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A killer app or system seller is a game that makes a consumer want to purchase a console primarily for that game. It can be because of a significant leap forward in graphics or because a game offers something unique, never seen before, critical acclaim, or appeals to an entirely new audience. Companies try to put out at least one system seller during the launch of a console in order to convince people to purchase it. In the case of PC gaming, a gamer may spend money upgrading computer parts to play the game at high settings.

Exclusives tend to be better system sellers than cross-platform games. Additionally, a sequel on a new console is usually a big system seller (e.g. Halo 3 on Xbox 360). However, a sequel released on the original game's console may not generate higher system sales, because gamers who wanted that type of game will have already purchased the console for the original (e.g. Halo 2 on Xbox).

Typically, a good game will cause some sort of hardware bump, but only a killer game provides a large and sustained system boost. A killer game is nearly always a best seller, but a best selling game is not always a system seller.

Second generation[]

Atari VCS (Atari 2600)

ColecoVision

Third generation[]

Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom)

Sega Master System (Sega Mark III)

Fourth generation[]

PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16)

Sega Mega Drive (Genesis)

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Super Famicom)

Neo Geo

Sega CD (Mega CD)

Fifth generation[]

Sega Saturn

PlayStation

Nintendo 64

Sixth generation[]

Dreamcast

PlayStation 2

GameCube

Xbox

Seventh generation[]

Xbox 360

Wii

PlayStation 3

Eighth generation[]

Wii U

  • Mario Kart 8 (2014)
  • Splatoon (2015) - In Japan, the title kept the Wii U from abysmal sales. Its sequel has become one of the best.

PlayStation 4

Xbox One

Nintendo Switch

Handheld[]

Game Boy

Sega Game Gear

Nintendo DS

PlayStation Portable (PSP)

Nintendo 3DS

PC[]

External links[]

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