Best selling Xbox 360 games of all time

By Cale Hunt
last updated

Released November 22, 2005, the Xbox 360 has sold over 85 million units worldwide. Microsoft recently announced they would be discontinuing production of new Xbox 360 consoles, but would be continuing support for both hardware and software. Good news for owners of nearly one billion games sold since 2005. There are thousands of Xbox 360 games — some are great, some are downright awful. Here we focus on the former with a list of the best selling Xbox 360 games of all time.

Data Source: We are aware of the problems behind VGChartz, including estimated data and their admitted lack of a large sample size. Despite its shortcomings, VGChartz strives to offer a glimpse of game sales not often seen by the public, and is indeed the best source of data currently available.

Kinect Adventures!

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Kinect Adventures (Image credit: Microsoft)

21.78 Million Copies

Developed by Good Science Studio and released in 2010 as part of the Kinect bundle, Kinect Adventures! is a collection of sports and action games. Kinect Adventures! was mostly panned by reviewers who blamed a lack of game variety and game complexity for low review scores. Despite poor reception, Kinect Adventures! was many gamers' introduction to the Kinect, and will forever hold a special place their hearts. With 21.78 million copies sold worldwide, Kinect Adventures! is the best selling Xbox 360 game of all time.

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Grand Theft Auto V

16.17 Million Copies

Released originally on PS3 and Xbox 360 before being remade for current-gen consoles and PC, Rockstar's latest crime opera is a major hit. Featuring a deep storyline characteristic of the Grand Theft Auto series, GTA V takes place in the city of Los Santos (modeled after Los Angeles). Rob, maim, and kill your way to fortune and fame as you battle against government officials and criminals — hard to tell the difference sometimes, isn't it? A multiplayer mode was introduced with GTA V that lets you compete against other players for control of Los Santos. As expected, GTA V sold 16.17 million Xbox 360 copies, enough to come in at number two on our list.

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

14.72 Million Copies

The eighth game in the Call of Duty series was developed by Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games, and was released November 8, 2011. Modern Warfare 3 was the first COD title to feature a cooperative survival mode, and saw the original killstreak system get a revamp. MW3 was met with warm reviews and remains one of the most popular Call of Duty titles with 14.72 million Xbox 360 copies sold.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops

14.55 Million Copies

Black Ops, released November 9, 2010, is the seventh episode in the Call of Duty series. Set during Cold War tensions between the USA and USSR, the campaign sees players carry out and fall victim to classified CIA operations called (as the title suggests) black operations. In addition to the single-player campaign, Black Ops features classic Call of Duty multiplayer action, and a remade Zombies mode that debuted in World at War. The game was received poorly by gamers, most stating bugs and lag as the source of frustration. Despite these problems, Black Ops has sold 14.55 million copies on Xbox 360.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops II

13.70 Million Copies

Treyarch was the first developer to push the Call of Duty series into the future using fictional weapons and technology. Black Ops II was released November 13, 2012 and was celebrated for its non-linear story, a first for Call of Duty. Black Ops II includes, of course, the famous COD multiplayer, this time with a few changes to killstreaks and create-a-class mechanics. Don't forget Zombies, which helped propel Black Ops II to 13.70 million Xbox 360 copies sold and to number five on our list.

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

13.49 Million Copies

There is a debate between gamers as to which Call of Duty is the all-time best: Modern Warfare 2, or the original Modern Warfare? If a verdict is based on copies sold, Infinity Ward's Modern Warfare 2 is the clear winner. Featuring a multiplayer experience largely customizable and incredibly fun, and capped off with a well-written campaign, Modern Warfare 2 was for many gamers a benchmark. Having sold 13.49 million copies on Xbox 360 cements MW2 at number six on our list.

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Halo 3

12.13 Million Copies

Released September 25, 2007, Bungie's Halo 3 was the final installment in the story begun in Halo: Combat Evolved. Massive hype (fanned by Microsoft's enormous marketing budget) surrounded Halo 3's release, and some Xbox Live users who received a leaked version codenamed Epsilon had their Live accounts banned until year 9999. Halo 3 was met with critical acclaim and most gamers claim it lives up to the hype. It sold enough copies to hit the number seven spot on our list with 12.13 million copies sold.

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Grand Theft Auto IV

11.01 Million Copies

Coming in at number eight on our list with 11.01 million copies sold, Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV was a massive hit when it was released April 29, 2008. Featuring massive graphics and scope upgrades over San Andreas, and an organic-feeling replication of New York City, GTA IV is one of those titles many gamers will revisit several times. Players take control of Niko Bellic, an Eastern European war veteran trying to fit into American culture and ultimately trying to get his own slice of the American dream. The dark denouement to an extensive storyline is one you won't soon forget.

