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    Most Played And Popular Games In The World (2023-2024)

    Phil JamesBy Updated:17 Mins Read
    Most Played and Most Popular Games in World

    In the ever-evolving realm of video games, certain titles stand out as captivating experiences that have captured players’ imaginations worldwide. These games, with their innovative gameplay, immersive worlds, and compelling stories, have transcended the boundaries of mere entertainment, becoming cultural phenomena that have left an indelible mark on the gaming landscape.

    From the wonders of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom to the adrenaline-fueled battles of Street Fighter 6, from the haunting depths of Baldur’s Gate 3 to the exhilarating combat of Diablo IV, the gaming industry has witnessed a remarkable evolution, constantly pushing the boundaries of creativity and technology. Today, we explore the most played and most popular games in 2023-2024 and help you dive into the captivating worlds they offer.

    What is the #1 Game in the World in 2024?

    Minecraft is the best-selling video game in the world.
    Minecraft is the best-selling video game in the world. (3D rendered by LordKing | Posted by Pfable)

    Minecraft is the world’s #1 most played popular game. In October 2023, Mojang Studios could sell over 300 million game copies across all platforms, with around 60 million 0 registered players. Minecraft has a good track record with constant updates and version releases. Even YouTube celebrated its one trillion views on a Minecraft video, which shows the game’s success among the players as a whole community. You can apply many mods, texture packs, seeds, and enhancements to make your experience unique.

    Despite Over 520 Million Copies Sold, Why Does Tetris Remain Second to Minecraft?

    Minecraft was developed and published by Mojang Studios and released in 2009. It has been ported to many platforms and uses two different game engines, Lightweight Java Game Library (Java) and Render Dragon (Bedrock). Despite these differences, all versions of Minecraft are considered to be the same game, which has sold over 300 million copies.

    In contrast, over 68 officially licensed Tetris games were developed by over 40 developers and released on over 65 platforms (including iPod and other devices). There are also over 70 unofficial Tetris games, many of which are commercial versions that have been purged due to the Tetris Company’s policy of not approving unauthorized games.

    The Tetris Company is the exclusive licensee of Tetris Holding LLC, the owner of the worldwide rights to Tetris. TTC was founded in 1996 by Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov and Dutch video game designer Henk Rogers. Before this, Pajitnov did not receive royalties from Tetris.

    Tetris is the second-bestselling video game franchise worldwide, with nearly 520 million copies sold, behind the Mario franchise, which has sold 832.37 million. However, Mojang is the clear winner in single-game sales, with Minecraft (2006) having sold over 300 million copies across all platforms and still counting.

    Tetris Franchise Sold Over 520 Million Copies

    The 520 million copies sold count for Tetris comes from a combination of sources, including sales data from publishers, retailers, and industry analysts.

    Here is a breakdown of the sources for the 520 million copies sold count:

    • Physical copies: Over 70 million, including the Game Boy version’s bundled 35 million copies.
    • Mobile downloads: 425 million paid mobile downloads as of 2014.
    • Other platforms: Over 25 million copies sold, including home consoles, handheld consoles, and others.

    It is important to note that these numbers are estimates and may be inaccurate. However, they are the most reliable estimates and are generally accepted as correct.

    The Tetris franchise has sold over 520 million copies.
    GIF created by enhance-experience.com

    Here are some specific sources for the 520 million copies (and more) sold count:

    • The Tetris Company: The official website states that the game has sold over 520 million copies worldwide.
    • Electronic Arts: EA, which published EA Tetris, has stated that the game has sold over 100 million copies.
    • Nintendo: Nintendo published the NES and Game Boy versions of Tetris and stated that those versions have sold over 66 million copies.
    • Industry analysts: Industry analysts have estimated that Tetris has sold over 425 million paid mobile downloads.

    Based on these sources, it is reasonable to conclude that Tetris has sold over 520 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling video game franchises ever.

    Most Popular Games in the World By Copies Sold

    Image by Pexels from Pixabay

    This list is based on the best-selling games on all platforms, and we are trying to avoid free-to-play titles to give you an accurate count of the most sold games. This means that many popular free-to-play games, such as Pokémon Go, with over 1 billion downloads, will not be included. Other complications include Minecraft: China Edition, which is free for Chinese players. We will adjust our “sold copies” metric accordingly.

    Here are the most popular video games in the world, based on our above criteria:

    1. Minecraft – 300 million copies sold
    2. Grand Theft Auto V – 190 million copies sold
    3. Tetris (2008) – 132 million copies sold
    4. EA Tetris – 100 million copies sold
    5. Wii Sports – 82.9 million copies sold
    6. PUBG: Battlegrounds – 75 million copies sold
    7. Pokémon Red / Green / Blue / Yellow / Let’s Go Pikachu / Eevee– 74.2 million copies sold⬆️
    8. Tetris (1985) – 70 million copies sold
    9. Super Mario Bros. – 65.9 million copies sold
    10. Mario Kart 8 / Deluxe – 65.5 million copies sold⬆️
    11. Pac-Man (1980)– 64.5 million copies sold
    12. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – 60 million copies sold⬆️
    13. Red Dead Redemption 2 – 57 million copies sold⬆️
    14. Sonic the Hedgehog (1991)– 50.19 million copies sold
    15. The Witcher 3 / Hearts of Stone / Blood and Wine – 50 million copies sold⬆️
    16. Overwatch – 50 million copies sold
    17. Tetris (1989) – 48 million copies sold⬆️
    18. Wii Fit / Plus – 44.6 million copies sold
    19. Terraria – 44.5 million copies sold
    20. Animal Crossing: New Horizons – 43.4 million copies sold⬆️
    21. Pokémon Gold / Silver / Crystal / HeartGold / SoulSilver – 42.84 million copies sold
    22. Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988)– 40.82 million copies sold⬆️
    23. Pokémon Diamond / Pearl / Platinum / Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl – 40.19 million copies sold⬆️
    24. Human: Fall Flat – 40 million copies sold⬆️⬆️
    25. Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald / Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire – 37.85 million copies sold
    26. Super Mario Bros. 2 – 37.72 million copies sold
    27. Mario Kart Wii – 37.38 million copies sold
    28. The Last of Us / Remastered / Part I – 35 million copies sold
    29. Super Mario World – 34.17 million copies sold
    30. Brain Age 1 / 2 – 33.89 million copies sold
    31. Wii Sports Resort – 33.14 million copies sold
    32. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – 32.9 million copies sold⬆️
    33. Monster Hunter World – 32.7 million copies sold
    34. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – 32.4 million copies sold⬆️
    35. Super Mario 64 – 32.31 million copies sold
    36. Call of Duty: Black Ops – 31 million copies sold
    37. New Super Mario Bros. – 30.8 million copies sold
    38. New Super Mario Bros. Wii – 30.32 million copies sold
    39. Diablo III / Reaper of Souls – 30 million copies sold
    40. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – 30.97 million copies sold
    41. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) – 30 million copies sold
    42. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War – 30 million copies sold
    43. Duck Hunt – 28.31 million copies sold
    44. Wii Play – 28.02 million copies sold
    45. The Walking Dead (2012) – 28 million copies sold
    46. Grand Theft Auto IV – 28 million copies sold⬆️
    47. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – 27.5 million copies sold
    48. Call of Duty: Black Ops II – 29.6 million copies sold
    49. Call of Duty: Ghosts – 28.8 million copies sold
    50. Borderlands 2 – 27 million copies sold
    51. Super Mario Odyssey – 26.95 million copies sold⬆️
    52. Call of Duty: Black Ops III – 26.72 million copies sold
    53. FIFA 18 – 26.4 million copies sold⬆️
    54. Pokémon Sword / Shield – 26.02 Copies Sold⬆️
    55. New Super Mario Bros. U / Luigi U / Deluxe – 25.59 million copies sold⬆️
    56. Pokémon Sun / Moon / Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon – 25.51 Copies Sold
    57. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) – 25.1 million copies sold
    58. Cyberpunk 2077 – 25 million copies sold⬆️
    59. God of War (2018) – 25 million copies sold⬆️
    60. Kinect Adventures! – 24 million copies sold
    61. Nintendogs – 23.9 million copies sold
    62. Mario Kart DS – 23.6 million copies sold
    63. Red Dead Redemption – 23 million copies sold
