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8/11/2019 10 Most Expensive Video Games of All Time - GameBasin.com
1/11
10 Most Expensive Video Games Of
All Time
http://www.gamebasin.com/news/10-most-expensive-video-games-of-all-
time
The gaming industry has come a long way. It used to be made up of a couple of passionate
programmers sat in theirbasementscoding furiously,hoping tocatch theattentionof the few
companies forwardthinking (or reckless) enough to invest in this newfangled business.
Gamescreatedonaglorifiedcalculatorbyoneortwosmartladswithavision.Ratherbasicgames,
compared to today, but they cost the equivalent of a double cheeseburger and large Coke to
produce.Fastforwardtotoday,andthingsaredrasticallydifferent.Thisisnowamultibilliondollar
industry, a topheavy behemoth in the entertainment world, led by massive corporations and
developmentteams.Yes,yougetyourindieladswhostillgoitalone,butthecommercialleading
edgeof the industry iselsewhere. Its themultimillionselling franchiseswithHollywoodesque
production qualities, made by armies of programming wizards, backed up by NASDAQlisted
publishersand
millions
of
marketing
dollars.
The
top
flight
titles
that
pull
in
the
kind
of
cash
that
couldfillScroogeMcDucksvaulttentimesover.Buthowmuchofthatissuckedintotheroaring
furnacethatmakesitallhappenthedevelopment,theR&D,themarketingandhowmuchis
leftoverwhenyoudothemath?Whenagamecanearntheequivalentofasmallislandcountrys
GDPinamatterofdays,youwouldimaginethattheyrelaughingallthewaytothebank.Thats
until you have a look at what these monstrous games cost to produce. In short, its bloody
frightening.Weretalkingcrazymoneyhere,folks.Butletstakeacloserlook,shallwe?Itsworth
notingthatofficialcostingsarerarelyrevealedopenly,soexactfiguresarehardtocomeby,but
industryanalystscangiveusaprettyaccurate ideaofwhat itcosttogetthesegamesonstore
shelves.So,readonfortenofthemostridiculouslyexpensivegameseverproduced
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10. Tomb Raider - 100 Million
Square Enix took a necessary leapof faith with the2013 releaseof Tomb Raider.Almost two
decades old, gaming audiences were losing interest in the brunette bombshell and her crypt
thieverysomethingdrastichadtobedone. Insteadoftryingmovethestoryforward insome
contrivedway,CrystalDynamicstookusrightbacktotheverybeginningwithacompletereboot
oftheLaraCroftnarrative.Itwasarisk,anditpaidoffhansomely.Initsfirstmonthonstoreshelves
TombRaidersold3.4millioncopies.Butwhilethatsoundsimpressivetous,themanonthestreet,
toSquareEnixitwasntnearlyenoughthepublisherhadenvisioneditwouldselltothetuneof
56millioncopiesinthatsameperiod,projectingalmostdoubletheactualsales.Andthatwasa
relativelyconservativeestimate,shavingoffabout1015%ofwhattheyhopedforinabestcase
scenario.Thispointstoasubstantialproductioncost.Tobestrugglingtomakeaprofitafter3.4mill
firstmonthsales,youjustknowthatSquareEnixthrewbigmoneyintothisproject.Hardfigures
arentbandiedaroundopenly,butanalystsputapricetagof$100milliononthishighlyregarded,
criticallyacclaimedadventure. On theplus side,by theendof 2013 thegamehadeventually
startedturningaprofit,andwassurelyboostedwhenthenextgenDefinitiveEditionwasreleased
earlierthisyear.
9. Red Dead Redemption 100 Million
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Asyoumayhaveguessed,thenameRockstarGamesisgoingtoberegularfeatureonthislist.Its
anindicationoftheirwillingnesstoshovelgreatbigpilesofmoneyintogamedevelopment,and
mostofthetimetheir investmentshaveseensubstantialreturns.RedDeadRedemptionwasa
particularlyimportantreleaseforparentcompanyTakeTwoInteractivethiswasfirsttimesince
2000thattheyearlyfinancialsshowedaprofitwithoutaGTAreleasetopullinthecash.Itwasnt
an easy task though. The gaming press was awash with reports of empoyee abuse over at
developerRockstarSanDiegoharshworkingconditions,unfairpressureonstaffwithoutsuitable
salaryadjustments tomake itworththeirextraeffortespeciallyas thedevelopmentprocess
reachedthefranticcrunchtimeleadinguptorelease.Anincrediblybigproduction,spanningfrom
2005to2010,withhundredsofstaffhavingahandinitovertheyears,RedDeadRedemptionwas
estimatedtohavesetthepublisherbackaround$100million.Thatsasizeable investment,but
thesalesfigureswhistleahappytune.By2012theopenworldWesternepichadshifted13million
copies,andhadfilledtheRockstartrophycabinetwithawardsandaccoladesfromeverycornerof
theindustry.