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Call of Duty: Ghosts

10.16 Million Copies

Because it was developed by three separate studios — Infinity Ward, Neversoft, and Raven Software — Call of Duty: Ghosts came out as a mish-mash of poor designs, poor gameplay, and poor writing. Although it was received warmly by critics (cough rigged cough), gamers everywhere criticized Ghosts for unoriginal multiplayer and an unexciting campaign. Since Call of Duty sales don't seem to be based on reviews, Ghosts sold enough copies (10.16 million!) to hit number nine on our list.

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Halo: Reach

9.85 Million Copies

Bungie's final Halo game left a lasting impression on many gamers. Released September 14, 2010, Reach went on to sell 9.85 million Xbox 360 copies, making it the tenth-best selling Xbox 360 game of all time. Halo: Reach featured several new multiplayer game modes and also featured new items, including a jetpack, persistent armor, the ability to sprint, a drop shield, and active camouflage. Halo: Reach received critical acclaim for feeling like an original work in a running series of games.

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Cale Hunt
Cale Hunt
Senior Editor, Laptop Reviews

Cale Hunt is formerly a Senior Editor at Windows Central. He focuses mainly on laptop reviews, news, and accessory coverage. He's been reviewing laptops and accessories full-time since 2016, with hundreds of reviews published for Windows Central. He is an avid PC gamer and multi-platform user, and spends most of his time either tinkering with or writing about tech.

