• Pokémon Dash
• Pokémon Emerald
• Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
• Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones
• Psychonauts
• Quake 4
• Rainbow Six: Lockdown

• Ratchet: Deadlocked
• Resident Evil 4
• Rise of the Kasai
• SOCOM 3
• SWAT 4
• Serious Sam 2
• Shadow of the Colossus

• Shadow the Hedgehog
• Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga
• Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
• Soul Calibur III
• Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
• Star Fox Assault
• Star Wars Battlefront 2

• Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
• Star Wars: Republic Commando
• Super Mario Strikers
• Tekken 5
• Trace Memory
• Trauma Center: Under the Knife
• WarioWare: Touched!

• WarioWare: Twisted!
• The Warriors
• We Love Katamari
• Worms 4
• Yoshi Topsy-Turvy
• Yoshi Touch & Go

2015:

The two major stories from 2015 both deal with loss. The biggest, and most tragic of the two was the death of Nintendo president, Satoru Iwata. Starting his career at HAL Laboratories in the early 1980’s, who had a very good working relationship with Nintendo, Iwata worked on several games that would become all-time classics, including Balloon Fight, Kirby’s Dream Land, EarthBound, Pokémon Stadium, and Super Smash Bros. In 2000, Iwata would leave HAL to join Nintendo as head of the company’s corporate planning division. His insight into the video game marketplace saw Nintendo’s profit’s rise from 20% to 40% and so, two years later, he was rewarded with his position as company president after the retirement of Hiroshi Yamauchi.

Under Iwata, Nintendo saw two major successes, first with the DS, which is currently the best-selling handheld console of all-time, and then with the Wii which was, during his lifetime, Nintendo’s best-selling home console. It wasn’t all roses & sunshine, however, with the 3DS failing to match the success of the DS and the Wii U being an utter and total failure, becoming the lowest selling home console in the company’s history. Nintendo’s future began to be called into question as was Iwata’s leadership, with pundits and shareholders criticizing the company president for his refusal to move Nintendo into the mobile games market. Iwata felt that the free-to-play model, which he coyly referred to as “free-to-start”, was not going to be healthy for the long-term survival of video games and would only lead to low quality titles that did not respect its customers.

However, the failure of the Wii U hung over him and, grudgingly I’m sure, Iwata began exploring mobile game design. One of the first to come from this was the company’s partnership with DeNA, a Japanese developer who specialized in mobile gaming. Their first two games for Nintendo would release in 2016, Miitomo and Super Mario Run. Behind the scenes, Iwata was also working on Nintendo’s next console, what we now know as the Switch, released two years after his death. The influence of mobile gaming, with its touch screen controls and portability, seem to be forefront on Nintendo’s mind when making the Switch, and Iwata was instrumental in the design of the device.

Going back to his tragic death, the first signs of trouble began in 2014 when, during a routine check-up, a tumor was discovered in his bile duct. Iwata would miss Nintendo’s E3 presentation that year and be out of work for four months. When the company’s next Nintendo Direct debuted in November of 2014, viewers were quick to point out Iwata’s gaunt appearance. In January of 2015, Iwata was said to have come down with a high flu and was out of the office again for an extended period of time. He would return a few weeks later, only to leave again in June of 2015 for undisclosed health reasons. Less than a month later, Iwata, maybe the most beloved business executive of all-time, was dead at the age of 55. The cancerous tumor had returned and, sadly, the complications from it took his life.

The mood at Nintendo was low in the days following Iwata’s death, with the company taking an official day of silence on July 13^th, two days after his passing. Tributes to Iwata began to pour in over social media from various video game personalities; developers, executives, journalists, pundits, players, and fans. At the 2015 Game Awards, longtime colleague and friend, Reggie Fils-Aimé would give a touching tribute to Iwata, calling him fearless and unique. Iwata was championed for his brilliant programming skills, his bold & visionary ideas, his passion for playing video games, and for the way he helped turn many non-gamers into one thanks to the mainstream success of the DS and the Wii.