8. Grand Theft Auto IV 100 Million
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ItsRockstarGamesagain,thistimewithNikoBellicssprawlingmisadventuresthroughLibertyCity
inGrandTheftAutoIV.OfthefewfranchiseswhichcangiveCallOfDutyarunforitsmoneyfor
sales,anyGrandTheftAutoreleasecomeswiththreeguarantees:Itsgoingtocostashedloadto
produce,itsgoingtobreakacoupleofindustryrecordswhenitlands,anditsgoingtoberipped
apartbyconservativefunspoilersbeforetheyveevenplayedthething.GTAIVtickedallofthose
boxes.In2008,thiswasthemostexpensivegamethisindustryhadeverseen,byquiteamargin
anothertitlegenerallyconsideredbythoseintheknowtohavesetthepublisherbackahefty$100
million.Thatsalotofbanknotes,farmorethanNikoandhisnefariouspalscouldhavestuffedinto
theirduffelbagsinthatepicbankheistmission.Moneywellspent?Ohyes,verymuchso.GTAIV
killed itatretailsomethingalongthe linesof$500million insales in itsfirstweek.Andthat,
friends, iswhatwe calla successful launch.PublicoutcryoverNikosdrunkdriving,prostitute
murdering shenanigansaside,whenyourproductionandmarketingcostsaredwarfedbyyour
weekonerevenues,youreontoagoodthing.
7. Disney Infinity 100 Million
Disneyknewtheyhadacashcowontheirhandswiththisfigurinebasedsmashhityouhaveto
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assumethattheycalleditInfinitybecausethatshowmuchmoneyDisneyexpectstomakewith
thisoneoverthecomingyears.Howmanydollars?$infinity.TheymusthaveseenhowActivisions
bankaccountwasoverflowingwithSkylandersrevenueanddecidedtheywantedapieceofthat
action.Andwhynot?Disneyownssomeofthemostloved,mostwidelyrecognisedcharactersin
entertainment history, an unmissable opportunity to print money on a vast scale. Disney
Interactivehadbeentakingabitofaknock,failingtocapturemuchattentionwithstandalone
titleslikeEpicMickey2whichstruggledatretail.DisneyInfinitywas,somewouldsay,anallor
nothingscenariotheyrestructuredandrefocusedtoploughresources intothisnewproject,
spendingover$100milliontoputitalltogether.ButDisneyneednthaveworried.ByFebruary
2014theyhadsold3millionstarterpacks,surpassingtheirownexpectations.Astarterpack,which
includesacopyofthegame,thebasestationandthreefigurines,issignificantlymoreexpensive
thanyouraveragegame,andwhenyoufactorinthepilesofadditionalfiguressoldseparately
andhowmanyarestilltocomeyoucanalmostsmellthefreshdollarbills.
6. Max Payne 3 105 Million
AndyetanothertitlefromtheRockstarGamesstablecracksthe$100millionmark.Atnumber6
wehave
the
moody
noir
action
drama
Max
Payne
3,
which
rung
up
abill
of
$105
000
000,
according
toindustryanalysts.Bythispointweregettingabitblasaboutafigurelike$105million,solets
give itsomecontext: ifyouweretospendallofthatonBigMacs,andpilethemoneontopof
another,thepilewouldstretchup,well,bloodyhigh.Letsnotgetboggeddownbythedetails.Its
alotofmoney,thatsthepoint.Itsalsoimportantthatwerememberwherefiguresandestimates
likethesecomefrom.ForatotallikeMaxPayne3s$105mill,ananalystwouldtakethenumber
ofstaffonthedevelopmentteam,multiply itbytheaverageannual incomeperdeveloper,and
thenmultiplythatbythe(closeenoughto)5.25yearsittooktomakethegame.Inotherwords,
there isguessworkhere itsnotanexactscience.Still,whetherthatestimate is5oreven10
millionoffthemark,werestilltalkingaboutaconsiderablepricetagforMr.Payneslatestouting.
Rockstarwouldhavefeltittoo,knowingthattobreakeventheywouldhavetosellaround4million
copies.Whichtheydid,butonlyayearlater.Notquitethepropanefuelledsalesexplosionwere
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usedtoseeingfromsomethingwithaRockstarlogoonthebox.Itsunderstandablethoughfive
yearswasalongtimetowaitforagameserieswhich,beforethethirdtitlearrived,hadntsoldfar
morethanaround7millioncopiesoverall.
5. Final Fantasy VII 145 Million
There issomeambiguitywithregards toFinalFantasyVIIsplacementhere. Ifwere lookingat
developmentcostsalone,thishighlyregardedRPGdoesntevencrackthetop20.ButSquare(Now
withaddedEnix!)wassofocusedonmaking inroads intotheseeminglyuncrackableUSmarket
thattheypumpedmorethandoublethedevelopmentbudgetintomarketingalone.Anditworked.
