‘FIFA 17’, ‘Battlefield 1’ and ‘Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End’ were the most successful PC and console games of 2016

• BIU presents three special awards to ‘FIFA 17’, ‘Battlefield 1’ and ‘Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End’ as the most successful games in Germany
• The majority of awards were presented in November
• Multiplayer and open-world games were particularly popular in 2016
 
Berlin, 24 January 2017 – ‘FIFA 17’, ‘Battlefield 1’ and ‘Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End’ were the most successful games published in Germany in 2016.
 
[quotation cite=”Felix Falk, Managing Director of the BIU”]‘When we look at the bestselling games, it becomes clear that multiplayer and open-world games were particularly popular among gamers.’[/quotation]Over the course of last year, each of the three titles won a special award from the BIU for selling more than 500,000 units on a single platform. ‘FIFA 17’ and ‘Battlefield 1’ also received the BIU Multiplatform Award for selling more than 500,000 units on multiple platforms. ‘FIFA 17’ even surpassed the threshold of one million. The BIU also presented its 2016 Multiplatform Award for more than 500,000 units sold on different platforms to the games ‘Star Wars: Battlefront’, ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops III’ and ‘FIFA 16’, which were released in 2015. A look at the 20 most successful PC and console games in Germany in 2016 also shows that titles with a comprehensive multiplayer mode or an open game world were particularly popular.
‘2016 was an especially exciting year for all gamers: A number of sequels to blockbuster game series were released, including the new ‘Doom’ and ‘Final Fantasy’ titles, and games like ‘Overwatch’ and ‘Tom Clancy’s: The Division’ even created whole new brands,’ says BIU Managing Director Felix Falk, summarising the year’s charts. ‘When we look at the bestselling games, it becomes clear that multiplayer and open-world games were particularly popular among gamers. These games give players the unique opportunity to play with and against each other and to move freely through open worlds, creating their own special story.’

Multiplayer games are very popular among German internet users

Looking at an earlier survey shows just how important multiplayer modes are to gamers in Germany: More than 18 million Germans (27 per cent of internet users aged 16 and older) use the multiplayer mode in games, as the BIU announced in mid-January based on data collected by YouGov. According to this information, approximately 8.4 million German internet users (12 per cent) prefer to play games with or against others on the internet. 4.7 million German internet users (7 per cent), on the other hand, enjoy digitally competing against their friends and family in the same room. 4.9 million German internet users (7 per cent) are equally fond of both: playing with or competing against friends and family in the same room and online. The players use PCs and stationary and portable consoles, tablets, and smartphones for their multiplayer games. In total, approximately one fifth of German internet users (21 per cent or 14 million people) spend up to 50 per cent of their total playing time on multiplayer games.
 
The data on the usage of multiplayer games and e-sports was collected by YouGov Deutschland GmbH. 2,023 people participated in the survey, which was conducted between 11 July 2016 and 13 July 2016. The results were weighted and are representative of the German population aged 16 and older. All projections were made by the BIU based on the survey data.

Information on the comparison of years for the BIU Sales Award

Since 2008, the BIU has presented the BIU Sales Award to PC and console games that sell particularly well. At the beginning of each month, market research institute GfK Entertainment informs the BIU of the sales figures for the bestselling digital games in Germany. The sales volumes indicated include platform-specific projection factors that cover the entire market and take digital sales into account. The BIU is responsible for defining these factors in cooperation with GfK Entertainment.

About the BIU

The BIU, the German Games Industry Association, is the association of the German computer and video games industry. Its 26 members are developers, publishers and suppliers of digital games. Together, they represent over 85 per cent of the German market. The BIU is, for example, the organiser of gamescom. As an expert partner for media and for political and social institutions, the BIU answers all questions on the topic of digital games.

Press contact:

Martin Puppe
BIU – Bundesverband Interaktive Unterhaltungssoftware e. V.
Charlottenstraße 62
10117 Berlin
Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)30 2408779-20
Fax: +49 (0)30 2408779-11
Email: puppe@biu-online.de
game.de
Twitter: @game_eV
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