2003 in video games


2003 has seen many sequels and prequels in video games and several new titles such as Beyond Good & Evil, Manhunt, Call of Duty, Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga, PlanetSide, ', ', and WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain.

Events

ReleaseTitleWindows6th GenHandheld5th Gen
January 3Super Bubble PopGCNGBA
January 7'GBA
January 11Dynasty Warriors 3: Xtreme LegendsPS2
January 12Panzer Dragoon OrtaXbox
January 14SimCity 4Windows
January 19The GetawayPS2
January 20Battle Engine AquilaPS2, Xbox
January 22Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach VolleyballXbox
January 25Devil May Cry 2PS2
January 26Black & BruisedGCN, PS2
January 26HSX: Hypersonic.XtremePS2
February 6'GBA
February 10'Win
February 10.hack//Infection Part 1PS2
February 11Capcom vs. SNK EOXbox
February 12'WinPS2
February 12Yu-Gi-Oh! Dungeon Dice MastersGBA
February 13Tom Clancy's Splinter CellWindows
February 15Disaster ReportPS2
February 16Yu-Gi-Oh! The Duelists of the RosesPS2
February 17Dark Cloud 2PS2
February 21'Windows
February 24Everblue 2PS2
February 24Indiana Jones and the Emperor's TombXbox
February 25'Windows
February 25Master of Orion IIIWindows
February 26'PS2
February 27'GCN
February 28PraetoriansWindows
March 3'PS2
March 4'Xbox
March 4FreelancerWindows
March 9'GCNGBA
March 9Sonic Advance 2GBA
March 10'Win
March 10MLB 2004PS2
March 10World Series Baseball 2K3PS2, Xbox
March 10'PS2
March 11Mega Man & BassGBA
March 11Piglet's Big GameGBA
March 14Tom and Jerry in Infurnal EscapeGBA
March 19Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire GBA
March 17WWE Crush HourGCN, PS2
March 18'PS2, Xbox
March 19Bloody Roar 3GCN
March 19Mobile Light Force 2PS2
March 19'Windows
March 20'PS2
March 24AmplitudePS2
March 24'Windows
March 24'GCN
March 25'GCN
March 25'PS1
March 25Dynasty Warriors 4PS2
March 25'PS2
March 25PrimalPS2
March 25'GBA
March 25'GBA
March 26Galactic CivilizationsWindows
March 26'Xbox
March 26'GBA
March 30'Xbox
April 8Midnight Club IIWindowsPS2
April 9'GCN
April 9'GBA
April 9'WindowsDreamcastPS1
April 13Postal 2Windows
April 14'GBA
April 15IkarugaGCN
April 16'Xbox
April 17Final Fantasy XI: Rise of the ZilartWindows PS2
April 17'PS1
April 20SirenPS2
April 22Ninja Five-OGBA
April 30MLB 2004PS1
May 1'Xbox
May 6'GBA
May 6Eve OnlineWindows
May 12Finding NemoGCN, PS2, XboxGBA
May 12'Win
May 12Iridion IIGBA
May 12'Win
May 14Enter The MatrixWindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
May 20Inside Pitch 2003Xbox
May 20Rise of NationsWindows
May 20PlanetsideWindows
May 21'GBA
May 27Brute ForceXbox
May 27HulkWindowsPS2, GCN, Xbox
June 1Sonic Pinball PartyGBA
June 2Toontown OnlineWindows
June 3Midnight Club IIXbox
June 9Donkey Kong CountryGBA
June 17Mega Man Network TransmissionGCN
June 17Space Channel 5: Ulala's Cosmic AttackGBA
June 17Unlimited SagaPS2
June 18Sonic Adventure DX: Director's CutGCN
June 19Drome RacersGBA
June 20'PS2
June 23'GBA
June 23Rock 'N Roll RacingGBA
June 24'GBA
June 24'PS2
June 24Mega Man Battle Network 3GBA
June 24StuntmanGBA
June 24Wario WorldGCN
June 25'PS2
June 30Ape Escape 2PS2
June 30'GBA
July 1Pirates of the CaribbeanXbox
July 1'Windows
July 1'Windows
July 9Charlie's AngelsGCN, PS2
July 9'Windows
July 16NCAA Football 2004GCN, PS2, Xbox
July 17'Xbox
July 17The Italian JobGCN
July 23'GCN
July 23'Xbox
July 23The Great EscapeWindowsPS2, Xbox
July 24RoboCopXbox
July 28'GCN
July 30'Xbox
July 30'GBA
July 31'PS2
August 5Chaos LegionWindowsPS2
August 5Freaky FlyersPS2, Xbox
August 5Silent Hill 3PS2
August 6'PS2
August 8Freaky FlyersGCN
August 12FuturamaPS2, Xbox
August 13Virtua Fighter 4: EvolutionPS2
August 19Alter EchoPS2, Xbox
August 25F-Zero GXGCN
August 27BombasticPS2
August 27'PS2, Xbox
August 27Otogi: Myth of DemonsXbox
August 27Rescue Heroes: Billy BlazesGBA