BeforeFinalFantasyVII,veryfewRPGsfromthelandoftherisingsunhadmademeaningfulimpact
intheWest,strugglingtocapitaliseonthishugecustomerbaseandtheirswollenwallets.One
hundredmilliondollarsdidthetrickthough,whichiswhatsourcesclaimSquareearmarkedasa
marketingbudgetforthisgenredefining(andfanbasedividing)roleplayer.TheJapanesemarket
devouredthegamerightawayhardlysurprisingforaFinalFantasylaunchinitshomecountry
sellingover2millioncopiesinitsfirstthreedays.USgamerscametothepartytoo,reachingthe
halfmillion mark within three weeks. A fraction of those sold in Japan, but an impressive
achievementconsidering
the
US
markets
previously
cold
reception
of
JRPGs.
By
May
2010
Final
Fantasy VII had sold 10 million copies,justifying the $145 million spent on the creation and
marketingofoneofthemostlovedroleplayinggamesofalltime.
4. Star Wars: The Old Republic 200
Million
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HowhappyEAmusthavebeeninthoseearlydaysofTheOldRepublic.Industrynewsportalswere
crammedfullofheadlinesaboutRecordBreakingMMOSalesandFastestGrowingMMORPG
forStarWars:TheOldRepublic,braggingaboutanadmirableadoptionrateof1millionusersin
the first threedays.Thehoneymoonphasedidnt lastthoughafterasurgeuptoaround1.7
million,thenumbersdroppedto1.3millioninamonthortwo.EAclaimedthatthisdropwaswithin
their expectations, but it still couldnt have been pleasant news. A year later the whole paid
subscription idea had been abandoned, like many other bigname MMOs. Going with the
freemiummodeltookawaytheinitialbarrierofentry,andnumbersclimbed.Butitmusthavebeen
ablowtoEA,LucasArtsanddeveloperBioWaretohavetogofree2play,consideringscaleofThe
OldRepublicsdevelopmentandthemassivecostsinvolved.Atthetimethereweresourcesputting
itdownforaround$300million,afigurerefutedbyEAsJohnRiccitiello.Mostindustryanalysts,
however, shavedaround $100millionoffof thatestimate.$200millionfor a800strong team
workingonthegameoversixyearswasagambleforEA,whorevealedthatundertheoriginal
subscription model they would need 500 000 monthly users to be profitable. The freemium
structuremadeiteasierforgamerstogetapieceoftheaction,butbuiltasubstantialpaywallto
overcomeifyouwantedthefullexperience.
3. Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 200
Million
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AsregularasChristmas,everyyearwegetanewCallOfDutytitle,everyyearwefalloverourselves
tryingtoramitinourconsolesasquicklyashumanlypossible,andeveryyearActivisionsuitssit
smuglyintheboardroom,countingtheirmoneyandcelebratingyetanothersalesrecordbroken.
Mostcopiessold;fastestsellingofalltime;mostcumulativehoursspentonline;leastinnovative
multiplayerthelistgoeson.Theysayyouhavetospendmoneytomakemoney,whichmakesit
oddthentoseethatonlyoneCallOfDutytitlesmakes itontothisTop10 list.Becausetheyre
clearlymakingmoneybutsomehownotalwaysspendingitinaproportionatefashion?Eitherit
doesnt cost as much to drape yet another worldwide warfare setting over the same tired
gameplay,orActivisionisjustmorecageythanmostwhenitcomestorevealingtheirfigures.Still,
whatwedoknowisthat2009smegasellingModernWarfare2costthepublisherafatpileofcash.
InfinityWardgottheirshare,dontworrydevelopmentcostsheresupposedlyranuptoaround
$50million.Andfairplaytothem,asthiswasprobablythemostenduringandenthrallingofthe
ModernWarfaretitlestocomebeforeorsince.Butitsthemarketingandlaunchbudgetthathurls
thisshooterintothirdspotonthelist:awhopping$150millionwasallocatedtogettingtheword
out,tofiringupthathypemachine,andtogettingthegameintoasmanyhandsaspossible.That
maysoundlikeanexorbitantbudgetformarketingandlaunch,butitallmakessensewhenyou
lookatthesalesfigureheadlinesthatfloodedtheinternetwithindaysofthegamelandinginstores.
Firstday
sales
of
$310
million
in
the
US
and
UK.
And
that
was
just
day
one.
Infinity
Wards
Mark
Rubinputtotalworldwidesalesinthe2829millionareaoverallinaninterviewwithTheGuardian,
sowhileModernWarfare2isclearlyoneofthemostexpensivegamesevermade,itsalsooneof
thebiggestsellingofalltime.
