With less than a month to go before the shops close for Christmas Day, the race to see which game will sell more than any of its rivals is about to intensify. In the mad rush for Christmas presents, shoppers who have a friend or relative who is passionate about gaming will probably go for one of the more popular titles, possibly ones which have been the subject of immense amounts of hype.
Regardless of whether they’re being sold online, out-of-town retail parks or on the high street, all sales count, but it looks like being one of three titles that’s likely to be the Christmas bestseller. All three have something in common – they’re all part of long-running and phenomenally successful franchises which have become all-time classics.
Gunning for top spot
The most likely winner of the race is Call of Duty: Ghosts. The latest part of the series focuses on a group of Special Ops stationed in the US who try to fight off invasion from a superpower in Latin America bankrolled by oil money. The new superpower has already invaded parts of Central America and the Caribbean islands and is advancing northwards towards the US/Mexican border.
This new game is likely to be at or near the top of the charts due to its rather convenient release date. Coinciding with the release of the Xbox One and PS4, Ghosts was likely to be one of the games bought alongside one of the consoles. At the moment, Call of Duty looks set to beat its rivals with odds of 1/5 according to Ladbrokes.
Kicking away
As the main rival to the new Call of Duty game, FIFA 14 is another title expected to perform well, especially given that two of its new features have the new consoles in mind. One feature includes players having human intelligence and varying levels of awareness, while another takes into account the level of noise from the crowd and on-field weather such as rain.
Grand Theft Auto V is the other contender, although it’s been out since September and was initially released as the final GTA game for the PS3 and Xbox 360. The storyline is as complex and engrossing as ever for this game, but the fact that it’s been on sale for longer than both Call of Duty: Ghosts and FIFA 14 will undermine its chances of being Christmas number one.