For those of us who love gaming, we all have that one game that sticks out in our mind as our favourite. Maybe it’s the one that started your hobby, perhaps it had a great story that truly resonated with you, or it could be that its gameplay loop is so engaging that you just keep coming back to it time after time.
From Call of Duty to Assassins Creed, Minecraft to Pokémon, there’s a game out there for everyone. But naturally, some games are more well-loved than others. This got us thinking, what are the current most beloved video games across Europe?
Based on social media positive sentiment data from each country in Europe, we headed over to YouGov’s technology section to grab you all the stats you need to see which popular video games are most loved by which countries.
So, without further ado, here are the current most beloved video games across Europe.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II
Even if you’ve no interest in gaming, you’ve almost certainly heard of Call of Duty. One of the most popular gaming franchises for a reason, its blend of fast-paced multiplayer and hard-hitting single-player campaigns brings fans back times and again.
Competing at the top of the list for the franchise’s favourite titles, Black Ops II is often pitted against the likes of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Black Ops I, and World at War as the series’ best game.
But Black Ops II outdoes its predecessor by delivering a high-stakes, choice-driven campaign filled with twists and turns, as well as possibly one of the best versions of Call of Duty’s multiplayer to date. This might well be the reason why it remains one of the most beloved games throughout Europe.
Based on our statistics, gamers in Austria, Denmark, Lithuania, and the UK still hold Black Ops II up as the pinnacle of what a game should be, with a positive sentiment average of roughly 73%. Fans are still showering it with love today, despite it being almost a decade old and with plenty of games released after it.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
With Black Ops II being so popular, is it really any surprise that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare makes the cut as well? Continually touted as the best of all the Call of Duty games based in the modern day, it has a phenomenal campaign that delivers gritty realism and fan-favourite characters you can’t help but grow attached to.
And when you mix this with a simpler multiplayer compared to recent titles, but one that requires skill and time to master, you have a game that caters to old-school and new tastes alike.
As a result, it seems this Call of Duty title is still the go-to game in Estonia, Ireland, and Portugal, with a positive sentiment average of roughly 65%. Even older than Black Ops II, it’s refreshing to see such a venerable game still high on peoples’ lists (though this may also have been helped by its recent remaster).
Animal Crossing: New Horizon
Did you pick up a slight gaming addiction during the recent pandemic lockdown? Was it because of Animal Crossing: New Horizon? Come on, be honest now, we certainly don’t blame you if you did.
Considering the relatively slow-paced nature of the Animal Crossing franchise, it might seem a bit strange to say that New Horizons took the world by storm upon its release. But with everyone being stuck inside, and its easy accessibility, New Horizon suddenly found itself a whole new player base.
And it seems much of that player base has stuck around, wiling away those lazy weekend afternoons catching bugs and digging up fossils, especially in Belgium and Hungary where the game still has a positive sentiment value of over 50%.
Assassins Creed II
While many might argue that the more recent Assassin Creed games are a departure from what made the original releases great, few fans of the series would argue that Assassin’s Creed II might very well be the best game in the franchise.
This is certainly backed by gamers in Finland and Latvia, who give the game a positive sentiment score of well over 50%.
Providing players with a brilliantly crafted single-player storyline that takes you through 15th century Italy, meeting famous historical figures and exploring incredibly accurate recreations of cities from the time period, the first adventure of Ezio Auditore da Firenze is one no self-respecting gamer should miss.
Grand Theft Auto 5
Perhaps the most infamous gaming series in existence, there’s something to be said for experiencing the crime-ridden world of the Grand Theft Auto series. While there hasn’t been a release of a new title in a while, the Grand Theft Auto 5 multiplayer scene is still alive and kicking.
We’re not sure if It’s that or the single-player experience of being in charge of 3 budding criminals, but players in Bulgaria and the Czech Republic certainly can’t get enough of riding their bikes down the side of Mt Chiliad to see if they can reach the bottom alive, with positive sentiment scores of 44% and 25% respectively.
Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
By far one of the most memorable video game series around, not all of the Lego games have hit the mark, but the ones set in the Star Wars universe certainly have.