    64. Pokémon Scarlet / Violet – 22.66 million copies sold
    65. Elden Ring – 22.65 million copies sold⬆️
    66. Final Fantasy VII / Remake – 21.99 million copies sold
    67. Super Mario Galaxy – 21.87 million copies sold
    68. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare – 21.8 million copies sold
    69. Marvel’s Spider-Man – 21.5 million copies sold⬆️
    70. Final Fantasy X / X-2 / HD / Remaster – 23.13 million copies sold
    71. Call Of Duty: WWII – 20.63 million copies sold
    72. Stardew Valley – 20 million copies sold
    73. The Sims 2 – 20 million copies sold
    74. Dark Souls III – 20 million copies sold
    75. Garry’s Mod – 20 million copies sold
    76. Frogger – 20 million copies sold
    77. Lemmings – 20 million copies sold
    78. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – 19.5 million copies sold⬆️
    79. Super Mario Land – 18.37 million copies sold
    80. Monster Hunter Rise – 18.1 million copies sold
    81. Donkey Kong – 17.77 million copies sold
    82. Call of Duty: World at War – 17.7 million copies sold
    83. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – 17.5 million copies sold
    84. Super Mario 3D World / Bowser’s Fury – 16.7 million copies sold⬆️
    85. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec – 16.5 million copies sold
    86. Pokémon X / Y – 16.68 million copies sold
    87. Gran Turismo 5 – 16.01 million copies sold
    88. Dark Souls / Remastered – 16 million copies sold
    89. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End – 16 million copies sold
    90. The Sims – 16 million copies sold
    91. Pokémon Black / White – 15.65 million copies sold
    92. Super Mario Sunshine – 15.38 million copies sold
    93. Ring Fit Adventure – 15.38 million copies sold
    94. Diablo II – 15 million copies sold
    95. The Elder Scrolls Online – 15 million copies sold
    96. Pokémon Legends: Arceus – 14.83 million copies sold
    97. Grand Theft Auto III – 14.5 million copies sold
    98. Halo 3 – 14.5 million copies sold
    99. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice – 14.1 million copies sold⬆️
    100. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time / 3D – 14.04 million copies sold
    101. Bloodborne – 14 million copies sold
    102. Splatoon 2 – 13.6 million copies sold
    103. Fallout 4 – 13.51 million copies sold
    104. New Super Mario Bros. 2 – 13.41 million copies sold
    105. Super Smash Bros. Brawl – 13.32 million copies sold
    106. Animal Crossing: New Leaf – 13.04 million copies sold
    107. Dark Souls II – 13 million copies sold
    108. Super Mario Land 3D Land – 12.86 million copies sold
    109. Luigi’s Mansion 3 – 12.82 million copies sold
    110. Super Mario All-Stars – 12.79 million copies sold
    111. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening / DX – 12.51 million copies sold
    112. Fallout 3 – 12.4 million copies sold
    113. Final Fantasy XII / Zodiac Age / Revenant Wings – 12.34 million copies sold
    114. Rust – 12 million copies sold
    115. Half-Life 2 – 12 million copies sold
    116. Final Fantasy VIII / Remastered – 11.98 million copies sold
    117. Animal Crossing: Wild World – 11.75 million copies sold
    118. Dr. Mario – 11.5 million copies sold
    119. Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins – 11.18 million copies sold
    120. StarCraft – 11M Players
    121. Fallout: New Vegas – 11M Players
    122. Splatoon 3 – 10.67 million copies sold
    123. Final Fantasy XV / (Versions Excluding F2P) – 10.5 million copies sold
    124. Persona 5 / Royal / Remaster – 10.22 million copies sold
    125. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess / HD – 10.02 million copies sold
    126. The Last of Us Part II – 10 million copies sold
    127. Dragon Ball FighterZ – 10 million copies sold
    128. Halo: Reach – 9.87 million copies sold
    129. Persona 4 / Golden – 9.84 million copies sold
    130. Halo 4 – 9.75 million copies sold
    131. Ghost of Tsushima – 9.73 million copies sold
    132. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS – 9.64 million copies sold
