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Sports and video games often exist in parallel worlds. Their relationship is symbiotic, complimenting each other to stay in perfect harmony.
Sports' entertaining and engaging nature is similar to that of video games. Naturally, these translate well into a digital format. Through sports video games, players experience what it's like to be professional athletes.
Sports game series are some of the most popular and commercially successful franchises in video games. They have a global marketing reach, as they attract fans from all around the world.
As a result, sports video games often transcend gaming by appealing to people from all walks of life who are fans of the sport.
These sports video games series are some of the most famous names in gaming
1) FIFA
Football is known as the world's sport. It is the most viewed sport globally and attracts a massive audience at every professional level of the game.
This is evident with their video games as well. EA Sports' FIFA franchise has been successful for decades owing to the popularity of the beautiful game.
FIFA games have been around since the 90s, with annual releases selling out yearly. This model is often criticized by gaming purists, who consider the practice greedy and minimalistic. However, that doesn't stop sports fans from buying these games every year, making them incredibly profitable for EA.
Despite active competition from Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer (eFootball) video games, EA has monopolized the football gaming market with their licensing and live content.
To EA's credit, FIFA games include several new features every year that distinguish them from their predecessors. The Ultimate Team game mode offers an engaging multiplayer experience.
With its extensive application of microtransactions, this game mode generates a large portion of EA's annual revenue, which is a testament to this franchise's popularity.
2) NBA 2K
Basketball is one of the most famous sports in the world. Despite the sport's popularity in Europe, with dedicated club-based leagues across multiple nations, nothing compares to the NBA.
The American league attracts fans from all over the world and is one of the most marketable franchises in sports.
The appeal of the NBA is evident in the popularity of the 2K video games. Developed by Visual Concepts, these titles have been released annually since 1999 and continue to be commercially successful yearly.
Despite facing heavy criticism due to their emphasis on microtransactions that resembled gambling simulators, NBA 2K games have continued to flourish.
A professional eSports league called the NBA 2K league was also established in 2018.
The My Career mode has witnessed several improvements over the years. The presentation, soundtrack, commentary, and customization options offered by the 2K games have made them fan-favorites amongst basketball enthusiasts, with recent titles selling millions of copies every year.
3) Madden NFL
Developed and published by EA Sports, the Madden series is one of the longest-running franchises in gaming. The franchise was known as John Madden Football until 1993 and sold over 130 million copies by 2018.
Despite the relatively small global reach of the NFL compared to basketball and football, it has a large following in the United States, which is the primary demographic for its video games. The series' popularity improved dramatically after 1993 when it was rebranded and obtained official licensing from the NFL.
The in-depth details, tactics, and plays in the Madden titles have made them popular even with professional American football players and coaches. These games also have a dedicated unofficial cash tournament circuit that organizes frequent tournaments.
The series is also applauded for introducing the sport to newer generations of fans and helping them develop a better understanding of it.
4) WWE 2K
The WWE franchise is the biggest name in sports entertainment. Founded in 1953, the promotion saw a popularity boom in the late 80s, gradually developing into the massive media entity we know today.
WWE ventured into video games in 2000, developed and published by THQ. 2K took over as the publisher in 2013 and has continued the alliance.
Pro-wrestling has been an integral part of people's childhoods for decades. Despite facing competition from rival promotions like TNA, ECW, and AEW, the WWE name has persisted and created a monopoly in this genre of sports entertainment.
This nostalgia aids the popularity of these video games, with fans eager to play as their favorite wrestlers.
With iconic video games such as SmackDown: Here Comes the Pain, All Stars, and the SmackDown vs. Raw series, WWE games have created a strong legacy in gaming.
Recent titles by 2K have continued to innovate, adding new features and improving the graphics and rosters.
5) Tony Hawk's Pro Skater
Tony Hawk is one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. He pioneered modern vertical skateboarding and made a name for himself in the 90s.
He has created a legacy for himself and continues to earn profits off of his name to this day through ventures such as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series.
The first two Pro Skater games are regarded as two of the best sports games of all time. They were critically and commercially successful on release and ranked highly on sites like Metacritic.
Published by Activision, the first game was released in 1999. Since then, the series has had several other mainline games and spin-offs, with a remastered bundle of the first two games being released in 2020.
The arcade-based gameplay and customization options offered by these titles made them popular with fans of the sport, who enjoyed creating their own avatars and grinding out sick skateboarding moves in open immersive environments.
Note: This article reflects the writer's opinions.
