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2013 in video games

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Numerous video games were released in 2013. Many awards went to games such as Madden NFL 25, NBA 2K14, WWE 2K14, NBA Live 14, BioShock Infinite, Grand Theft Auto V, The Last of Us, and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. New video game consoles released in 2013 include the PlayStation 4 from Sony Computer Entertainment and the Xbox One from Microsoft.

Series with new installments in 2013 include Ace Attorney, ARMA, Army of Two, Assassin's Creed, Batman: Arkham, Battlefield, BioShock, Call of Duty, Crysis, Dead Rising, Dead Space, Devil May Cry, Final Fantasy, Fire Emblem, Forza Motorsport, God of War, Gears of War, Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto, Killer Instinct, Killzone, The Legend of Zelda, Lost Planet, Luigi's Mansion, Mario Party, Metal Gear, Metro, Need for Speed, Pokémon, Rayman, Pikmin, Saints Row, SimCity, Sly Cooper, Sonic The Hedgehog, StarCraft, Super Mario, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, Tomb Raider, Total War, and Zoo Tycoon.

In addition, 2013 saw the introduction of several new properties, including Beyond: Two Souls, The Last of Us, Papers, Please, Tearaway, Cookie Clicker and The Wonderful 101.

Highest-grossing games

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The following were 2013's top ten highest-grossing video games in terms of worldwide revenue (including physical sales, digital purchases, subscriptions, microtransactions, free-to-play and pay-to-play) across all platforms (including mobile, PC and console platforms).

No. Game Revenue Publisher(s) Genre Platform(s) Business model Ref.
1 Puzzle & Dragons $1,522,000,000 GungHo Online Entertainment (SoftBank Group) Puzzle Mobile Free-to-play [1]
2 Candy Crush Saga $1,460,000,000 King Digital Entertainment Puzzle Mobile Free-to-play [2]
3 World of Warcraft $1,041,000,000 Blizzard Entertainment (Activision Blizzard) MMORPG PC, Console Subscription / pay-to-play [3]
4 Grand Theft Auto V $1,000,000,000 Rockstar Games (Take-Two Interactive) Action-adventure Console Buy-to-play [4]
5 Call of Duty: Ghosts $1,000,000,000 Activision (Activision Blizzard) FPS PC, Console Buy-to-play [5]
6 Crossfire $1,000,000,000 Smilegate / Tencent FPS PC Free-to-play [6]
7 League of Legends $624,000,000 Riot Games / Tencent MOBA PC Free-to-play [7]
8 Pokémon X / Y $464,000,000 Nintendo / The Pokémon Company RPG Console Buy-to-play [8][9]
9 Dungeon Fighter Online $426,000,000 Neople / Nexon Beat 'em up PC Free-to-play [7]
10 World of Tanks $372,000,000 Wargaming.net Vehicular combat, MMO PC Free-to-play [7]

Top-rated games

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Critically acclaimed titles

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Metacritic (MC) and GameRankings (GR) are aggregators of video game journalism reviews.

2013 games and expansions scoring at least 90/100 (MC) or 90% (GR)[10][11]
Game Publisher Release Date Platform MC score GR score
Grand Theft Auto V Rockstar Games September 17, 2013 PS3 97/100 97.01%
Grand Theft Auto V Rockstar Games September 17, 2013 X360 97/100 96.1%
BioShock Infinite 2K Games March 26, 2013 PS3 94/100 95.94%
The Last of Us Sony Computer Entertainment June 14, 2013 PS3 95/100 95.09%
BioShock Infinite 2K Games March 26, 2013 WIN 94/100 92.62%
Flower Sony Computer Entertainment November 15, 2013 PS4 91/100 93.57%
Fez Trapdoor May 1, 2013 WIN 91/100 93.5%
Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection Konami July 9, 2013 PS3 93/100 93.33%[12]
Super Mario 3D World Nintendo November 21, 2013 WiiU 93/100 92.56%
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons 505 Games September 3, 2013 WIN 90/100 93.12%
Rayman Legends Ubisoft August 29, 2013 WiiU 92/100 93%
BioShock Infinite 2K Games March 26, 2013 X360 93/100 91.89%
Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Director's Cut Square Enix October 22, 2013 WIN 91/100 92.5%[13]
Rayman Legends Ubisoft August 29, 2013 PS3 91/100 91.81%
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD Nintendo September 20, 2013 WiiU 90/100 91.08%
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds Nintendo November 22, 2013 3DS 91/100 90.55%
Spelunky Mossmouth August 8, 2013 WIN 90/100 91%
Mass Effect 3: Citadel Electronic Arts March 5, 2013 PS3 90/100 90.67%[14]
The Stanley Parable Galactic Cafe October 13, 2013 WIN 88/100 90.25%
Dota 2 Valve July 9, 2013 WIN 90/100 89.27%
Rayman Legends Ubisoft August 29, 2013 WIN 90/100 89%[15]
Rayman Legends Ubisoft August 29, 2013 X360 90/100 88.88%
Crusader Kings II: The Old Gods Paradox Interactive May 28, 2013 WIN 88/100 90%[16]
XCOM: Enemy Within 2K Games November 12, 2013 PS3 88/100 90%[17]
Rage of the Gladiator Gamelion Studios September 19, 2013 3DS 88/100 90%[18]

Major awards

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Category/Organization31st Golden Joystick Awards
October 25, 2013		VGX
December 7, 2013		17th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards
February 6, 2014		10th British Academy Games Awards
March 12, 2014		14th Game Developers Choice Awards
March 19, 2014
Game of the Year Grand Theft Auto VThe Last of Us
Independent / Debut[i] Mark of the Ninja Gone Home —N/a Gone Home
Downloadable —N/a Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons —N/a Papers, Please
Mobile/Handheld[i]Mobile XCOM: Enemy UnknownPlants vs. Zombies 2: It's About TimeTearawayThe Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Handheld Assassin's Creed III: LiberationThe Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Innovation Oculus Rift—N/aThe Last of UsBrothers: A Tale of Two SonsPapers, Please
Artistic Achievement[i]Animation BioShock Infinite —N/a The Last of Us Tearaway BioShock Infinite
Art Direction The Last of Us
Audio[i]Music —N/aGrand Theft Auto VBioShock InfiniteBioShock Infinite
Sound Design —N/aThe Last of Us
Character or Performance[i]Actor —N/aTroy Baker as Joel
The Last of Us		The Lutece Twins
BioShock Infinite		Ellie
The Last of Us		Ashley Johnson as Ellie
The Last of Us 		—N/a
Actress Ashley Johnson as Ellie
The Last of Us
Game Direction or Design —N/aThe Last of UsGrand Theft Auto VThe Last of Us
Narrative The Last of Us—N/aThe Last of Us
Technical Achievement[i]Gameplay Engineering —N/aGrand Theft Auto V—N/aGrand Theft Auto V
Visual Engineering The Last of Us
Multiplayer/Online[i]Multiplayer Payday 2—N/aWorld of TanksGrand Theft Auto V—N/a
Online World of Tanks
Action/AdventureAction/Shooter —N/aBioShock InfiniteThe Last of Us
Adventure —N/aAssassin's Creed IV: Black FlagThe Last of Us
Casual or FamilyCasual —N/aAnimal Crossing: New LeafPlant vs. Zombies 2: It's About TimeTearaway
Family Super Mario 3D World
Fighting —N/aInjustice: Gods Among Us—N/a
Role-Playing —N/aNi no Kuni: Wrath of the White WitchDiablo III
Sports/RacingSports —N/aNBA 2K14FIFA 14FIFA 14
Racing Forza Motorsport 5
Strategy/Simulation —N/aXCOM: Enemy WithinPapers, Please
Special AwardLifetime Achievement—N/aHall of FamePioneer AwardBAFTA FellowshipLifetime Achievement Award
Ken LevineSam Houser,
Dan Houser,
Leslie Benzies		Eugene JarvisRockstar GamesKen Kutaragi
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Certain award presentations combine these categories.

Events

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Date Event Ref.
February 14 Nintendo starts the "Year of Luigi" to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the titular character. [19]
February 20 – 22 Sony's eighth generation console PlayStation 4 (PS4) reveal held at New York City, New York. [citation needed]
March The beta for Kahoot! is released with the full version released in September. [citation needed]
March 22 – 24 PAX East 2013 held at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. [citation needed]
March 23 – 25 Midwest Gaming Classic 2013 held at the Sheraton Milwaukee Brookfield Hotel in Brookfield, Wisconsin. [citation needed]
March 25 – 29 Game Developers Conference 2013 held in San Francisco, California. [citation needed]
May Cloud9 is founded in Santa Monica, California. [citation needed]
May 21 – 23 Microsoft's eighth generation console Xbox One reveal held at Microsoft Redmond Campus, Washington. [citation needed]
June 11 – 13 E3 2013 was held at the Los Angeles Convention Center. [20]
June 22 – 23 Rezzed 2013 was held at the NEC Birmingham. [21]
July 18 – 21 SDCC 2013 was held at the San Diego Convention Center. [citation needed]
July 19 – 22 PAX Australia 2013 was held at the Melbourne Showgrounds. [citation needed]
August 1 – 4 QuakeCon 2013: The massive annual LAN party held in Dallas, Texas. [citation needed]
August 7 – 11 The International 2013, the third iteration of the annual Dota 2 global esports tournament, was held in Seattle. [citation needed]
August 9 – 11 The Pokémon World Championships was held in Canada instead of the United States. [citation needed]
August 22 – 25 Gamescom 2013 held in Cologne, Germany. [citation needed]
August 30 – September 2 PAX Prime 2013 held at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. [citation needed]
September 9 The Spyro series celebrated its 15th anniversary. [citation needed]
September 19 – 22 Tokyo Game Show 2013 at the Makuhari Messe in Tokyo. [citation needed]
September 26 – 29 Eurogamer Expo 2013 held in Earls Court, London. [citation needed]
October 3 – 6 Indiecade 2013 festival held in Culver City, California. [citation needed]
October 4 – 7 EB Games Expo 2013 held at the Sydney Showground in Sydney Olympic Park, New South Wales. [citation needed]
October 25 – 27 Games Week 2013 held in Milan, Italy. [citation needed]
October 30 – November 3 Paris Games Week 2013 held in Paris, France. [citation needed]
November 8 – 9 BlizzCon 2013 held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California. [citation needed]
December 7 The final Spike Video Game Awards are held. [22]

Notable deaths

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[icon]
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (April 2024)

Hardware releases

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PlayStation 4
Xbox One

The list of game consoles released in 2013.

Date Console Manufacturer Ref.
June 10 Xbox 360 ENA Microsoft [26]
June 20 Xbox 360 EEU [27]
June 25 Ouya Ouya Inc. [citation needed]
July 31 Nvidia Shield Nvidia [28]
October 12 Nintendo 2DSNA/PAL Nintendo [citation needed]
November 14 PlayStation TV Sony [citation needed]
November 15 GameStick PlayJam [citation needed]
PlayStation 4NA Sony [29]
November 22 Xbox One Microsoft [30]
November 26 Nintendo 2DSBR Nintendo [citation needed]
November 29 PlayStation 4PAL Sony [29]
December 7 Nintendo 2DSKOR Nintendo [citation needed]
December 10 MOJO Mad Catz [citation needed]

Games released in 2013

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Video game-based film and television releases