While not as nearly as tragic as the death of Iwata, and I now feel a bit silly in kind of lumping them together, but here we are, the other big loss of 2015 was the firing of Hideo Kojima from Konami. As I mentioned earlier, many in the video game industry were convinced that free-to-play mobile gaming was going to be the absolute future of the industry. In the 7 or so years prior to 2015, many in the industry would constantly talk about how the single player experience was over. Video games were going online and people were just not willing to spend money on a game that they had to play by themselves. Konami were all-in on this proposition in 2015 and indicated that they were exiting the AAA gaming market. Their key focus moving forward would be on easily monetized, free-to-play mobile titles and, of course, their highly profitable pachinko machines.

In response to this new directive, Konami cancels the upcoming game Silent Hills and delists its critically acclaimed demo, PT, much to the dismay of the game’s co-directors, Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro. When doing press interviews for the upcoming Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Kojima would continually state that this was going to be the last Metal Gear game he would ever work on. Saying that he was aware he’d made this declaration before, he was adamant that he was not kidding around this time, Phantom Pain would be it.

As the 2015 release of the game got closer, Konami would publicly state that they were looking fore talent to take over the franchise and move it in their bold, new, non-single player direction (which gave us 2018’s Metal Gear Survive). As a likely sign of the bad blood brewing between Kojima and Konami, the company would remove his name from all of Phantom Pain’s marketing materials. This also extended to Kojima’s personal life, as the company forbid him from attending the 2015 Game Awards, where Phantom Pain was nominated in several categories.

When Phantom Pain won the award for Best Action-Adventure Game, the game’s lead actor, Keifer Sutherland, accepted the award on Kojima’s behalf. Following that, host Geoff Keighly, a close, personal friend of Kojima’s, addresses the controversy of Konami’s decision, with the company being loudly booed by the crowd in attendance. To honor Kojima and The Phantom Pain, actress Stefanie Joosten, who plays the role of Quiet in MGS V, performs the character’s theme song. Shortly after the awards ceremony, Kojima is officially released from his contract with Konami and he founds his own independent studio, Kojima Productions. In January of 2016, Kojima announces that the studio will be making a new game for Sony, what would eventually become 2019’s Death Stranding.

In business news, China lifts its longtime ban on video game consoles after testing the concept in the late months of 2014. The first console allowed in the country in the Xbox One, followed by the PlayStation 4 and, in 2017, the Nintendo Switch. While the consoles are allowed, they must be distributed with the support of a Chinese company, such as Tencent. Further, all consoles and games must adhere to strict guidelines set by the Chinese government and are heavily censored. As such, many dedicated players continue to purchase their consoles on the “gray market”, such as those released in Hong Kong, in order to bypass the regulations. Still, it is a win for the industry, as the new market helps bring overall revenue on video games to $23.5 billion, more than double what it was ten years earlier.

After years as a software developer and digital marketplace company, Valve enters the hardware business in 2015. These include the Steam Controller, which can be customized for use in just about any game available on Steam, the Steam Link, a small device that allows you to stream our PC games onto your television or a monitor separate from your PC, and the Steam Machine, a group of dedicated PCs that are, in essence, PC/console hybrids that you can use to play select games from your Steam library on your television. Unfortunately, each of these devices fail to make much of an impact in the marketplace, with all of them discontinued over the next few years. Valve does, however, find later success with their handheld device, the Steam Deck, and are currently gearing up for another wave of hardware in 2026. Second time’s the charm, maybe?

In closures, EA shuts down the headquarters of Maxis following the disastrous launch of 2013’s SimCity. While Maxis as a brand name will continue to exist, by shutting down their longtime headquarters, the company is effectively toast. Take-Two (remember them) shuts down 2K Australia. They spent the majority of their life span as a support team for Irrational Games before co-developing Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel with Gearbox. This marks a dark day in the Australian video game industry, as 2K Australia was the only remaining AAA studio in the country, leaving only a handful of indie developers there. One of them, Team Cherry, is poised to make a big splash in the next two years with their title, Hollow Knight.

In deals and acquisitions, Sony releases SOE and they go independent. SOE (Sony Online Entertainment) is responsible for the wildly successful MMO Everquest, which they will continue to support under their new name, Daybreak Entertainment. Alongside that, they will also continue to support DC Universe Oniline, Planetside, and several other MMOs in their portfolio. With the push towards free-to-play mobile gaming, Sega acquires Demiurge Studios, who will eventually make two titles for the company, Crazy Taxi Gazillionaire and Sega Heroes, before they are sold off in 2020. Activision Blizzard, however, make the largest move in the mobile game market, acquiring the Swedish developer King, makers of the highly popular Candy Crush Saga.

