2001 in video gaming
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| List of years in video gaming (table) |
|---|
| … 1991 . 1992 . 1993 . 1994 . 1995 . 1996 . 1997 … 1998 1999 2000 -2001- 2002 2003 2004 … 2005 . 2006 . 2007 . 2008 . 2009 . 2010 . 2011 … |
| Related time period or subjects |
| … 1998 . 1999 . 2000 - 2001 - 2002 . 2003 . 2004 … … 1970s . 1980s . 1990s -2000s- 2010s . 2020s . 2030s |
| Art . Archaeology . Architecture . Literature . Music . Science +... |
Contents |
[edit] Events
- Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts John Carmack of id Software to the AIAS Hall of Fame
- British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) hosts the 4th annual BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Awards for multimedia technologies; 15 of 21 awards go to video games
- May 17–19 — 7th annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3); the 4th annual Game Critics Awards For The Best Of E3
- July - IEMA (Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association) hosts 2nd annual Executive Summit
- Gama Network hosts the 3rd annual Independent Games Festival (IGF)
- Game Developers Conference hosts the 1st annual Game Developers Choice Awards
- Reuters reports that the Dreamcast console has an estimated 800,000 online users playing its various online games already by midyear
- reports that Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Sega are cooperating to allow online users for the PlayStation 2 and Dreamcast consoles to play each other via the 1st ever cross-console network
- Sony cooperates with AOL to incorporate Internet features with the PlayStation 2 console; which include a browser, email, and instant messaging capabilities
- 2nd annual Dreamcast Championships (featuring the Crazy Taxi 2 video game)
- 1st place: Lindsay Gall ($15,000 & Jamaica resort trip)
- 2nd place: Michael Pirring ($10,000)
- 3rd place: Roger Mogle ($5,000)
- Nikkei News reports that the video game Phantasy Star Online (for Dreamcast) has had 300,000 worldwide users login already by midyear
- December 31 — Jez San is awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours, becoming the first person awarded specifically for services to video games.
[edit] Business
- Dynamix (1984–2001) is closed by its parent company Sierra Entertainment on August 14, 2001 as part of Sierra's restructuring under Vivendi Universal. Several veterans of the studio stay in Eugene and found a new studio / electronic publisher, GarageGames.
- Sega announces that it will no longer develop home consoles, in order to focus on game development. The Dreamcast is waiting to finish the production in May. But a lot of games were released for it in the same year.
- Zylom founded in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
- Indrema in April closes and its L600 Entertainment System multimedia home console is never released.
- Activision acquires Treyarch Invention LLC
- PCCW (Pacific Century CyberWorks Japan Co., Ltd.) acquires VR1 Entertainment
- Midway Games announces that it will no longer manufacture arcade games.
- August — Loki Software declares Chapter 11 Bankruptcy over internal financial troubles, before going defunct next January. In response Michael Simms of the Tux Games retailer and former Loki game tester founds Linux Game Publishing alongside ex-Loki employee Mike Philips on October 15 to keep games coming to Linux.
- November 23 — GamePark releases the GP32 (GamePark 32) wireless-multiplayer multimedia handheld console in South Korea
- December — Panasonic's Q multimedia console
[edit] Lawsuits
- Sega of America Inc. v. Kmart Corporation; Sega sues Kmart over an unpaid debt of over US$2 million dollars
- Uri Geller v. Nintendo; Geller sues Nintendo over his resemblance to a Pokémon character. The suit is dismissed.