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Title Date Type Distributor(s) Franchise Original game publisher(s) Ref.
Angry Birds Toons March 17, 2013 Animated mini series Toons.TV Angry Birds Rovio Entertainment [31]
Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures June 15, 2013 3D anime series Tokyo MX Pac-Man Namco [32]
Danganronpa: The Animation July 4, 2013 Anime mini series Mainichi Broadcasting System Danganronpa Spike Chunsoft [33]
Genesect and the Legend Awakened July 13, 2013 Anime film Toho (Japan) Pokémon Nintendo
The Pokémon Company		 [34]
Rabbids Invasion August 3, 2013 3D animated series Nickelodeon Rabbids Ubisoft [35]
Pokémon Origins October 2, 2013 Anime mini series TV Tokyo Pokémon Nintendo
The Pokémon Company		 [36]
The Smash Brothers October 11, 2013 Documentary series East Point Pictures Super Smash Bros. Nintendo [37]
Bayonetta: Bloody Fate November 23, 2013 Anime film Gonzo Bayonetta Platinum Games [38]
Persona 3 The Movie: No. 1, Spring of Birth Anime film Aniplex Persona Atlus [39]
How Videogames Changed the World November 30, 2013 Documentary series Channel 4 —N/a —N/a [40]
Moshi Monsters: The Movie December 20, 2013 Animated film Universal Pictures Moshi Monsters Mind Candy [41]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "平成25年12月期 決算短信〔日本基準〕(連結)" (PDF). GungHo Online Entertainment. JASDAQ Securities Exchange. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 5, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  2. ↑ Shontell, Alyson (February 18, 2014). "Candy Crush Is Doing More Than $1 Billion In Sales". Business Insider. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  3. ↑ Pereira, Chris (July 18, 2014). "WoW Was the Top Subscription MMO in 2013, Star Wars: The Old Republic #4". GameSpot. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Confirmed: Grand Theft Auto 5 breaks 6 sales world records". Guinness World Records. October 8, 2013. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  5. ↑ Jackson, Mike (November 6, 2013). "CoD: Ghosts retail spend down on Black Ops 2 'due to console transition'". Computer and Video Games. Archived from the original on November 8, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  6. ↑ Davis, Kurt (December 9, 2014). "Why the South Korean game market looks almost nothing like it did last year". Tech in Asia. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 "US digital games market 2013". SuperData Research. January 16, 2014. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Financial Results Briefing for the Nine-Month Period Ended December 2013" (PDF). Nintendo. January 30, 2014. p. 4. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  9. ↑ "So you're a grown-ass adult paying $239 to play Pokemon". Destructoid. October 6, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Best Video Games for 2013". Metacritic. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  11. ↑ "Highest-Ranking Games of 2013 (with at least 5 reviews)". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  13. ↑ "Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Director's Cut for PC". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  14. ↑ "Mass Effect 3: Citadel for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  15. ↑ "Rayman Legends for PC". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Crusader Kings II: The Old Gods for PC". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  17. ↑ "XCOM: Enemy Within for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Rage of the Gladiator for 3DS". GameRankings. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  19. ↑ "Nintendo's 'Year of Luigi' puts Mario's brother on center stage. But why?". EW.com. Retrieved January 19, 2024.
  20. ↑ "Attendance and Stats". IGN. June 8, 2012. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  21. ↑ "Rezzed 2013: full developer schedule announced". VG247. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  22. ↑ Staff, Polygon (December 7, 2013). "VGX 2013: All the news from Spike's video game awards". Polygon. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
  23. ↑ Tabuchi, Hiroko (September 19, 2013). "Hiroshi Yamauchi, Who Steered Nintendo to Dominance, Dies at 85". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  24. ↑ Tilly, Chris (October 2, 2013). "Tom Clancy Has Died". IGN. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  25. ↑ "Danny Wells, Luigi on 'Super Mario Bros.' Show, Dies at 72". Variety. December 5, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
  26. ↑ "E3 2013: New Xbox 360 Model Revealed". IGN. June 10, 2013. Archived from the original on October 3, 2021.
  27. ↑ "New Xbox 360 model on sale now for £149 in the UK". CNET UK. Archived from the original on June 22, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2013.
  28. ↑ Grush, Andrew (July 31, 2013). "After Initial Delay, NVIDIA Shield now Available for $299". Android Authority. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
  29. 1 2 O'Brien, Terrence (August 20, 2013). "PlayStation 4 hitting shelves on November 15th in the US for $399, November 29th in Europe". Engadget. AOL. Archived from the original on August 20, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
  30. ↑ Stern, Joanna (November 22, 2013). "Xbox One Launch: Microsoft's First Gaming Console in Years Launches With Lines". ABC News. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
  31. ↑ Gaudiosi, John. "Rovio Execs Explain What Angry Birds Toons Channel Opens Up To Its 1.7 Billion Gamers". Forbes. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  32. ↑ 41 Entertainment Named Worldwide Distributor for PAC- MAN 3D 41 Entertainment September 26, 2011
  33. ↑ "Danganronpa: The Animation Makes a Mess of a Great Game". Kotaku. October 15, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  34. ↑ "Pokémon: Shinsoku no Genesect Film to Open on July 13". Anime News Network. December 12, 2012. Retrieved December 13, 2012.
  35. ↑ Strecker, Erin. "Check out a clip of Nick's new game-turned-TV show 'Rabbids Invasion'". EW.com via internet archive. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2025.
  36. ↑ "The Original Pokemon Hero Returns In Pokemon Origins". Kotaku Australia. September 27, 2013. Archived from the original on September 30, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  37. ↑ Michael, Cale (November 23, 2020). "Super Smash Bros. Melee "Metagame" documentary to begin airing on Dec. 11". Dot Esports. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  38. ↑ "Bayonetta: Bloody Fate Anime Film's Full Trailer Posted". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  39. ↑ Green, Scott (November 17, 2013). "VIDEO: Latest "Persona 3 The Movie #1: Spring of Birth" Anime Preview". www.crunchyroll.com. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  40. ↑ "TV review: How Videogames Changed the World". Eurogamer.net. December 5, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2024.
  41. ↑ Lodge, Guy (December 17, 2013). "Film Review: 'Moshi Monsters: The Movie'". Variety. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
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