Sequels dominate 2008 global sales charts

The age old struggle of the new IP in the games market has been highlighted once again with news that only one original title has been able to make it into the 2008 global top eight sellers list.

The stats, which come from US financial site MoneyMorning, claim that Activision-Blizzard’s Call of Duty 4 has been the top selling game worldwide so far this year, with sales of ten million.

Behind it are Microsoft’s Halo 3 (eight million), Grand Theft Auto IV (6.5 million), Mario Kart Wii (6.5 million) and Super Mario Galaxy (six million).

The only new IP to trouble the listings is Nintendo’s Wii Fit, which claims seventh place with sales of five million.

Elsewhere in the piece, MoneyMorning predicts that gaming will successfully buck the credit crunch and succeed in bettering the 2007 industry global value of $41.9 billion (which itself is double the 2002 market value of $20.1 billion). Indeed, the same estimates that by 2012 the global games industry will be worth $68.3 billion