While we might scoff at all of these companies pivoting to mobile gaming, we can’t not ignore the fact that of the ten highest grossing games of 2015, seven of them are free-to-play titles (League of Legends, Monster Strike, Clash of Clans, Puzzle & Dragons, Crossfire, Dungeon Fighter: Online, and Game of War: Fire Age)and one is a subscription based MMO (World of Warcraft). These titles, combined, account for $9.5 billion dollars in revenue, out of the entire $23.5 billion the industry made in 2015. The only “buy-to-play” games in the top 10 are Call of Duty: Black Ops III and Fallout 4, which only make $1.75 billion.

Black Ops III is also the best selling video game of the year, both worldwide and in the U.S., with the rest of the top 10 games in the U.S. being Madden NFL 16, Fallout 4, Star Wars Battlefront, Grand Theft Auto V, NBA 2K16, Minecraft, FIFA 16, Mortal Kombat X, and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.

At the 2015 Game Awards, The Witcher 3 takes home the top prize, while the DICE Awards name Fallout 4 as their Game of the Year. At the Golden Joystick Awards, this time hosted by comedian Danny Wallace, the Critics Choice goes to MGS V: The Phantom Pain, Best Nintendo Game goes to Splatoon, Best PlayStation Game goes to Bloodborne, Best Xbox Game goes to Ori and the Blind Forest, Best PC Games goes to Grand Theft Auto V, and Best Handheld/Mobile Game goes to Fallout Shelter.

Fuck, I should have just posted this Todd & Aaron video instead of writing all that shit above. I fucked, up, fuck:

Top games of 2015:

• Angry Birds 2
• Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival
• Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer
• Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China
• Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Battlefield Hardline

• Bloodborne
• Broken Age: Act 2
• Call of Duty: Black Ops III
• Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash
• Cities: Skylines
• Citizens of Earth
• Code Name: S.T.E.A.M.

• Crypt of the Necrodancer
• Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
• Dead of Alive 5: Last Round
• Devil’s Third
• Disgaea 5
• Dying Light
• Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture

• Evolve
• Fallout Shelter
• Falout 4
• Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water
• Five Nights at Freddy’s 3
• Five Nights at Freddy’s 4
• Forza Motorsport 6

• Grand Theft Auto V (PC)
• Guitar Hero Live
• Halo 5
• Halo: Spartan Strike
• Helldivers
• Her Story
• Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number

• I Am Bread
• The Jackbox Party Pack 2
• Just Cause 3
• Kerbal Space Program
• King’s Quest
• Lara Croft: Go
• Lara Croft: Relic Run

• The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel
• The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D
• The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes
• Lego Dimensions
• Lego Jurassic World
• Life is Strange
• Magicka 2

• Mario Party 10
• Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash
• Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
• Massive Chalice
• Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
• Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate
• Mortal Kombat X

• OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood
• The Order: 1886
• Ori and the Blind Forest
• Pillars of Eternity
• Pokémon Shuffle
• Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon

• Project CARS
• Puzzle & Dragons Z + Super Mario Bros. Edition
• Rainbow Six Siege
• Rare Replay
• Resident Evil Revelations 2
• Rise of the Tomb Raider

• Rock Band 4
• Rocket League
• Shadowrun: Hong Kong
• Soma
• Splatoon
• Star Wars: Battlefront

• Tales of Zestiria
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5
• Total War: Atilla
• Trine 3
• Undertale
• Until Dawn

• Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide
• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
• Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
• Xenoblade Chronicles X
• Yakuza 5
• Yoshi’s Wooly World

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That’s going to do it folks! I had a ton of fun reading up on video game history as I did the research for this article, it was wonderful taking a trip down memory lane. I hope you stay safe this holiday season; don’t drink & drive, try and get some rest, and be sure to hug your loved ones. Thanks for reading, everyone! Don’t forget, next week, we’re talking about the upcoming 2026 releases.

Finally, before you go, please take a moment to enjoy the official New Game Releases holiday song: