2004 in video games

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2004 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Madden NFL 2005, NBA Live 2005, ESPN NBA 2K5, Tony Hawk's Underground 2, WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw, Doom 3, Dragon Quest VIII, Gran Turismo 4, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Half-Life 2, Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Myst IV: Revelation, Ninja Gaiden, Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen/Emerald, Everybody's Golf 4 (Hot Shots Golf Fore!), Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, and World of Warcraft. New intellectual properties included Fable, Far Cry, FlatOut, Killzone, Katamari Damacy, Monster Hunter, N, Red Dead Revolver, SingStar, and Sacred. The Nintendo DS was also launched that year.

The year has been retrospectively considered one of the best and most important in video game history due to the release of numerous critically acclaimed, commercially successful and influential titles across all platforms and genres at the time.^[1] The year's best-selling video game was Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The year's most critically acclaimed titles were Dragon Quest VIII and Gran Turismo 4 in Japan, and Half-Life 2 and San Andreas in the West.

Events

January 20 – Wired's Vaporware Awards gives its first "Lifetime Achievement Award" to recurring winner Duke Nukem Forever.
February 26 – Castle Wolfenstein creator Silas Warner dies at age 54.
March 4 – Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts 7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts Peter Molyneux into the AIAS Hall of Fame.
March 22–26 – Game Developers Conference hosts 4th annual Game Developers Choice Awards and Gama Network's 6th annual Independent Games Festival (IGF).
May 11 – Nintendo officially announces its "Revolution" (later named Wii) console.
May 11–13 – The 10th annual E3 is held in Los Angeles, California, United States.^[2]
July – IEMA (Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association) hosts 5th annual Executive Summit.
August 1 – A viral portion of a Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike match takes place during the Evo 2004 tournament.^[3]^[4]^[5]
August 3 – Doom 3 is released, restarting the breakthrough franchise, and featured complex graphics features such as unified lighting and shadowing, real-time fully dynamic per-pixel lighting and stencil shadowing. The game became id's best selling game to date.
October 12 – EA Sports launches the multi-format FIFA Football 2005. It is the last major title to be released for the original PlayStation console.
November – Counter-Strike: Source and Half-Life 2 are officially released on PC around the world, bringing in a new era for the first-person shooter genre of video games, with advanced graphics & physics.
November 5 – Nobuo Uematsu resigns from Square Enix and becomes a freelancer, starting his own business, called Smile Please Co., Ltd.
December 14 – The 2004 Spike Video Game Awards are held.^[6]^[7]

Business

January 12 – Ubisoft acquires Tiwak.
February – Electronic Arts consolidates, rolls most of Maxis and all of Origin Systems into its Redwood Shores, California HQ.
March – Microsoft announces XNA the successor of DirectX as the default API for "Longhorn", and Xenon.
April 6 – Midway Games acquires Surreal Software.
April 13 – T1, a South Korean esports organization, is founded.
May – Sammy Corporation buys a controlling share in Sega Corporation at a cost of $1.1 billion creating the new company, Sega Sammy Holdings, one of the biggest video game companies in the world.
July – Square Enix restructures executive branches around the world.
September 1 – Acclaim declares bankruptcy and closes its doors.
October 11 – Midway Games acquires Inevitable Entertainment and renames it Midway Studios Austin.
November 30 – Midway Games acquires developer Paradox Development.
December 13 – Electronic Arts purchases a 5-year exclusive agreement for the rights to the NFL, which includes NFL teams, stadiums and players for use in EA's football video games.
December 20 – Electronic Arts purchases 20% stake in Ubisoft. The purchase at the time was considered "hostile", by Ubisoft.

Hardware releases

Month	Day	System
October	29	PlayStation 2 slimline^EU
November	17	Atari Flashback
November	21	Nintendo DS^NA
December	11	PlayStation Portable^JP

Trends

In 2004, the total U.S. sales of video game hardware, software and accessories was $9.9 billion compared with $10 billion in 2003. Total software sales rose 8 percent over the previous year to $6.2 billion. Additionally, sales of portable software titles exceeded $1 billion for the first time. Hardware sales were down 27 percent for the year due in part to shortages during the holiday season and price reductions from all systems.

Video game consoles

GameCube
Xbox
PlayStation 2
- Sony released an internal hard drive for the PlayStation 2 on March 23
- The third major hardware revision of the PlayStation 2 (model number SCPH-70000) was released in Japan on November 1

Handheld game systems

The dominant handheld systems in 2004 were:

Additionally, Nokia released an updated version of their original N-Gage, called the N-Gage QD. Nintendo released the Nintendo DS on November 21 in the United States. In Japan Sony released the PlayStation Portable on December 12.

Best-selling video games

Best-selling video games worldwide in 2004
Rank	Title	Platform	Publisher	Sales
Rank	Title	Platform	Publisher	Japan^[8]^[9]	USA^[10]^[11]	Europe	Worldwide
1	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	PS2	Rockstar Games	—	5,144,214	1,750,000+^[12]	6,894,214+
2	Prince of Persia: Warrior Within	PS2, Xbox	Ubisoft	56,414	5,132,612	1,158,612	6,347,928+
3	Pokémon FireRed / LeafGreen	GBA	The Pokémon Company	2,392,005	2,367,431	Unknown	5,800,000^[13]
4	FIFA Football 2005	Multi-platform	EA Sports	56,075	53,804+	Unknown	4,500,000^[14]
5	Halo 2	Xbox	Microsoft Game Studios	42,310^[9]	4,288,397	Unknown	4,330,707+
6	Madden NFL 2005	PS2, Xbox	EA Sports	3,705^[15]	4,274,243	Unknown	4,277,948+
7	Dragon Quest VIII: Sora to Umi to Daichi to Norowareshi Himegimi	PS2	Square Enix	3,327,167	—	—	3,327,167
8	ESPN NFL 2K5	PS2	Take-Two Interactive	—	2,632,393	—	2,632,393
9	Pro Evolution Soccer 4 (Winning Eleven 8)	PS2	Konami	1,120,272	Unknown	1,500,000+^[16]	2,620,272+
10	Need For Speed: Underground 2	PS2, Xbox	Electronic Arts	—	2,453,829	Unknown	2,453,829+

Japan

Best-selling video games in Japan^[8]^[9]
Rank	Title	Platform	Publisher	Genre	Sales
1	Dragon Quest VIII: Sora to Umi to Daichi to Norowareshi Himegimi	PS2	Square Enix	Role-playing	3,327,167
2	Pokémon FireRed / LeafGreen	GBA	The Pokémon Company	Role-playing	2,392,005
3	Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald	GBA	The Pokémon Company	Role-playing	1,670,000
4	Dragon Quest V: Tenkū no Hanayome (The Heavenly Bride)	PS2	Square Enix	Role-playing	1,611,974
5	Winning Eleven 8 (Pro Evolution Soccer 4)	PS2	Konami	Sports	1,120,272
6	Sengoku Musou (Samurai Warriors)	PS2	Koei	Hack and slash	1,024,253
7	Jissen Pachislot Shinshouhou! Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star)	PS2	Sammy Corporation	Pachislot	916,765
8	Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater	PS2	Konami	Stealth	694,307
9	Gran Turismo 4	PS2	Sony	Racing simulation	663,543
10	Derby Stallion 04	PS2	Enterbrain	Simulation	603,815

United States

**Best-selling video games in the United States (NPD Group)**^[17]^[18]
Rank	Title	Platform(s)	Publisher	Sales^[10]^[11]	Revenue	Inflation
1	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	PS2	Rockstar Games	5,144,214	$252,000,000	$407,000,000
2	Halo 2	Xbox	Microsoft Game Studios	4,288,397	$223,000,000	$360,000,000
3	Madden NFL 2005	PS2, Xbox, GC	EA Sports	4,274,243	$209,000,000	$337,000,000
4	ESPN NFL 2K5	PS2, Xbox	Take-Two Interactive	2,632,393	$50,000,000	$81,000,000
5	Need For Speed: Underground 2	PS2, Xbox, GC	Electronic Arts	2,453,829	$118,000,000	$190,000,000
6	Pokémon FireRed / LeafGreen	GBA	Nintendo	2,367,431	$76,000,000	$123,000,000
7	NBA Live 2005	PS2, Xbox	EA Sports	1,723,190	$57,000,000	$92,000,000
8	Spider-Man 2	PS2, GC	Activision	1,569,251	$67,000,000	$108,000,000
9	ESPN NBA 2K5	PS2, Xbox	Take-Two Interactive	1,280,314	Unknown
10	Star Wars: Battlefront	PS2, Xbox	LucasArts	1,224,927	Unknown

PAL regions

Best-selling video games in PAL regions
Rank	United Kingdom^[19]^[12]			Australia^[20]
Rank	Title	Platform(s)	Sales	Title	Platform
1	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	PS2	1,750,000	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	PS2
2	Prince of Persia: Warrior Within	Multi-platform	Unknown	Halo 2	Xbox
3	Need For Speed: Underground 2	Multi-platform	Unknown	Need For Speed: Underground 2	PS2
4	The Simpsons: Hit & Run	Multi-platform	Unknown	The Simpsons: Hit & Run	PS2
5	Pro Evolution Soccer 4	Multi-platform	Unknown	Need for Speed: Underground	PS2
6	Sonic Heroes	Multi-platform	Unknown	Ratchet & Clank	PS2
7	Spider-Man 2	Multi-platform	Unknown	V8 Supercars 2	PS2
8	Need for Speed: Underground	Multi-platform	Unknown	SingStar	PS2
9	Halo 2	Xbox	Unknown	Grand Theft Auto: Twin Pack	Xbox
10	DRIV3R	Multi-platform	Unknown	Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec	PS2

Top game rentals in the United States

Top video game rentals in the United States^[21]
Rank	Title	Publisher	Platform
1	Prince of Persia: Warrior Within	Ubisoft	PlayStation 2
2	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	Rockstar Games
3	DRIV3R	Atari
4	Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2	Atari
5	Madden NFL 2005	EA Sports
6	NFL Street	EA Sports
7	Red Dead Revolver	Rockstar Games
8	James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing	EA Games
9	NCAA Football 2005	EA Sports
10	The Sims Bustin' Out	EA Games

Critically acclaimed titles

Famitsu

In Japan, the following video game releases in 2004 entered Famitsu magazine's "Platinum Hall of Fame" and received Famitsu scores of at least 36 out of 40.^[22]

Title	Platform	Publisher	Genre	Score (out of 40)
Dragon Quest VIII: Sora to Umi to Daichi to Norowareshi Himegimi	PlayStation 2	Square Enix	Role-playing	39
Gran Turismo 4	PlayStation 2	Sony	Racing simulation	39
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	PlayStation 2	Capcom	Action-adventure	37
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater	PlayStation 2	Konami	Stealth	37
Kessen III	PlayStation 2	Koei	Real-time tactics	37
Onimusha 3 (Onimusha 3: Demon Siege)	PlayStation 2	Capcom	Hack and slash	36
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes	GameCube	Konami	Stealth	36
Hoshi no Kirby: Kagami no Daimeikyū (Kirby & the Amazing Mirror)	Game Boy Advance	Nintendo	Metroidvania	36
Pikmin 2	GameCube	Nintendo	Real-time strategy	36
Mawaru Made in Wario (WarioWare: Twisted!)	Game Boy Advance	Nintendo	Party	36
The Legend of Zelda: Fushigi no Bōshi (The Minish Cap)	Game Boy Advance	Nintendo	Action-adventure	36
Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories	Game Boy Advance	Square Enix	Action role-playing	36
Sawaru Made in Wario (WarioWare: Touched!)	Nintendo DS	Nintendo	Party	36
FIFA Total Football 2 (FIFA Football 2005)	PlayStation 2	Electronic Arts	Sports	36

Metacritic and GameRankings

In the West, Metacritic (MC) and GameRankings (GR) are aggregators of video game journalism reviews.

2004 games and expansions scoring at least 88/100 (MC) or 87.5% (GR)^[23]^[24]
Game	Publisher	Release Date	Platform	MC score	GR score
Half-Life 2	Valve	November 16, 2004	Microsoft Windows	96/100	95.48%
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	Rockstar Games	October 26, 2004	PlayStation 2	95/100	95.08%
Halo 2	Microsoft Game Studios	November 9, 2004	Xbox	95/100	94.57%
Burnout 3: Takedown	Electronic Arts	September 8, 2004	Xbox	94/100	93.06%
Burnout 3: Takedown	Electronic Arts	September 8, 2004	PlayStation 2	93/100	93.32%
Unreal Tournament 2004	Atari	March 16, 2004	Microsoft Windows	93/100	92.57%
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow	Ubisoft	March 23, 2004	Xbox	93/100	92.37%
World of Warcraft	Blizzard Entertainment	November 23, 2004	Microsoft Windows	93/100	91.89%
Ninja Gaiden	Tecmo	March 2, 2004	Xbox	91/100	92.54%
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes	Nintendo	November 15, 2004	GameCube	92/100	91.87%
Rome: Total War	Activision	September 22, 2004	Microsoft Windows	92/100	91.75%
ESPN NFL 2K5	Sega	July 20, 2004	Xbox	92/100	90.52%
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater	Konami	November 17, 2004	PlayStation 2	91/100	91.77%
Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal	Sony Computer Entertainment	November 3, 2004	PlayStation 2	91/100	91.54%
Pro Evolution Soccer 4	Konami	August 5, 2004	PlayStation 2	91/100^[25]	91.12%^[26]
Madden NFL 2005	EA Sports	August 9, 2004	PlayStation 2	91/100	90.33%
Madden NFL 2005	EA Sports	August 9, 2004	Xbox	91/100	89.5%
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005	EA Sports	September 20, 2004	Microsoft Windows	91/100	88.24%
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay – Developer's Cut	Vivendi Universal Games	December 3, 2004	Microsoft Windows	90/100	90.95%
The Sims 2	Electronic Arts	September 14, 2004	Microsoft Windows	90/100	90.76%
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap	Nintendo	November 4, 2004	Game Boy Advance	89/100^[25]	90.36%^[26]
Metroid: Zero Mission	Nintendo	February 9, 2004	Game Boy Advance	89/100	90.19%
Pro Evolution Soccer 4	Konami	November 26, 2004	Xbox	90/100^[25]	90.11%^[26]
Dragon Quest VIII	Square Enix	November 27, 2004	PlayStation 2	89/100^[25]	90.05%^[26]
Madden NFL 2005	EA Sports	August 9, 2004	GameCube	90/100	90%
Pikmin 2	Nintendo	April 29, 2004	GameCube	90/100	89.44%
MVP Baseball 2004	EA Sports	March 9, 2004	PlayStation 2	90/100	88.89%
MVP Baseball 2004	EA Sports	March 9, 2004	Xbox	90/100	88.73%
Viewtiful Joe	Capcom	August 24, 2004	PlayStation 2	90/100	87.95%
Lumines: Puzzle Fusion	Bandai	December 12, 2004	PlayStation Portable	89/100^[25]	89.93%^[26]
Counter-Strike: Source	Valve	November 1, 2004	Microsoft Windows	88/100	89.71%
EVE Online: Exodus	CCP Games	November 17, 2004	Microsoft Windows	N/A	89.62%
Gran Turismo 4	Sony Computer Entertainment	December 28, 2004	PlayStation 2	89/100^[25]	89.53%^[26]
NCAA Football 2005	EA Sports	July 15, 2004	PlayStation 2	88/100	89.45%
FirePower for Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 3	Microsoft Game Studios	June 11, 2004	Microsoft Windows	88/100	89.43%
Far Cry	Ubisoft	March 23, 2004	Microsoft Windows	89/100	89.38%
Nancy Drew: Curse of Blackmoor Manor	DreamCatcher Interactive	October 5, 2004	Microsoft Windows	81/100	89%
Football Manager 2005	Sega	November 5, 2004	Microsoft Windows	89/100	88.81%
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay	Vivendi Universal Games	June 1, 2004	Xbox	89/100	88.61%
NCAA Football 2005	EA Sports	July 15, 2004	Xbox	89/100	88.4%
MVP Baseball 2004	EA Sports	March 9, 2004	GameCube	89/100	87.43%
Ridge Racer	Namco	December 12, 2004	PlayStation Portable	88/100^[25]	88.62%^[26]
RalliSport Challenge 2	Microsoft Game Studios	May 4, 2004	Xbox	87/100	88.54%
Pro Evolution Soccer 4	Konami	December 3, 2004	Microsoft Windows	88/100^[25]	88.5%^[26]
Out of the Park Baseball 6	Out of the Park Developments	June 14, 2004	Microsoft Windows	87/100	88.4%
Sid Meier's Pirates!	Atari	November 22, 2004	Microsoft Windows	88/100	88.34%
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door	Nintendo	July 22, 2004	GameCube	87/100	88.05%
NCAA Football 2005	EA Sports	July 15, 2004	GameCube	88/100	88.01%
Sly 2: Band of Thieves	Sony Computer Entertainment	September 14, 2004	PlayStation 2	88/100	87.92%
Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots	Microsoft Game Studios	April 27, 2004	Microsoft Windows	88/100	87.86%
WarioWare: Twisted!	Nintendo	October 14, 2004	Game Boy Advance	88/100^[25]	87.79%^[26]
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005	EA Sports	September 20, 2004	GameCube	88/100	87.68%
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005	EA Sports	September 20, 2004	PlayStation 2	88/100	87.08%
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005	EA Sports	September 20, 2004	Xbox	88/100	86.51%
ESPN NHL 2K5	Sega	August 30, 2004	Xbox	88/100	86.22%
Wings of Power: WWII Heavy Bombers and Jets	Tri Synergy	September 13, 2004	Microsoft Windows	83/100	87.83%
NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup	EA Sports	September 4, 2004	GameCube	N/A	87.61%

Notable releases

Video game platforms

GBA	Game Boy Advance
GCN	GameCube
NDS	Nintendo DS

PS1	PlayStation
PS2	PlayStation 2
PSP	PlayStation Portable

Win	Windows
Xbox	Xbox


Release	Title	PC	5th Gen	6th Gen	Handheld
January 5	Sonic Battle	—	—	—	GBA
January 13	Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
January 14	.hack//Quarantine Part 4	—	—	PS2	—
January 20	Delta Force: Black Hawk Down – Team Sabre	Windows	—	PS2	—
January 20	Maximo vs. Army of Zin	—	—	PS2	—
January 28	Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven	—	—	PS2	—
January 28	Vietcong: Fist Alpha	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
January 29	Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen (Japan)	—	—	—	GBA
February	Cops 2170: The Power of Law (Russia)	Windows	—	—	—
February 2	R-Type Final	—	—	PS2	—
February 9	Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles	—	—	GCN	—
	Metroid: Zero Mission	—	—	—	GBA
	EverQuest: Gates of Discord	Windows	—	—	—
February 10	Nightshade	—	—	PS2	—
	Unreal II: The Awakening	—	—	Xbox	—
	Wrath Unleashed	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship Tournament 2004	—	—	—	GBA
February 11	Feeding Frenzy	Windows	—	—	—
February 14	Classic NES Series: Donkey Kong, Excitebike, Ice Climber, The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros.	—	—	—	GBA
February 17	Jet Li: Rise to Honor	—	—	PS2	—
February 17	Pro Evolution Soccer 3	Windows	—	PS2	—
February 24	Romance of the Three Kingdoms IX	—	—	PS2	—
February 26	Kaido Battle 2: Chain Reaction	—	—	PS2	—
February 27	Steel Battalion: Line of Contact	—	—	Xbox	—
March 1	N	Windows	—	—	NDS
March 2	Drakengard	—	—	PS2	—
	Lifeline	—	—	PS2	—
	Ninja Gaiden	—	—	Xbox	—
	Scooby-Doo: Mystery Mayhem	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
	MTX Mototrax	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
March 4	Colin McRae Rally 04	Windows	—	—	—
March 8	The Suffering	Windows	—	PS2, Xbox	—
March 9	Firefighter F.D.18	—	—	PS2	—
	Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes	—	—	GCN	—
	Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Athena Sword	Windows	—	—	—
March 10	Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven	—	—	Xbox	—
March 12	Seven Samurai 20XX	—	—	PS2	—
March 14	Battlefield Vietnam	Windows	—	—	—
March 15	Wade Hixton's Counter Punch	—	—	—	GBA
March 16	Unreal Tournament 2004	Windows	—	—	—
March 19	Sacred^[27]	Windows (EU)	—	—	—
March 23	Counter-Strike: Condition Zero	Windows	—	—	—
	Far Cry	Windows	—	—	—
	Final Fantasy XI	—	—	PS2 (US)	—
	Mission: Impossible – Operation Surma	—	—	GCN	—
	Sonic Heroes	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
	All-Star Baseball 2005	—	—	Xbox	—
March 24	Samurai Jack: The Shadow of Aku	—	—	GCN, PS2	—
March 25	Sacred^[27]	Windows (NA)	—	—	—
March 31	Resident Evil Outbreak	—	—	PS2	—
April 1	Destruction Derby Arenas	—	—	PS2	—
April 5	Alias	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
April 5	Fight Night 2004	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
April 8	All-Star Baseball 2005	—	—	PS2	—
April 12	Painkiller	Windows	—	—	—
April 12	Serious Sam Advance	—	—	—	GBA
April 13	TOCA Race Driver 2	Windows	—	Xbox	—
April 27	Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots	Windows	—	—	—
April	.kkrieger	Win	—	—	—
May 4	Red Dead Revolver		—	PS2, Xbox	—
May 4	Rallisport Challenge 2	—	—	Xbox	—
May 6	Samurai Warriors	—	—	PS2	—
May 7	Future Tactics: The Uprising	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
May 21	Classic NES Series: Dr. Mario	—	—	—	GBA
May 21	Way of the Samurai 2	—	—	PS2	—
May 24	Mario vs. Donkey Kong	—	—	—	GBA
May 25	Metal Slug 3	—	—	Xbox	—
	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban	Windows	—	PS2, Xbox, GCN	GBA
	Thief: Deadly Shadows	Windows	—	Xbox	—
June 1	The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay	—	—	Xbox	—
June 7	Sonic Advance 3	—	—	—	GBA
June 7	The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures	—	—	GCN	—
June 8	Ribbit King	—	—	GCN, PS2	—
June 14	Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
June 15	Front Mission 4	—	—	PS2	—
June 15	Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising	Windows	—	—	—
June 21	Driver 3	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
June 22	Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors	—	—	—	GBA
June 23	Mega Man Anniversary Collection	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox (2005)	GBA
June 27	Mega Man Battle Network 4	—	—	—	GBA
June 29	CT Special Forces 2: Back in the Trenches	—	—	—	GBA
June 29	Spider-Man 2	Windows (US 06/28/04, EU 07/09/04)	—	—	—
July 2	Yu-Gi-Oh! Power of Chaos: Joey the Passion	Win	—	—	—
July 5	Around the World in 80 Days	—	—	—	GBA
July 9	Richard Burns Rally	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
July 13	Tales of Symphonia	—	—	GCN	—
July 14	Athens 2004	—	—	PS2	—
July 15	Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga	—	—	PS2	—
July 20	Catwoman	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
	Puyo Pop Fever	—	—	GCN	—
	Sudeki	—	—	Xbox	—
July 21	Crimson Tears	—	—	PS2	—
July 22	Bujingai	—	—	PS2	—
July 29	Mega Man X: Command Mission	—	—	GCN, PS2	—
August 1	NFL GameDay 2005	—	PS1	—	—
August 3	Doom 3	Windows	—	—	—
August 5	Cartoon Network: Block Party	—	—	—	GBA
August 10	Classic NES Series: Metroid, Zelda ii: The Adventure of Link	—	—	—	GBA
August 18	Astro Boy: Omega Factor	—	—	—	GBA
August 24	Crazy Bus	—	—	—	—
	Starsky & Hutch	—	—	GCN	—
	Viewtiful Joe	—	—	PS2	—
August 25	Amazing Island	—	—	GCN	—
August 30	Pikmin 2	—	—	GCN	—
August 30	WWE Day of Reckoning	—	—	GCN	—
August 31	Street Racing Syndicate	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
September 2	Terminator 3: The Redemption	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
September 3	Digimon Rumble Arena 2	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
September 6	Digimon Rumble Arena 2	—	—	GCN	—
September 7	Burnout 3: Takedown	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
September 7	Silent Hill 4: The Room	Windows	—	PS2, Xbox	—
September 8	Carmen Sandiego: The Secret of the Stolen Drums	—	—	PS2	—
September 8	The Fairly OddParents: Shadow Showdown	Windows	—	GCN, PS2	GBA
September 9	King of Colosseum II	—	—	PS2	—
September 9	Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen (North America)	—	—	—	GBA
September 12	Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper	—	—	—	GBA
September 13	Carmen Sandiego: The Secret of the Stolen Drums	—	—	GCN, Xbox	—
	Digimon Racing	—	—	—	GBA
	EverQuest: Omens of War	Windows	—	—	—
	The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius: Attack of the Twonkies	—	—	GCN, PS2	GBA
September 14	Advance Guardian Heroes	—	—	—	GBA
	Power Rangers Dino Thunder	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
	Gradius V	—	—	PS2	—
	Bad Boys: Miami Takedown	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
	Call of Duty: United Offensive	Windows	—	—	—
	Fable	—	—	Xbox	—
	Sly 2: Band of Thieves	—	—	PS2	—
	The Sims 2	Windows	—	—	—
September 16	Pokémon Emerald (Japan)	—	—	—	GBA
September 17	Crisis Zone	—	—	PS2	—
September 20	F-Zero: GP Legend	—	—	—	GBA
	Def Jam: Fight for NY	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
	Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War	Windows	—	—	—
September 21	Blood Will Tell	—	—	PS2	—
	Dance Dance Revolution Extreme	—	—	PS2	—
	Final Fantasy XI: Chains of Promathia	Windows	—	PS2	—
	Second Sight	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
	Star Wars: Battlefront	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Star Wars Trilogy: Apprentice of the Force	—	—	—	GBA
September 22	Disney's Kim Possible 2: Drakken's Demise	—	—	—	GBA
	Katamari Damacy	—	—	PS2	—
	Rome: Total War	Win	—	—	—
September 27	Shadow Hearts: Covenant	—	—	PS2	—
September 27	Shark Tale	Win	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
September 28	Armored Core: Nexus	—	—	PS2	—
	Myst IV: Revelation	Win	—	—	—
	Crash Twinsanity	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
October 1	Kult: Heretic Kingdoms	Win, Mac	—	—	—
October 1	Scaler	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
October 4	Mortal Kombat: Deception	—	—	PS2	—
October 4	Tony Hawk's Underground 2	Win	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
October 5	Tribes: Vengeance	Win	—	—	—
	Conflict: Vietnam	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude	Win	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Mega Man Zero 3	—	—	—	GBA
	Syberia II	—	—	Xbox	—
	TOCA Race Driver 2	—	—	PS2	—
October 11	Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door	—	—	GCN	—
October 14	BloodRayne 2	—	—	PS2	—
	Lilo & Stitch 2: Hämsterviel Havoc	—	—	—	GBA
	Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne	—	—	PS2	—
	Tak 2: The Staff of Dreams	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
	FIFA Football 2005	Windows	PS1	GCN, PS2	GBA, PSP
	Under the Skin	—	—	PS2	—
October 18	Kirby & the Amazing Mirror	—	—	—	GBA
October 19	Neo Contra	—	—	PS2	—
	All Grown Up!: Express Yourself	—	—	PS2, GCN	GBA
	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
	Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django	—	—	—	GBA
October 20	Ape Escape: Pumped & Primed	—	—	PS2	—
October 20	Tron 2.0	—	—	—	GBA
October 22	Sacred Plus^[27] (EU)	Windows	—	—	—
October 25	Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War	—	—	PS2	—
October 25	OutRun 2	—	—	Xbox	—
October 26	Dead or Alive Ultimate	—	—	Xbox	—
	Grand Theft Auto Advance	—	—	—	GBA
	Star Wars Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed	Windows	—	—	—
	Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas	—	—	PS2	—
	Yu-Gi-Oh! Destiny Board Traveler	—	—	—	GBA
October 27	The Nightmare of Druaga: Fushigino Dungeon	—	—	PS2	—
October 27	The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
October 29	The Incredibles	Windows	—	—	—
November 1	Counter-Strike: Source	Windows	—	—	—
November 2	Codename: Kids Next Door – Operation: S.O.D.A.	—	—	—	GBA
	Godzilla: Save the Earth	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Killzone	—	—	PS2	—
	Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault	Windows	—	—	—
	RollerCoaster Tycoon 3	Windows	—	—	—
	Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal	—	—	PS2	—
	The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA
November 3	Spyro: A Hero's Tail	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
November 3	The Incredibles: When Danger Calls	Windows	—	—	—
November 4	Godzilla: Save the Earth	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
November 4	The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (Japan)	—	—	—	GBA
November 5	Bejeweled 2	Windows	—	—	—
November 5	FlatOut (Europe)	Win	Xbox	—	—
November 8	EverQuest II	Windows	—	—	—
November 8	Mario Power Tennis (North America)	—	—	GCN	—
November 9	EyeToy: AntiGrav	—	—	PS2	—
	Halo 2	—	—	Xbox	—
	Jak 3	—	—	PS2	—
	Shaman King: Master of Spirits	—	—	—	GBA
	Shaman King: Power of Spirit	—	—	PS2	—
November 10	Hot Wheels: Stunt Track Challenge	—	—	PS2, Xbox	GBA
November 10	Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA, NDS
November 15	Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest	—	—	—	GBA
	Metroid Prime 2: Echoes	—	—	GCN	—
	MTX Mototrax	Win	—	—	—
	Need for Speed: Underground 2	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	GBA, NDS
November 16	Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3	—	—	PS2	—
	Feel the Magic: XY/XX	—	—	—	NDS
	Fight Club	—	—	PS2, Xbox	—
	Half-Life 2	Windows	—	Xbox (2005)	—
	Joint Operations: Escalation	Windows	—	—	—
November 17	Asphalt Urban GT	—	—	—	NDS
	Castle Shikigami 2	—	—	PS2	—
	Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone	—	—	Xbox	—
	King Arthur	—	—	PS2	—
	Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater	—	—	PS2	—
	Pac-Man World	—	—	—	GBA
November 18	Blinx 2: Masters of Time and Space	—	—	Xbox	—
	Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure	—	—	—	GBA
	Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean	—	—	GCN	—
	Yu Yu Hakusho: Tournament Tactics	—	—	—	GBA
November 19	Mario vs. Donkey Kong	—	—	—	GBA
November 21	Super Mario 64 DS	—	—	—	NDS
	Spider-Man 2	—	—	—	NDS
	Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt	—	—	—	NDS
November 22	GoldenEye: Rogue Agent	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	NDS
November 22	JFK Reloaded	Windows	—	—	—
November 23	Alien Hominid	—	—	GCN	—
November 23	World of Warcraft	Windows	—	—	—
November 29	Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls	—	—	—	GBA
November 30	Mr. Driller Drill Spirits	—	—	—	NDS
November 30	Armies of Exigo	Windows	—	—	—
December 1	Painkiller: Battle out of Hell	Windows	—	—	—
	Scrapland	Windows	—	—	—
	Top Gun: Combat Zones	—	—	—	GBA
December 2	Metal Slug Advance	—	—	—	GBA
December 2	Prince of Persia: Warrior Within	Windows	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
December 5	Mario Party 6	—	—	GCN	—
December 6	Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II The Sith Lords	Windows	—	Xbox	—
December 6	The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth	Windows	—	—	—
December 7	Growlanser Generations	—	—	PS2	—
	Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories	—	—	—	GBA
	Kuon	—	—	PS2	—
	It's Mr. Pants	—	—	—	GBA
	Mega Man X8	—	—	PS2	—
	Ridge Racer DS	—	—	—	NDS
December 8	The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay	Windows	—	—	—
	Sprung	—	—	—	NDS
	Viewtiful Joe 2	—	—	PS2	—
December 14	Gungriffon Allied Strike	—	—	Xbox	—
December 15	Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2	—	—	GCN	—
December 20	Cave Story	Windows	—	—	—
December 22	NFL Street 2	—	—	GCN, PS2, Xbox	—
December 24	Garry's Mod	Windows	—	—	—
December 28	Gran Turismo 4	—	—	PS2	—

References

^ VanOrd, Kevin. "Why 2004 Was the Best Year in Gaming". Gamespot. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
^ "Attendance and Stats". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
^ "x.com". Twitter. Archived from the original on August 3, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
^ Cruz, Christopher (July 20, 2024). "How 'Evo Moment #37' Became the Greatest Viral Clip in Esports History". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
^ "Evo Moment 37: Daigo's historic Street Fighter comeback vs Justin Wong was 20 years ago". Dexerto. September 16, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
^ "GameSpy: Video Game Awards 2004 Award Winners Announced - Page 1". pc.gamespy.com. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
^ Myers, Maddy (November 29, 2024). "Rewatching the 2004 Spike TV Video Game Awards, a true time capsule of gaming". Polygon. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
^ ^a ^b "2004 Top 100 Best Selling Japanese Console Games". The Magic Box. Archived from the original on October 2, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c "2004年ゲームソフト年間売上TOP500" [2004 Game Software Annual Sales Top 500]. Famitsū Gēmu Hakusho 2005 ファミ通ゲーム白書2005 [Famitsu Game Whitebook 2005] (in Japanese). Tokyo: Enterbrain. 2005. Archived from the original on December 27, 2008.
^ ^a ^b "アメリカ (2004)" [America (2004)]. ゲームハードの売り上げ (Game Hardware Sales) (in Japanese). The NPD Group. Archived from the original on October 19, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Best 100 Selling Games in 2004". The Magic Box. The NPD Group. January 13, 2005. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
^ ^a ^b Fahey, Rob (January 10, 2005). "San Andreas dominates 2004 as UK market grows 6.6 per cent". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
^ "Consolidated Financial Statements" (PDF). Nintendo. January 26, 2005. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
^ B2B Staff (January 27, 2005). "EA: risultati finanziari del terzo trimestre fiscale". Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on February 9, 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ "Game Search". Game Data Library. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
^ "Konami ships 1.4 million PS2 copies of Pro Evolution Soccer 4". GameSpot. August 16, 2006.
^ "The NPD Group Reports Annual 2004 U.S. Video Game Industry Retail Sales". NPD Group. January 18, 2005. Archived from the original on November 25, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2008.
^ Ghibi, Vittorio; Panzieri, Fabio; Rocetti, Marco (April 19, 2016). "Middleware for Mobile Entertainment Computing". In Bellavista, Paolo; Corradi, Antonio (eds.). The Handbook of Mobile Middleware. CRC Press. pp. 1189–1226 (1200). ISBN 978-1-4200-1315-3. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
^ Hebblethwaite, Luke (April 9, 2020). "UK Top Selling Games 2004". Ukie. The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
^ "Top 20 Console Games Ranked by Units Sold, 1998–2013". Screen Australia. Australian Government. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
^ "Marketplace: A Look At The 2004 Video Chart Picture". Billboard. Vol. 117, no. 2. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 8, 2005. p. 39. ISSN 0006-2510.
^ "週刊ファミ通クロスレビュープラチナ殿堂入りソフト一覧" [Weekly Famitsu Cross Review Platinum Hall of Fame Software List]. Geimin (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 27, 2008. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
^ "Best Video Games for 2004". Metacritic. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
^ "Highest-Ranking Games of 2004 (with at least 5 reviews)". GameRankings. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ "Best Video Games for 2005". Metacritic. Retrieved September 8, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ "Highest-Ranking Games of 2005 (with at least 5 reviews)". GameRankings. Retrieved September 8, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Sacred Release Information for PC - GameFAQs".

[1] VanOrd, Kevin. "Why 2004 Was the Best Year in Gaming". Gamespot. Retrieved December 26, 2021.

[2] "Attendance and Stats". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2015.

[3] "x.com". Twitter. Archived from the original on August 3, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.

[4] Cruz, Christopher (July 20, 2024). "How 'Evo Moment #37' Became the Greatest Viral Clip in Esports History". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 13, 2024.

[5] "Evo Moment 37: Daigo's historic Street Fighter comeback vs Justin Wong was 20 years ago". Dexerto. September 16, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.

[6] "GameSpy: Video Game Awards 2004 Award Winners Announced - Page 1". pc.gamespy.com. Retrieved December 13, 2024.

[7] Myers, Maddy (November 29, 2024). "Rewatching the 2004 Spike TV Video Game Awards, a true time capsule of gaming". Polygon. Retrieved December 13, 2024.

[:0-8] "2004 Top 100 Best Selling Japanese Console Games". The Magic Box. Archived from the original on October 2, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2021.

[EBsales-9] "2004年ゲームソフト年間売上TOP500" [2004 Game Software Annual Sales Top 500]. Famitsū Gēmu Hakusho 2005 ファミ通ゲーム白書2005 [Famitsu Game Whitebook 2005] (in Japanese). Tokyo: Enterbrain. 2005. Archived from the original on December 27, 2008.

[:1-10] "アメリカ (2004)" [America (2004)]. ゲームハードの売り上げ (Game Hardware Sales) (in Japanese). The NPD Group. Archived from the original on October 19, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2021.

[:2-11] "Best 100 Selling Games in 2004". The Magic Box. The NPD Group. January 13, 2005. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2021.

[:3-12] Fahey, Rob (January 10, 2005). "San Andreas dominates 2004 as UK market grows 6.6 per cent". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.

[13] "Consolidated Financial Statements" (PDF). Nintendo. January 26, 2005. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved November 17, 2021.

[1mill-14] B2B Staff (January 27, 2005). "EA: risultati finanziari del terzo trimestre fiscale". Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on February 9, 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

[15] "Game Search". Game Data Library. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2021.

[16] "Konami ships 1.4 million PS2 copies of Pro Evolution Soccer 4". GameSpot. August 16, 2006.

[17] "The NPD Group Reports Annual 2004 U.S. Video Game Industry Retail Sales". NPD Group. January 18, 2005. Archived from the original on November 25, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2008.

[Ghibi-18] Ghibi, Vittorio; Panzieri, Fabio; Rocetti, Marco (April 19, 2016). "Middleware for Mobile Entertainment Computing". In Bellavista, Paolo; Corradi, Antonio (eds.). The Handbook of Mobile Middleware. CRC Press. pp. 1189–1226 (1200). ISBN 978-1-4200-1315-3. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2021.

[:6-19] Hebblethwaite, Luke (April 9, 2020). "UK Top Selling Games 2004". Ukie. The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved October 25, 2021.

[Australia-20] "Top 20 Console Games Ranked by Units Sold, 1998–2013". Screen Australia. Australian Government. Retrieved October 22, 2021.

[21] "Marketplace: A Look At The 2004 Video Chart Picture". Billboard. Vol. 117, no. 2. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 8, 2005. p. 39. ISSN 0006-2510.

[22] "週刊ファミ通クロスレビュープラチナ殿堂入りソフト一覧" [Weekly Famitsu Cross Review Platinum Hall of Fame Software List]. Geimin (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 27, 2008. Retrieved February 24, 2021.

[Metacritic_Best-23] "Best Video Games for 2004". Metacritic. Retrieved September 6, 2019.

[GameRankings_Best-24] "Highest-Ranking Games of 2004 (with at least 5 reviews)". GameRankings. Retrieved September 6, 2019.

[Metacritic_2005-25] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ "Best Video Games for 2005". Metacritic. Retrieved September 8, 2019.

[GameRankings_2005-26] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ "Highest-Ranking Games of 2005 (with at least 5 reviews)". GameRankings. Retrieved September 8, 2019.

[WPCleanerAuto1-27] "Sacred Release Information for PC - GameFAQs".

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