2004 in video gaming

List of years in video gaming (table)

2004 saw many sequels and prequels in video games. New intellectual properties included Fable, Far Cry, Killzone, Mario vs. Donkey Kong, Monster Hunter, Ninja Gaiden, Half-Life, and Red Dead Revolver.

Events

Business

Notable releases

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

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

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.

Video game sales

Based on figures from the NPD Group.

Best-selling video games of 2004 in the United States[3]
Rank Title Console Publisher
1 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas PS2 Rockstar Games
2 Halo 2 Xbox Microsoft Game Studios
3 Madden NFL 2005 PS2 EA Sports
4 ESPN NFL 2K5 PS2 Sega
5 Need For Speed: Underground 2 PS2 Electronic Arts
6 Pokémon Fire Red with adapter GBA Nintendo
7 NBA Live 2005 PS2 EA Sports
8 Spider-Man 2 PS2 Activision
9 Halo: Combat Evolved Xbox Microsoft Game Studios
10 ESPN NFL 2K5 Xbox Sega

Highest critically reviewed games (Metacritic)

Number Video Game Publisher Platform Release Date Average score Number of reviews Refs
1 Half-Life 2 Valve Corporation PC November 16 96 81 reviews [4]
2 Halo 2 Microsoft Game Studios Xbox November 9 95 91 reviews [5]
3 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Rockstar Games PlayStation 2 October 26 95 80 reviews [6]
4 Burnout 3: Takedown Electronic Arts Xbox September 7 94 76 reviews [7]
5 Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow Ubisoft Xbox March 23 93 74 reviews [8]
6 World of Warcraft Blizzard Entertainment PC November 23 93 53 reviews [9]
7 Unreal Tournament 2004 Atari PC March 16 93 48 reviews [10]
8 World Soccer Winning Eleven 7 International Konami PlayStation 2 February 17 93 28 reviews [11]
9 Metroid Prime 2: Echoes Nintendo GameCube November 15 92 60 reviews [12]
10 Rome: Total War Activision PC September 22 92 58 reviews [13]

References

  1. "Attendance and Stats". IGN. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/915057-sacred/data
  3. "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.
  4. "Reviews for Half-Life 2". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  5. "Reviews for Halo 2". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  6. "Reviews for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  7. "Reviews for Burnout 3: Takedown". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  8. "Reviews forTom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  9. "Reviews for World of Warcraft". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  10. "Reviews for Unreal Tournament 2004". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  11. "Reviews for World Soccer Winning Eleven 7 International". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  12. "Reviews for Metroid Prime 2: Echoes". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  13. "Reviews for Rome: Total War". Metacritic. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
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