3. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
The Assassin’s Creed series is one of the runaway success stories of this generation. Here we have an entirely new IP with a relatively non mainstream concept, and one that tries new things with its mechanics and its storytelling an characterization, and we have a series of games that absolutely dominate retail with every single release. Starting with the release of the second game in the franchise (which, incidentally, has often been called one of the most improved sequels of all time, and certainly one of this generation’s best games), the series has become an annual recurrence at the marketplace, releasing in the last quarter every year.
This year’s release, Revelations, plans on finishing the Ezio story arc that began in the superb Assassin’s Creed II and was continued in last year’s unremarkable though still excellent Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. The trailers are great, the marketing seems to be spot on, and if this game is everything that Ubisoft is hyping it up to be, then we may just have another great critical and commercial hit on our hands.
To us as gamers, the Assassin’s Creed games represent that rare spark of creativity that gets its time under the sun. Watch the new game sell immensely, and watch no one complain about it for a change.
2. Mario Kart 7 (3DS)
No one, just no one, can deny the sheer selling power of Mario Kart. Starting with Mario Kart DS, the series has become a regular mainstay in all retail charts, with the DS installment still being seen in the monthly NPD sales charts every now and then, and the Wii game becoming the highest selling non bundled game of all time. A single Mario Kart game sells more than entire series– in fact, Mario Kart Wii alone outsold the entire Assassin’s Creed franchise.
With such incredible power at retail, there can obviously be very little doubt that the newest Mario Kart game, the rather unimaginatively titled Mario Kart 7, will absolutely explode at retail. Before today’s price cut, I would have gone on to say that it would single handedly revive the flagging fortunes of the ailing 3DS (although that seems unnecessary now). Right now, I will say that Mario Kart 7 will sell incredibly, and in the footsteps of its two predecessors. In fact, it would have been listed as the #1 selling title in this list if it hadn’t been releasing in December, which means it’ll have a month less to move units.
That won’t matter much to it. It’ll still sell by the bucketloads, and if it’s beaten at all, it’ll only be very narrowly.