[edit] Notable releases
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- January 4 - RuneScape (PC)
- January 21 - Phantasy Star Online (DC)
- February 5 - Paper Mario (N64)
- February 7 - Clive Barker's Undying (PC)
- February 16 - Final Fantasy IX (PS1) PAL & Europe
- February 27 - The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages (GBC)
- March 1 - Lego Island 2 The Brickster's Revenge (GBA, PS1, Win, GBC)
- March 5 - Conker's Bad Fur Day (N64)
- March 9 - Sonic Shuffle (DC)
- March 12 - Star Wars: Episode I: Battle for Naboo (Windows, North America)
- March 13 - Onimusha: Warlords (PS2)
- March 21 - Tribes 2 (PC)
- March 21 - Serious Sam: The First Encounter (PC)
- March 23 - Star Wars: Episode I: Battle for Naboo (Windows, Europe)
- March 25 - Black & White (PC)
- March 30 - Star Wars: Episode I: Battle for Naboo (Nintendo 64, Europe)
- May 22 - Red Faction (PS2)
- May 30 - Bejeweled (PC)
- June 5 - Sonic Adventure 2 (DC)
- June 8 - Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (GBA)
- June 11 - Super Mario Advance (GBA)
- June 18 - Twisted Metal: Black (PS2)
- June 21 - Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal (PC)
- June 22 - Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis (PC)
- June 29 - Final Fantasy Chronicles (PS1)
- July 10 - Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (PS2)
- July 19 - Final Fantasy X (PS2)
- July 23 - Max Payne (PC)
- August 8 - Shogun: Total War: Mongol Invasion (PC)
- August 21 - Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura (PC)
- August 27 - Mario Kart Super Circuit (GBA)
- August 29 - Alchemy (PC)
- September 9 - Advance Wars (GBA)
- September 24 - Silent Hill 2 (PS2)
- September 30 - Ico (PS2)
- October 10 - Dark Age of Camelot (PC)
- October 17 - Devil May Cry (PS2)
- October 21 - Stronghold (PC)
- October 22 - Grand Theft Auto III (PS2)
- October 28 - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 (PS2)(GC)
- October 30 - Aliens versus Predator 2 (PC)
- October 30 - Civilization III (PC)
- November 1 - Dragon Warrior VII (PS1)
- November 5 - SSX Tricky (PS2, GC, Xbox)
- November 9 - Project Gotham Racing (Xbox)
- November 11 - Golden Sun (GBA)
- November 12 - Empire Earth (PC)
- November 14 - Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2)
- November 15 - Dead or Alive 3 (Xbox)
- November 15 - Halo: Combat Evolved (Xbox)
- November 17 - Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader (GC)
- November 18 - Super Monkey Ball (GC)
- November 18 - IL-2 Sturmovik (PC)
- November 19 - WWF SmackDown! Just Bring It (PlayStation 2)
- November 20 - FreQuency (PS2)
- November 20 - Return to Castle Wolfenstein (PC)
- December 3 - Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance (PS2)
- December 3 - Pikmin (GC)
- December 3 - Super Smash Bros. Melee (GC)
- December 4 - Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (PS2)
- December 7 - Evil Twin: Cyprien's Chronicles (PS2) PAL & Europe
- December 17 -Luigi's Mansion (GC)
- December 20 - Final Fantasy X (PS2)
[edit] Trends
[edit] Video game consoles
The dominant video game consoles in 2001 were:
Additionally, Nintendo released the Nintendo GameCube on September 14 in Japan (U.S. on November 11 and in Europe on May 3, 2002). Microsoft released the Xbox video game console in the U.S. on November 15 (in Europe on March 14, 2002).
[edit] Handheld game systems
The dominant handheld systems in 2001 were:
Additionally, Nintendo released the Game Boy Advance (GBA) in Japan on March 21 (in the U.S. on June 11 and Europe on June 22).
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The Game Boy Advance
[edit] Video game sales
The top 10 selling console video games in 2001 in the United States ranked by units sold, according to NPD, were:
| Rank | Title | Platform | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Theft Auto III | PS2 | Rockstar Games |
| 2 | Madden NFL 2002 | PS2 | Electronic Arts |
| 3 | Pokémon Crystal | GBC | Nintendo |
| 4 | Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty | PS2 | Konami |
| 5 | Super Mario Advance | GBA | Nintendo |
| 6 | Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec | PS2 | Sony |
| 7 | Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 | PS2 | Activision |
| 8 | Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 | PS1 | Activision |
| 9 | Pokémon Silver | GBC | Nintendo |
| 10 | Driver 2 | PS1 | Infogrames |
[edit] Computer game sales
The top 10 selling computer games in 2001 in the United States ranked by units sold, according to NPD, were:
| Rank | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Sims | Electronic Arts |
| 2 | Roller Coaster Tycoon | Infogrames |
| 3 | Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone | Electronic Arts |
| 4 | Diablo II: Lord of Destruction | Vivendi Universal |
| 5 | The Sims: House Party | Electronic Arts |
| 6 | The Sims: Livin' Large | Electronic Arts |
| 7 | The Sims: Hot Date | Electronic Arts |
| 8 | Diablo II | Vivendi Universal |
| 9 | Sim Theme Park | Electronic Arts |
| 10 | Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings | Microsoft |
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