Blending hilarious physical comedy with the classically vague mumble mode (or full voice acting if you prefer it), Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is going to at least get the odd snort and smile out of you.
And for many gamers in Germany and Malta, it’s still hitting the mark, with both countries providing a positive sentiment score of roughly 50%.
Minecraft
Minecraft. We’ve all heard of it and seen the merchandise everywhere. Most of us have probably even played the game and at least survived the first night. It’s hard to think that an obscure game made by an even more obscure Swedish developer could rise to such heights of fame and popularity. But low and behold, it has.
Minecraft is popular pretty much universally, though it is facing some stiff competition nowadays. Still, for those gaming in Spain and Romania, Minecraft continues to be a source of joy and entertainment for them, with a positive sentiment score of between 25% and 30%.
Pokémon Red
Have you managed to catch ‘em all? One of the oldest video game franchises out there, Pokémon might not shake up the formula very often, but they don’t need to when the original format consistently proves to be the best.
Made for the first Game Boy, Pokémon Red is the original Pokémon, and it’s still as popular as ever in Italy and the Netherlands, thanks to a consistent positive sentiment score of 30%-35%.
Rocket League
Ever wanted to bounce around a miniature football area in a tiny remote control car that flips and rolls at the push of a button. Well, that’s Rocket League in a nutshell. Carefully crafted to pit two skilled teams against one another for intensely close games, Rocket League requires much more skill than its simple concept implies.
Perhaps this is why it’s still very popular in France and Sweden, offering a positive sentiment score of 40%-45%. It certainly makes for a fun game when you’ve got your mates round.
FIFA 2022
You’d be forgiven for thinking that all FIFA games are the same; and in a way, they are, at least in terms of football mechanics. But if you want to play with the latest teams and clubs, and with the best graphics, then FIFA 2022 is a must.
Being the most recent football game to come out, it makes sense it’s currently the most popular in the franchise. Interestingly, however, it’s not the UK that loves FIFA most, but Luxembourg, with a positive sentiment score of 47%.
Final Fantasy VI
I know, we’re as shocked as you! When you normally hear about Final Fantasy, you expect to hear about how good Final Fantasy VII is rather than Final Fantasy VI. But it seems that, for gamers in Cyprus at least, Final Fantasy VI is the game to beat, giving it a positive sentiment of 75%.
It might not follow Cloud and his crew on their adventures, but if you’re into Final Fantasy at all, then you should definitely give Final Fantasy VI a try – assuming you can find something to run it on!
Halo: Reach
Halo has been going through something of a rough time since 343 took over from Bungie, and even though Halo: Infinite took steps to rectify the ship’s course, it’s not there yet. So it should come as a shock to no one that people still turn to the old Halo’s to get their Covenant smacking fix.
Halo: Reach not only has one of the best Halo campaigns out there, but its Forge mode is the gold standard in how to give players the freedom and tools to make their own fun. It’s still fairly popular across Europe, but especially in Poland, whose gamers gave it a positive sentiment value of 26%.
Runescape
Step back into the far-flung past of old PC gaming and you may come across a bizarre phenomenon called Runescape. Although lacking in graphics, story, and gameplay mechanics when compared to just about every other game in existence, Runescape is still incredibly popular today.
And if you ask a Croatian gamer, it might very well be their favourite game, as it received a 56% positive sentiment score here.
Super Mario Bros
Last, but not least, did you really think we’d be able to get away with talking about beloved video games without mentioning the granddaddy of them all? Mario might not be as well known as he once was, but the titular Super Mario Bros that started it all remains popular in Greece, with a positive sentiment of 52%.
And there you have it, those are the current most popular video games across Europe. While some are more popular than others, it’s clear that those with low scores just have other great games to compete with.
Did your favourite game make the list? If not, that’s fine, not every good game needs to be universally popular to make it good. Of course, if you want to try some of the games we’ve mentioned here and don’t have the system to play them on, then look no further than the Ebuyer store.
From gaming PCs and gaming laptops to Xboxes, Switches, and PlayStations with all the trimmings, visit the Ebuyer store today to see how we can help you. Order today and our express delivery could get it to you within 24 hours. Be sure to look at the Ebuyer blog as well, for more pieces like this one.
