After a year of beta testing – everything has a beta nowadays – UK trade association UKIE have today launched their PC download chart, reportedly the first of its kind in the world. BioShock Infinite claimed the prize of first-ever number one for March in the digital-only rankings – but was bested by SimCity in a hybrid chart that combines boxed and digital sales.
The chart also reveals that even outside of brick-and-mortar retail, The Sims 3 is king of the expansion market. Which game are you most surprised to see lurking among the big sellers below?
March 2013: PC boxed & digital game sales combined (Units)
- SimCity (Electronic Arts)
- BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
- The Sims 3: University Life (Electronic Arts)
- StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm (Activision Blizzard)
- Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
- Football Manager 2013 (Sega)
- Battlefield 3 (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
- Just Cause 2 (Square Enix)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
March 2013: PC digital game sales (Units)
- BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
- SimCity (Electronic Arts)
- Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
- Battlefield 3 (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3: University Life (Electronic Arts)
- Just Cause 2 (Square Enix)
- Hitman Absolution (Square Enix)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Football Manager 2013 (Sega)
- Trials Evolution Gold (Ubisoft)
March 2013: PC boxed sales (Units)
- SimCity (Electronic Arts)
- StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm (Activision Blizzard)
- The Sims 3: University Life (Electronic Arts)
- Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
- Football Manager 2013 (Sega)
- The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
- BioShock Infinite (Take 2)
- The Sims 3: Seasons (Electronic Arts)
- Guild Wars 2 (NCsoft Europe)
- Crysis 3 (Electronic Arts)
March 2013: PC digital full game sales (revenue)
- SimCity (Electronic Arts)
- BioShock Infinite (2K Games)
- Tomb Raider (Square Enix)
- Battlefield 3 (Electronic Arts)
- Football Manager 2013 (Sega)
- Far Cry 3 (Ubisoft)
- Crysis 3 (Electronic Arts)
- Tomb Raider Survival Edition (Square Enix)
- Assassin’s Creed 3 (Ubisoft)
- Guild Wars 2 (NCsoft Europe)
March 2013: PC digital expansion game sales (revenue)
- The Sims 3: University Life (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3: Seasons (Electronic Arts)
- Anno 2070 – Deep Ocean (Ubisoft)
- The Sims 3: Ambitions (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3: 70′s, 80s & 90s Stuff (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3: Generations (Electronic Arts)
- The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
- Anno 2070 DLC Complete Pack (Ubisoft)
- Sleeping Dogs – DLC Collection (Square-Enix)
- Total War: Shogun 2 – Rise of the Samurai Campaign (Sega)
The new chart isn’t perfect. It requires publishers to sign up to the system and willingly surrender their sales numbers. One notable absentee from the current chart is Activision Blizzard, which explains why both Black Ops 2 and Heart of the Swarm are missing from the above digital lists.
UKIE hope that Activision and their ilk will be swayed in the near future, however. CEO Jo Twist told MCV: “Companies that are involved are already getting a competitive advantage, using the data to make informed and fact based commercial decisions.”
Thanks, VG247.