    133. Final Fantasy XIII / XIII-2 / Lightning Returns – 9.6 million copies sold
    134. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – 9.5 million copies sold
    135. Halo 5: Guardians – 9.5 million copies sold
    136. Monster Hunter 3 – 9.4 million copies sold
    137. Wii Party – 9.35 million copies sold
    138. Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 – 9 million copies sold
    139. Monster Hunter X / Generations – 8.9 million copies sold
    140. Final Fantasy IX / HD – 8.9 million copies sold
    141. Pokémon Black 2 / White 2 – 8.52 million copies sold
    142. Halo 2 – 8.46 million copies sold
    143. Super Mario Maker 2 – 8.42 million copies sold
    144. Monster Hunter 4 – 8.3 million copies sold
    145. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword – 7.82 million copies sold
    146. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass / Spirit Tracks – 7.72 million copies sold
    147. Super Mario Maker – 7.7 million copies sold
    148. Nier: Automata – 7.5 million copies sold
    149. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past / Four Swords – 7.43 million copies sold
    150. Super Smash Bros. Melee – 7.41 million copies sold
    151. Super Mario Galaxy 2 – 7.4 million copies sold
    152. Yo-kai Watch 2 – 7.3 million copies sold
    153. Kirby and the Forgotten Land – 6.96 million copies sold
    154. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island – 6.95 million copies sold
    155. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask / 3D – 6.82 million copies sold
    156. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker – 6.8 million copies sold
    157. Tomodachi Life – 6.72 million copies sold
    158. Monster Hunter 2 – 6.72 million copies sold
    159. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon – 6.48 million copies sold
    160. Dragon Quest III – 6.44 million copies sold
    161. Dragon Quest V – 6.41 million copies sold
    162. Halo 3: ODST – 6.35 million copies sold
    163. Space Invaders (1980) – 6.25 million copies sold
    164. Starcraft II – 6 million copies sold
    165. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot – 6 million copies sold
    166. Dragon Quest IV – 5.97 million copies sold
    167. Kingdom Hearts – 5.9 million copies sold
    168. Final Fantasy Type-0 – 5.9 million copies sold
    169. Dragon Quest VIII – 5.80 million copies sold
    170. Link’s Crossbow Training – 5.79 million copies sold
    171. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds / Tri Force Heroes – 5.62 million copies sold
    172. Dragon Quest VII – 5.56 million copies sold
    173. Super Smash Bros. – 5.55 million copies sold
    174. Halo: Combat Evolved – 5.5 million copies sold
    175. Dragon Quest I – 5.41 million copies sold
    176. Demon’s Souls – 5.4 million copies sold
    177. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U – 5.38 million copies sold
    178. Dragon Quest IX – 5.35 million copies sold
    179. The Legend of Zelda / Classic NES – 5.29 million copies sold
    180. Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 – 5.19 million copies sold
    181. Kirby’s Dream Land – 5.13 million copies sold
    182. Chrono Trigger – 5.13 million copies sold
    183. Donkey Kong Jr. – 5.06 million copies sold
    184. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 – 5 million copies sold
    185. Dragon Ball: Xenoverse – 5 million copies sold
    186. Kingdom Hearts III – 5 million copies sold
    187. Fable II – 5 million copies sold
    188. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link / Classic NES – 4.97 million copies sold
    189. Splatoon – 4.95 million copies sold
    190. Dragon Quest II – 4.87 million copies sold
    191. Dragon Quest VI – 4.7 million copies sold
    192. Kirby Star Allies – 4.38 million copies sold
    193. Super Mario Bros. Wonder – 4.3 million copies sold⬆️
    194. Fire Emblem: Three Houses – 4.12 million copies sold
    195. Star Fox 64 – 4 million copies sold
    196. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity – 4 million copies sold

