GTA V tops GameStop customers’ Christmas wish lists

A survey of GameStop PowerUp Rewards members in the US has found that Grand Theft Auto V features on more Christmas lists this year than any other game.

Rockstar’s next-gen re-release featured on 34 per cent of wish lists (for either giving or receiving) compared to Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s 33 per cent.

When it comes to buying games for kids, LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham was top (24%) followed by Super Smash Bros (23%) and Minecraft (20%).

Respondents were also more likely to buy a pre-owned Xbox One than PS4 (36% versus 35%) while 25 per cent said they planned to trade in old hardware against new purchases.

Perhaps unsurprisingly the survey also found that games in general were the most popular Christmas purchase items, featuring on 73 per cent of people’s shopping lists followed by cash or gift cards (56%), clothes (48%) and toys (30%).

Although gaming is popular throughout the year, the holidays seem to get people even more excited to share the joy and start playing,” GameStop’s chief marketing officer Frank Hamlin said.

From the latest consoles to handhelds and the abundance of new titles, there is a perfect gift for gamers of all ages. Based on the holiday data, video games are looking like sure fire gift options for 2014.”