57 Comments
  • Where's COD haters??
  • Here's one.  It's sucked since MW2.  Battlefield is the new huge shooter, COD is dead to me.
  • MW2 wasn't even that good, just had good maps. Even the first MWwas an unbalanced, overrated game. Battlefieldwill never be for me because I abhor the 64-player, large-scale stuff that makes it way too reliant on matchmaking luck. CoDis now a total mess of garbage that isn't guns, and Battlefield's an oversized monstrosity. That's why I'm sticking to DOOM, what with Halo 5 being an unbalanced mess as well, from a map standpoint.
  • So you're basically saying that you're utterly useless at shooters.
  • I certainly am.  I stick to Rocksmith and GTA 5 these days lol... Goat Simulator is free right now and that is hilarious
  • Halo 5 is the only one I'm maybe bad at, by part of that is how much I hate it. I only played BF once, I just think 64-plater is too big and meaningless. CoD, I was never bad at. I haven't played heavily since BO2, and I maintained a K/D of around 1.8 lifetime, was about 2.3 near the end. Just don't like the ADHD nature of does these days, which is why I liked the less-messy styles of Battlefront and Doom, where shooting is more of a focus than ancillary junk like BO3 has.
  • Why so bad Keith?
  • Why so mad?
  • Was born this way ;)
  • Well, i always knew that CoD sells well and is very popular... But it don't make me like the game.... Actually my favorite 360 games/franchise aren't in the list.. It's Gears of War (my favorite is Gears 3, also love Gears 2 and 1) ..... PS.: Don't judge me, it's just my opinion, I'm not a hater, just don't like...
  • After they stopped doing WWII games, the game has been useless.
  •  Oh my God.  I thought I was the only one.  Call of Duty has always been about world wars.  all of these fake wars bore the **** out of me.
  • OH cool... GTA and COD ... got it.  Kinect Adventures I have never even seen played let alone owned... weird.
  • They gave it away free with the Kinect, and the Kinect console bundles--that's why. It's like how Wii Sportsis the best-selling game ever, but it was never actually sold--just free with the Wii.
  • Wii Sports is now the third-best-selling game ever, after Minecraft (#2) and Tetris (#1). I don't think bundled games should really count, though.
  • Kinect Adventures was alot of fun,me and my daughter are just short 1 achievement on that game. We would play until we were exhausted.
  • It was a ton of fun. And yet we have nothing of any value for the Kinect on the One. I really don't understand why the lack of content. We don't even have a freaking golf game for the One. It is pathetic.
  • There are some superb Kinect games on Xbox One: Fantasia, D4, Dance Central Spotlight, Fruit Ninja Kinect 2, Xbox Fitness, etc. But, yes, there should be many more but Microsoft completely failed in supporting the peripheral.
  • I'm wondering how many Halo 4 copies were sold. I'm thinking not much lower than Reach.
  • Halo 4 > Reach. Reach was an unbalanced mess with armor lock. Reach felt like Bungie rushing to finish their obligations to MS ASAP to go full throttle with Destiny. Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
  • No Minecraft on the list? :(
  • Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition absolutely should be on this list. Microsoft publicly announced more than a year ago that it sold more than 13 million copies. It's probably closer to 14 million by now. That's the problem with using a flawed source like VGchartz: the data are completely wrong.
  • 13 million on 360 alone?
  • Yes, 13 million on Xbox 360 alone, and another 7 million on Xbox One. But those numbers are at least a year old. Should be higher now.
  • I'm starting to see a pattern....
  • No Gears of War??
  • Black Ops 2 best CoD
  • How many are backwards compatible with Xbox One :/
  • Red Dead Redemption wasn't mentioned, I loved that game.
  • I just got another huge laugh upon reading this article closer:  They are citing VGChartz, a known website of feuding lunatic fanboys that invent things out of midair with no sources.  GREAT WORK WINDOWSCENTRAL TEAM!!!
  • I wouldn't trust a source that counts bundled "games". IMO Kinect (including almost all of the Kinect games) for the 360 was more of an experiment, which was the foundation for the awesome Kinect we have on the Xbox One.
  • Are they really counting bundled games? Did anyone actually purchase kinect adventures as a standalone game?
  • I guess they do, since I know of no store that sold new Kinect Adventures separate, only used, and those purchases shouldn't count either.
  • And not a single one of them is actually good
  • Halo 3 was excellent as well as GTA IV, V, and OG MW. Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
  • I have virtually every game on this list. Love them all!!!
  • Time has not ended yet. But since the 360 production has ended then I guess the headline is accurate.
  • cod cod cod cod cod ffs worst franchise ever. Halo Ftw :D
  • Halo 2 was for the xbox(original) or the 360? P.S.
    Where is my new Turok Game?
  • OG XBox Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
  • What a disappointing list to read. Most of those games will be forgotten in the years to come.
  • You think games like GTA, Halo and Call of Duty will be forgotten in a few years?...
  • I don't understand the hate for Ghosts (campaign wise, I don't play multiplayer). I found it to be well done and exciting. It's hard to expect too much to be "innovative" in a Call of Duty game... they are what they are, and that's why I love them.
  • I'm with you dude. I f'n loved Ghosts! I got all achievements, played in ever clan wars and reached max prestige. I really hope Infinity Ward amazes me with Infinite Warfare because I think I would have preferred Ghosts 2.
  • Agreed! The campaign was awesome. The same goes for the BO3 campaign, which was incredibly fun!
  • Let's also not forget Advanced Warfare's campaign.  Kevin Spacey was awesome, and I really enjoyed Sledgehammer's first game.  I really feel like people that complain about Call of Duty do it because they're only playing the twitchy multiplayer... I can't have fun with that and it it was the only part of the game I would say they suck too.  But the campaigns are really enjoyable.
  • Alan Wake may not have been a "best seller" but it was (imo) the best game on the 360.
  • Playing it right now on Xbox One as I got it for pre-ordering Quantum Break. It's fantastic. I don't normally like that genre, but I'm on the edge of my seat playing it. Can't put it down.
  • Vgchartz is purely a huge guess. No respectable website should be using it as a source. They've been proven to be completely off the mark numerous times in the past.
  • The games that I spent the most time playing on the 360 were Skyrim, Fallout 3, Viva Piñata and Oblivion, the latter I managed to rack up over 200 hours of playtime. That was before the wife and kids of course!
  • bahahhaha after seeing Gta5 as number 2, i was wondering which took #1 spot. I never would have guessed  haahaha
  • The great games mentioned in the comments go to show that sales are not everything. Alan Wake & Red Dead Redemption are 2 of the best in my opinion. Tom Clancy Ghost & Rainbow also got many hours of play time from me. Just to throw in a sports game I'd add The Bigs as well.
  • Sales are useless in "popular" lists. Know quite some people, including myself who purchase games, and don't like them after a couple hours, never to be played again. Got roughly 100 digital titles on 360, and a lot of them were played .5-3 hours at most. Same with Xbox One. 200+ digital games in my library, and I play like 10 of them regularly, and maybe 3 have gotten past 100hrs of playtime. Those are Fallout 4, GTAV and Minecraft.
  • I liked ghosts campaign, I liked that it tried some new things. The space sections especially were really enjoyable and I could see a game fleshed out from that.
  • Couldn't agree more
  • Ghosts was my fave. Such an intense campaign.
  • Is this accurate? Are they counting the copies of Kinect Adventures that came bundled with the hardware or copies that were sold separately?