'Gears of War' A Success for Xbox 360
Epic Games' Gears of War is the fastest selling next-generation game of the year, and the fastest selling exclusive for the Xbox platform ever, Microsoft said Friday. In addition, the game was the best selling title during the month of November, according to NPG Group.
The first-person shooting game beat out Sony's highly-anticipated PlayStation 2 title Final Fantasy XII, released October 31, and the Wii's Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the top spot in November. No game for the PlayStation 3 was in the top ten.
According to NPD, the game sold one million copies during the month, raking in sales of $61.5 million. Sources within Microsoft told BetaNews previously that there is some anecdotal evidence of the title actually helping to boost console sales.
Some 80 publications worldwide have already tapped GoW as "Game of the Year." At the Spike TV Video Game Awards, the title won four awards, , for Best Multiplayer Game, Best Shooter, Studio of the Year (for Epic Games) and Best Graphics.
It lost out to Elder Scrolls: Oblivion for Game of the Year bragging rights, however.
Microsoft says that in the first six weeks of release, nearly two million copies have been sold, including one million in the US alone, and it has become the number one played game on Xbox Live. It has also been credited with a 50 percent surge in paid registrations to the online service, the company said.
"We've always held high hopes for 'Gears of War,' but we never expected such an overwhelmingly positive response from critics and gamers all over the world," said Michael Capps, president, Epic Games. "I can't describe how stoked our team is right now. Our fans can absolutely count on Epic to keep delivering new gameplay through Xbox Live."