Sony recently revealed its most downloaded PS5 games of 2024, and to no one’s surprise, a number of live service games made it to the list. This choice, while stirring up some debate among PlayStation aficionados, seems to highlight why Sony is heavily investing in live service models. Supporting this trend, industry analyst Mat Piscatella unveiled the best-selling games across all platforms in 2024, lending even more credibility to Sony’s strategy.
In a post on Bluesky, Piscatella showcased the top 20 games in the U.S. based on dollar sales for 2024. The ranking includes both physical and digital sales across platforms like Nintendo eShop, PlayStation, Steam, and Xbox from December 30, 2023, to January 4, 2025. Here’s the rundown:
1. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
2. EA Sports College Football 25
3. Helldivers 2
4. Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
5. NBA 2K25
6. Madden NFL 25
7. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
8. EA Sports FC 25
9. Elden Ring
10. EA Sports MVP Bundle
11. Hogwarts Legacy
12. Dragon’s Dogma 2
13. WWE 2K24
14. MLB: The Show 24
15. Grand Theft Auto 5
16. Minecraft
17. Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth
18. Tekken 8
19. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
20. NBA 2K24
For those who track gaming stats, you’ll notice the regular players have continued their streak. Franchises like Call of Duty, NBA 2K, Grand Theft Auto, and EA Sports FC (formerly FIFA) are undoubtedly in their usual spots in the top 20. However, the appearance of the PlayStation live service title Helldivers 2 is quite unexpected. Even with Sony’s mixed results in other live service projects, Arrowhead’s latest installment came out swinging.
As a whole, this list showcases a clear trend: games with live service features are dominating. Eight out of the top nine have some form of this model integrated. It might not be the journey Sony fans initially envisioned, but the data speaks volumes about why Sony embraced the games-as-a-service route.
