Skip to main content

Long read: How TikTok's most intriguing geolocator makes a story out of a game

Where in the world is Josemonkey?

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

The most popular games on Xbox Live in 2012 were...

Ryan Gosling! No, hold on.

Robert Purchese avatar
News by Robert Purchese Associate Editor
Updated on
47 comments

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 were more popular on Xbox Live in 2012 than Halo 4.

That's according to average unique users per day connected to Xbox Live while playing the games - a handy metric if ever I saw one. Four of the top 10 games were Call of Duty titles, two were FIFA, two Halo and the others Minecraft XBLA (fourth) and Battlefield 3 (eighth). Borderlands 2 and Assassin's Creed 3 were 11th and 12th, respectively, and Far Cry 3 was 18th.

"Me?"

Xbox Live's Major "Larry Hryb" Nelson compiled the list. He also shared the 20 highest selling Xbox Live Arcade games of 2012; the 20 highest selling Xbox Live Indie games of 2012. The full lists are below.

Minecraft XBLA did phenomenally well. We already know it shifted an incredible 5,002,370 copies in 2012, making it the highest selling XBLA game ever, and so it was that Minecraft XBLA rightly sat the XBLA 2012 chart throne.

Below was other XBLA record breaker Trials Evolution. Below that, the acclaimed Walking Dead series by Telltale (the entire series has done some 8.5 million sales across all platforms).

Surprisingly, it was Pinball FX2 in fourth ahead of Counter-Strike: GO in fifth. Ubisoft's high profile I Am Alive managed eighth.

Eurogamer's Game of the Year 2012, Fez, was 13th.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD was the only Summer of Arcade 2012 game to make the list in 10th. Alan Wake's American Nightmare finished 15th.

In Indie Games land it was mostly Minecraft clones doing the business. CastleMiner Z was top, CastleMiner second, Total Miner: Forge third, FortressCraft Chapter 1 fifth, Murder Miners sixth. Avatar Deathmatch managed to interfere in fourth.

Major Nelson also shared the most popular Games for Windows - Live snore no sorry can't be bothered.

Xbox 360 Top LIVE Titles (based on average UU's per day)

  1. Call of Duty: Black Ops II
  2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
  3. Halo 4
  4. Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition
  5. Call of Duty: Black Ops
  6. FIFA Soccer 13
  7. FIFA Soccer 12
  8. Battlefield 3
  9. Halo: Reach
  10. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
  11. Borderlands 2
  12. Assassin's Creed III
  13. Skyrim
  14. Madden NFL 13
  15. Gears of War 3
  16. NBA 2K13
  17. NBA 2K12
  18. Far Cry 3
  19. Grand Theft Auto IV
  20. Forza Motorsport 4

Top Arcade Titles (Full Versions purchased)

  1. Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition
  2. Trials Evolution
  3. The Walking Dead
  4. Pinball FX2
  5. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
  6. Castle Crashers
  7. Gotham City Impostors
  8. I Am Alive
  9. Fruit Ninja Kinect
  10. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD
  11. Trials HD
  12. Magic 2013
  13. Fez
  14. Dungeon Defenders
  15. Alan Wake's American Nightmare
  16. Peggle
  17. The Simpsons Arcade Game
  18. REAL STEEL
  19. Toy Soldiers: Cold War
  20. Full House Poker

Top Indie Games (Full Versions purchased)

  1. CastleMiner Z
  2. CastleMiner
  3. Total Miner: Forge
  4. Avatar Deathmatch
  5. FortressCraft Chapter 1
  6. Murder Miners
  7. The Impossible Game
  8. Avatar Laser Wars 2
  9. The $1 Zombie Game
  10. Avatar Paintball
  11. Avatar Legends
  12. Fortress Wars
  13. Miner Of Duty
  14. Miner4Ever
  15. Avatar Laser Wars
  16. End Of Days: Infected vs Mercs
  17. Toy Stunt Bike 2
  18. Flight Adventure 2
  19. Don't Die Dateless, Dummy!
  20. Block World

Read this next