A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| +... |
1985 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Super Mario Bros. and Kung Fu, along with new titles such as Commando, Duck Hunt, Gauntlet, Ghosts 'n Goblins, Gradius, Hang-On, Space Harrier, Tetris and The Way of the Exploding Fist. The year's highest-grossing arcade video games were Hang-On and Karate Champ in the United States, and Commando in the United Kingdom. The year's best‑selling home system was the Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom) for the second year in a row, while the year's best‑selling home video game was Super Mario Bros.
Financial performance
In the United States, annual home video game sales fell to $100 million ($280 million adjusted for inflation) in 1985.[1] Meanwhile, the arcade game industry began recovering in 1985.[2][3][4]
Highest-grossing arcade games
Japan
In Japan, the following titles were the top-grossing arcade video games on the bi-weekly Game Machine charts in 1985.
| Month | Table arcade cabinet | Upright/cockpit arcade cabinet | Ref | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Points | Title | Points | ||
| January | Spartan X (Kung-Fu Master) | 17.39 | TX-1 V8 | 16.1 | [5][6] |
| February | 14.61 | 15 | [7][8] | ||
| March | Samurai Nipponichi | 16.22 | 13.13 | [9][10] | |
| April | Return of the Invaders | 13.26 | 14.84 | [11][12] | |
| May | I'm Sorry | 14.58 | 14.43 | [13][14] | |
| June | Senjō no Ōkami (Commando) | 14.55 | Wyvern F-0 | 16.07 | [15][16] |
| July | Ping Pong King | 16.22 | TX-1 V8 | 14.96 | [17][18] |
| August | Sandlot Baseball | 16.56 | Hang-On | 28.28 | [19][20] |
| September | 13.91 | 37.96 | [21][22] | ||
| October | Exciting Hour | 15.39 | 37.05 | [23][24] | |
| November | Choplifter | 15.59 | 35.58 | [25][26] | |
| December | ASO: Armored Scrum Object | 14.1 | 33.8 | [27][28] | |
United Kingdom and United States
In the United Kingdom and United States, the following titles were the highest-grossing arcade games of 1985.
| Rank | United Kingdom | United States | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Play Meter | RePlay[29] | AMOA[30][31][32] | |||||
| Title | Type | Arcade | Route/Street | Video | |||
| 1 | Commando[33] | Hang-On[4] | Karate Champ | Dedicated | Nintendo VS. System | Karate Champ | Spy Hunter |
| 2 | Unknown | Unknown | Kung-Fu Master | Dedicated | Kung-Fu Master, Karate Champ, Pac-Land, Pole Position II |
English Mark Darts, Crowns Golf, Yie Ar Kung-Fu, Kung-Fu Master |
Kung-Fu Master, Pole Position, Trivia Master, Karate Champ |
| 3 | Unknown | Unknown | Commando | ||||
| 4 | Unknown | Unknown | Yie Ar Kung-Fu | Conversion | |||
| 5 | Unknown | Unknown | Hogan's Alley | System | |||
| 6 | Unknown | Unknown | Excitebike | System | Unknown | ||
| 7 | Unknown | Unknown | Pole Position, Spy Hunter |
Dedicated | |||
| 8 | |||||||
Best-selling home systems
| Rank | System(s) | Manufacturer | Type | Generation | Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | USA | UK[34] | Worldwide | |||||
| 1 | Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom | Nintendo | Console | Third | 6,500,000[35] | 90,000[36] | — | 6,590,000 |
| 2 | Commodore 64 (C64) | Commodore | Computer | 8-bit | Unknown | 1,000,000[37] | Unknown | 2,500,000[38] |
| 3 | IBM Personal Computer (PC) / IBM PCjr | IBM | Computer | 8-bit / 16-bit | — | — | — | 1,400,000[39] |
| 4 | Atari 2600 | Atari | Console | Second | — | — | — | 1,000,000[37] |
| 5 | Apple II | Apple Inc. | Computer | 8-bit | — | — | — | 900,000[38] |
| 6 | Commodore 128 | Commodore | Computer | 8-bit | — | — | — | 500,000[37] |
| 7 | NEC PC-88 / PC-98 | NEC | Computer | 8-bit / 16-bit | 430,000[40][41] | Unknown | Unknown | 430,000+ |
| 8 | ZX Spectrum | Sinclair | Computer | 8-bit | — | Unknown | 390,000 | 390,000+ |
| 9 | Sega SG-1000 / Mark III (Master System) | Sega | Console | Third | 280,000[42] | — | — | 280,000+ |
| 10 | Amstrad CPC / Amstrad PCW | Amstrad | Computer | 8-bit | — | Unknown | 250,000 | 250,000+ |
Best-selling home video games
Japan
The year's best-selling game was Super Mario Bros. for the Family Computer (Famicom), later known as the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) outside Japan. The game sold 2.5 million copies and grossed more than ¥12.2 billion ($72 million at the time, or $204 million adjusted for inflation) within several months.[43] It eventually sold 3 million cartridges by the end of 1985.[44]
Game Machine magazine reported that more than ten Famicom games released between 1983 and 1985 had each sold over 1 million cartridges in Japan by the end of 1985.[45] The Magic Box lists fourteen Famicom games released between 1983 and 1985 that crossed 1 million lifetime sales in Japan.[46] At least 11 of the following 14 Famicom million-sellers released between 1983 and 1985 crossed 1 million sales in Japan by the end of 1985.