A little less than a decade ago, a sandbox game created by a single developer in the Javascript language would be launched. The game was simple enough: players would mine to craft and craft to mine. The world, completely composed of square and rectangle objects, is customizable in a way that is only limited to a player’s imagination. This freedom and ability to create and customize a world with friends quickly led to an explosion in popularity for this multiplayer sandbox, and it wasn’t long before Minecraft had become a household name and the best-selling game of all time.
Fast forward two years and another soon-to-be hit would be released: Grand Theft Auto 5 was and is the latest entry into the massively popular Grand Theft Auto franchise. Unlike past entries, players would play the game’s story from one of three unique perspectives, with a freedom to switch characters at will. While there was plenty of great story and mini-game content in Grand Theft Auto 5, the draw that has consistently kept players coming back comes from Grand Theft Auto Online, a version of the game world where players can interact with each other and their friends as they complete objectives and rise to the top of a criminal empire. Now, Grand Theft Auto 5 is attempting a rush on Minecraft‘s top spot.
In the last year, Grand Theft Auto 5 sold 20 million units, the best the game has done since its initial release in 2013. This brings the game’s total to 140 million units sold, according to numbers released in Take-Two’s earnings reports. Minecraft currently holds 200 million units as the record, putting it roughly 60 million units ahead of Grand Theft Auto 5. That is three times higher than their entire sales of 2020, something that was already considered a surprise feat.
While fans are optimistic that Grand Theft Auto 5’s lifetime sales could beat the record held by everyone’s favorite crafting game, 60 million is a big number and this is all just speculation. After all, the game only sold 20 million copies in its second-best year of 2020, and it had the help of a global pandemic that forced everyone indoors. Plus, it had a short stint as a free game on the Epic Games Store right in the middle of quarantine. That doesn’t mean it can’t be done though.
It would be interesting to see Grand Theft Auto 5 overtake Minecraft, as hefty of a goal as it may seem at this point. One thing that should be noted is that GTA 5 is the most profitable entertainment product of all time, even if it’s still not the most sold video game. It’s an interesting paradox that adds a competitive edge to the gaming industry, and it all goes to show really how complicated all of it could be. For some creators, this spells hope.
Game creators are pushed to create innovative mechanics as they try to be the next best-selling game across the world. With next-gen versions of the game upcoming and Grand Theft Auto 5 Online‘s love for DLC, players could very well see Grand Theft Auto 5 surpass Minecraft‘s record one day. At the same time, with the growth of the industry going ever forward, GTA 5 itself would then likely be eclipsed some day as well. Whichever game wears the crown will not likely hold it forever.
There are good points on either side of this question. If Grand Theft Auto 5 wants to reach that record, then Rockstar needs to reinvigorate support for this past entry before the next one comes out. The release of Grand Theft Auto 6 would likely draw back the momentum needed to reach such a goal, and that puts this ambition (for lack of a better term) on a timeline. Even still, Grand Theft Auto Online has found a way to keep players coming back with each new update. It is likely that it could surpass Minecraft‘s record in the next few years, if the ambition is there, and other factors like Minecraft‘s own sales don’t dwarf it.
Grand Theft Auto 5 is out now.
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