    Most Played Video Games in the World by Player Count (2023-2024)

    This list is based on player count, registered accounts, and peak player logins since release. Therefore, the total count may not reflect the current number of players. Additionally, the values may vary depending on the source. For example, Overwatch had 50 million players, but Overwatch 2 currently has 25 million registered players, despite all Overwatch players automatically upgrading to OW2. This may be due to the new requirement to connect a phone number to your account. So, with that said, here are the most-played video games in the world:

    1. Candy Crush Saga – 2.73B Players
    2. PUBG: Battlegrounds – 1.2B Players
    3. Crossfire – 1B Players
    4. Dungeon Fighter Online – 850M Players
    5. Minecraft – 738M Players
    6. QQ Speed / GKART / Speed Drifters – 700M Players
    7. Pac-Man Doodle – 505M Players
    8. Among Us – 500M Players
    9. Microsoft Solitaire – 400M Players
    10. Mini World – 400M Players
    11. Crazyracing Kartrider – 380M Players
    12. Fortnite – 350M Players
    13. Fantasy Westward Journey – 310M Players
    14. RuneScape – 280M Players
    15. Rules of Survival – 230M Players
    16. Roblox – 202M Players
    17. Club Penguin – 200M Players
    18. Dragon Nest – 200M Players
    19. MapleStory – 180M Players
    20. Tetris – 177M Players
    21. Animal Jam – 160M Players
    22. World of Tanks – 160M Players
    23. Grand Theft Auto V – 140M Players
    24. Apex Legends – 130M Players
    25. The Legend of Mir 3 – 120M Players
    26. League of Legends – 111M Players
    27. Transformice – 100M Players
    28. World of Warcraft – 100M Players
    29. CityVille – 100M Players
    30. Happy Farm – 100M Players
    31. Scions of Fate – 100M Players
    32. The Sims Social – 100M Players
    33. Zhengtu – 100M Players
    34. Microsoft Solitaire Collection – 100M Players
    35. Hearthstone – 100M Players
    36. Call of Duty: Warzone – 100M Players
    37. Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes – 100M Players
    38. FarmVille – 83M Players
    39. Westward Journey Online 2 – 83M Players
    40. Ragnarok Online – 80M Players
    41. Moshi Monsters – 80M Players
    42. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links – 80M Players
    43. Dragon Oath – 75M Players
    44. Rocket League – 75M Players
    45. Dofus – 62M Players
    46. Adopt Me! – 60M Players
    47. Flyff – 60M Players
    48. Fall Guys – 50M Players
    49. Overwatch – 50M Players
    50. Lineage – 50M Players
    51. Perfect World – 50M Players
    52. Team Fortress 2 – 50M Players
    53. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege – 50M Players
    54. Warframe – 50M Players
    55. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – 46M Players
    56. FarmVille 2 – 43M Players
    57. The Sims 4 – 36M Players
    58. Drakensang Online – 35M Players
    59. FIFA 20 – 35M Players
    60. Teamfight Tactics – 33M Players
    61. Evony – 33M Players
    62. FIFA 18 – 32.5M Players
    63. FIFA 21 – 31M Players
    64. Pac-Man – 30M Players
    65. Black Desert Online – 30M Players
    66. FIFA 17 – 30M Players
    67. Sea of Thieves – 30M Players
    68. Metal Slug Defense – 29M Players
    69. FIFA 16 – 28.3M Players
    70. TERA – 28M Players
    71. Unturned – 27M Players
    72. GetAmped – 26M Players
    73. Overwatch 2 – 25M Players (After phone number registration)
    74. Street Fighter II – 25M Players
    75. Call of Duty: WWII – 24.9M Players
    76. Forza Horizon 4 – 24M Players
    77. Horizon Zero Dawn – 24.3M Players
    78. Left 4 Dead 2 – 23M Players
    79. Sudden Attack – 23M Players
    80. Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds – 21M Players
    81. Final Fantasy XIV – 20M Players
    82. Mabinogi – 20M Players
    83. DC Universe Online – 20M Players
    84. Shadowverse – 20M Players
    85. osu! – 19.3M Players
    86. Blade & Soul – 18M Players
    87. Payday 2 – 18M Players
    88. Farm Town – 17M Players
    89. The Last of Us Remastered – 15.9M Players
    90. Doom – 15M Players
    91. For Honor – 15M Players
    92. Minecraft Dungeons – 15M Players
    93. Trove – 15M Players
    94. Puyopuyo!! Quest Arcade – 15M Players
    95. Lineage II – 14M Players
    96. Paladins – 14M Players
    97. Battlefield 4 – 13.9M Players
    98. The Elder Scrolls Online – 13.5M Players
    99. Dota 2 – 13M Players
    100. Call of Duty: Ghosts – 12.6M Players
    101. FIFA 19 – 12.5M Players
    102. Rust – 12M Players
    103. Guild Wars 2 – 11M Players
    104. Forza Horizon 3 – 10M Players
    105. Star Wars: The Old Republic – 10M Players
    106. H1Z1 – 10M Players
    107. Forza Horizon 5 – 10M Players
    108. Ark: Survival Evolved – 10M Players
    109. State of Decay 2 – 10M Players
    110. Robocraft – 10M Players
    111. Free Realms – 10M Players

    That’s everything you need to know about the world’s #1 most played and list of most popular games in 2023-2024.

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    Phil is a creative and imaginative person who loves to tell stories. He believes video games are a powerful medium that can transport players to new and exciting worlds. He is excited to continue writing and gaming and hopes one day to create a fun video game.

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