GTA 5 Dominates European Sales Charts in August

Key Highlights:

• GTA 5 tops European sales chart in August 2024.
• Star Wars Outlaws debuts at No.2, underperforming expectations.
• Console sales down 42% year-over-year, PS5 leads the market.

In a testament to its enduring popularity, Rockstar’s open-world crime epic Grand Theft Auto 5 has once again claimed the top spot on European sales charts, a remarkable 11 years after its initial release.

This achievement underscores the game’s lasting appeal and Rockstar’s ability to maintain player engagement over an extended period.

According to data from GamesIndustry.biz, GTA 5 outperformed several newer titles in August, including Ubisoft’s highly anticipated Star Wars Outlaws, which debuted at No.2.

This impressive showing comes as GTA V approaches its 11th anniversary, having sold over 200 million copies since its 2013 launch, second only to Minecraft in all-time video game sales.

As a point of comparison, Minecraft leads with over 238 million copies sold across all platforms, while GTA 5 continues to narrow the gap by capitalising on sales promotions, remastered versions, and a robust online ecosystem.

The game’s continued success can be attributed to its robust single-player campaign, featuring the intertwining stories of Michael, Franklin, and Trevor, as well as the ever-evolving GTA Online mode. The latter has become a cornerstone of modern online gaming, boasting popular servers and a thriving role-playing community.

In fact, GTA Online’s role-playing (RP) community is now considered one of the most dynamic within the genre, spawning entire subcultures around custom-built servers.

Some of the most popular GTA Online RP servers, such as NoPixel, have amassed millions of views across platforms like Twitch and YouTube, further fuelling the game’s ongoing success.

While GTA 5 celebrates its triumph, Star Wars Outlaws faced a more challenging reception.

Ubisoft recently confirmed that the open-world Star Wars game has underperformed, with first-week sales in Europe reportedly less than half those of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, released in April 2023.

The Official European software sales chart (August)

The European software sales chart for August presents an interesting mix of old and new titles:

1. Grand Theft Auto 5 (Rockstar)
2. Star Wars Outlaws (Ubisoft)
3. Hogwarts Legacy (Warner Bros)
4. Kingdom Come: Deliverance (Deep Silver)
5. EA Sports FC 24 (EA)
6. Borderlands 3 (2K Games)
7. Red Dead Redemption 2 (Rockstar)
8. Grand Theft Auto Online (Rockstar)
9. Titanfall 2 (EA)
10. It Takes Two (EA)

It’s worth noting that digital sales data for Black Myth: Wukong, another significant August release, was not available. The physical version of the game charted at No.68 in Europe.

Interestingly, older titles like Titanfall 2 have experienced a resurgence in popularity due to dedicated fan-driven events and online servers that have breathed new life into the game.

These types of revitalisation efforts are becoming more common for legacy titles that maintain niche but passionate communities.

In terms of hardware, the European console market saw total sales of 300,000 units in August. While this represents a 42% year-over-year decline, it marks a 12% increase from July.

The PlayStation 5 emerged as the best-selling platform, with the Nintendo Switch securing second place.

PS5’s dominance in the hardware market can be partly attributed to supply chain improvements, with Sony overcoming earlier production shortages and meeting growing demand in regions such as Europe and North America.

Additionally, major game releases like Final Fantasy XVI and the hugely successful Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 have served as key drivers for PS5 sales.

As Rockstar continues to captivate players with GTA 5, anticipation builds for the next instalment in the franchise. The developer has confirmed a Fall 2025 release target for the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto 6, following the game’s first trailer reveal in December.

Given the enduring popularity of its predecessor, many industry observers speculate that GTA 6 is poised to break records upon release.