2. Grand Theft Auto V 265 Million
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In2013RockstarbeatActivisionattheirowngame.Infact,asfarastheentertainmentindustryis
concerned,theybeateveryone.GrandTheftAutoVbecamethebiggestnameinentertainmentby
hittingthe$1billionrevenuemilestonewithinthreedaysfasterthananyJustinBeaveralbum,
fasterthananyTwilight film,oranythingelse.Thisopenworldcrimecaperbrokeatotalofsix
GuinessWorldRecordsforsalesintheprocess.Thatsoundsaludicrousachievementforavideo
game,soletstakeaquicklookatthosejusttobesure:1.Bestsellingactionadventurevideogame
in24hours2.Bestsellingvideogame in24hours3.Fastestentertainmentpropertytogross$1
billion4.Fastestvideogametogross$1billion5.Highestgrossingvideogamein24hours6.Highest
revenue generated by an entertainment product in 24 hours Ok, so a lot of that sounds like
differentwaystosaythesamething,butthepointisthatRockstarGamesmadeanunbelievable
amountofmoneyoutofthis,oneofthemosthotlyanticipatedreleasesofalltime.Bythetime
TakeTwoInteractiverevealedtheir2014fiscalreports,totalsalesweresittingat33millioncopies.
An incrediblesuccessstory,makenomistake.Obviouslyareleaseofthismagnitude isgoingto
haveaheavydevelopmentandmarketingpricetagattachedtoit,butRockstarknewthatitwasa
prettysafeinvestmentby2013gamerswereinafullblownfrenzyforafollowuptothebrilliant
GTAIV,soweallknewitwouldbeahitatretail.Youhavetobeverycertainthatyouaredelivering
afantasticproductwhenyourepreparedtospend$265milliontomakeithappen.Afterhearing
the sales figures, though, that development and marketing figure sounds almost insignificant,
doesntit?Still,RockstarGamesknewtheirtargetmarket,knewtheyhadastunninggameontheirhands,andknewitwasgoingtobemorethanworththemoney.Ournumberoneentryonthislist,
ontheotherhand,ismoreofagamble.Andasignificantlymoreexpensiveone
1. Destiny 500 Million
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TosaythatActivisionhasalotridingonDestinyisanunderstatementofepicproportions.Bobby
KotickandhisActivisioncomradesarenostrangerstoinvestingheavilyintheproductstheybelieve
in,butevenbytheirstandardsthenumbersbeingthrownaroundforDestinyaremindblowing.
BungiesupcomingMMOextravaganzahasnootheroptionthantobejustaboutperfect,thats
theonlywayitwillcomeclosetomatchingexpectationsexpectationsofcharttoppingMetacritic
ratings,andheadlinegrabbingsales.This isa lot toaskofanygame, letaloneabrandnew IP
withoutthehistoricalfangoodwillthatcomeswithalovedfranchisetobackitup.But,likemany
oflifeschallenges,ifyouthrowenoughmoneyatit,itshouldallworkoutintheend.Whichisthe
angleActivisionisgoingforwithDestiny,andinabigway.CEOBobbyKotickmadeasplashacross
the internetwhenherevealedthatthepublisher ismakinga$500millionbetwithDestiny
almostdoubleRockstarsbill forGTAV.ButActivision isplaying the longgamehere,and that
budgetfiguretakesthatintoconsideration.Development,marketing,MMOinfrastructure,launch
propagandaandmore,andwhereasagamelikeGTAVisforthemostpartaonceoffcost,Destiny
isbeingplottedoutover thenextdecade.Agrand conceptwithagrandprice tag.Lookingat
earningspotential,youwouldhavetoassumethatDestinyisdestinedtobehuge.Withtheamount
ofhypesurroundingthetitleatthemomentheightenedbytheBetadoingtheroundsnowwe
canassumeitwillbesellinginbignumbersrightoutthegate.Profitability,in immediateterms,
wouldneedsomewherearound16millioncopiessoldabigask formostgames,butanalysts
dontsee itbeingaproblem.Rightnow,though,whilewewaiteagerlyforthereleasedatejustaroundthecorner,itsallstillupintheair.ButourmoneyisonDestinytakingcareofthat$500
millionproductionbillwithinweeks,ifnotdays.
PC Game CD Keys:
EAGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/publisher/ea.html
RPGGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/rpggame.html
ACTGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/actgame.html
FPSGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/fpsgame.html
AdventureGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/avggame.html
8/11/2019 10 Most Expensive Video Games of All Time - GameBasin.com
11/11
RacingGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/racgame.html
SportGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/sptgame.html
FTGGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/ftggame.html
RTSGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/rtsgame.html
SLGGamesCDKeyhttp://www.gamebasin.com/pcgames/slggame.html