August 27Soul Calibur IIPS2, Xbox, GCN
August 28'GCN
September 4Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of WWIIWindows
September 5'GBA
September 8Anarchy Online: The ShadowlandsWindows
September 8Final Fantasy Tactics AdvanceGBA
September 8WWE Wrestlemania XIXGCN
September 9Counter-Strike Win
September 9EverQuest: Lost Dungeons of NorrathWindows
September 9P.N.03GCN
September 10'GBA
September 11'GBA
September 12Starsky & HutchGBA
September 13The Rescuers Down Under PS2, GBA-
September 14Asterix & Obelix: Kick ButtixPS2
September 16'GBA
September 16Homeworld 2Windows
September 16NASCAR Thunder 2004WindowsPS1, PS2, Xbox-
September 16'PS2, Xbox, GCNGBA
September 17'Xbox
September 17'Windows
September 22'Windows
September 22NHL 2004WindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
September 22Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004WindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
September 23'PS2,
September 24'GBA
September 24Digimon Battle Spirit 2GBA
September 24'GBA
October 1Freedom FightersWindowsPS2, Xbox, GCN
October 6'GBA
October 7'PS2
October 7'GBA
October 7Sonic AdvanceN-Gage
October 7Viewtiful JoeGCN
October 13Kirby Air RideGCN
October 14Cyber Troopers Virtual-On MARZPS2
October 14Jak IIPS2
October 14'Windows
October 14Mega Man X7PS2
October 14Mega Man Zero 2GBA
October 14The Haunted MansionGCN, PS2, Xbox
October 15Tak and the Power of JujuGCN, PS2GBA
October 20SSX 3Xbox, GCN
October 21'PS2
October 21'Xbox
October 21ESPN NBA BasketballPS2, Xbox
October 21SSX 3PS2
October 21Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesWindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
October 21Time Crisis 3PS2
October 22SeaWorld Adventure Parks TycoonWin
October 24The HobbitGBA
October 26Super Duper SumosGBA
October 26'GBA
October 27'GBA
October 27Tony Hawk's UndergroundPS2, Xbox, GCNGBA
October 27WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the PainPS2
October 28Amped 2Xbox
October 28'GCN
October 28Final Fantasy XIWindows
October 28'WindowsGCN, PS2, XboxGBA
October 28'PS2, Xbox
October 28Top SpinXbox
October 29Call of DutyWindows
October 31Grand Theft Auto IIIXbox
October 31'WinGCN, PS2, XboxGBA
November 3Drake of the 99 DragonsXbox
November 3Fire EmblemGBA
November 3'Win
November 3'PS2, Xbox, GCN
November 4'Windows
November 4'PS2
November 4SOCOM IIPS2
November 4Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004GBA
November 4Yu-Gi-Oh! The Falsebound KingdomGCN
November 5'GCN, XboxGBA
November 6'PS2
November 10Mario Party 5GCN
November 10Sphinx and the Cursed MummyGCN, PS2, Xbox
November 11Beyond Good & EvilPS2
November 11'GBA
November 11'PS2, Xbox, GCN
November 11Muppets Party CruiseGCN
November 11Onimusha TacticsGBA
November 11'PS2
November 11SSX 3GBA
November 11The HobbitWinGCN, PS2, Xbox
November 11'Windows
November 11'WindowsPS2, Xbox
November 12Disney's Magical Quest 2 Starring Mickey & MinnieGBA
November 12'Xbox
November 12Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Raven ShieldXbox
November 13Double Dragon AdvanceGBA
November 13Monster Rancher 4PS2
November 13Muppets Party CruisePS2
November 13The Simpsons: Hit & RunWindows
November 15Crash Nitro KartPS2, Xbox, GCNGBA, N-Gage
November 17'GBA
November 17'GBA
November 17'GCN
November 17 WindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
November 18America's 10 Most WantedWinPS2
November 18American IdolGBA
November 18Counter-StrikeXbox
November 18Go! Go! HypergrindGCN
November 18'PS2
November 18Final Fantasy X-2PS2
November 18ManhuntPS2
November 18'PS2, Xbox
November 18'GCN
November 18Space Channel 5 Special EditionPS2
November 18'GBA
November 18'GBA
November 18'Windows
November 18'GBA
November 18'WinGCN, PS2, XboxGBA
November 18'GCN
November 18'Windows
November 18WhiplashPS2, Xbox
November 18XIIIWindowsGCN, PS2, Xbox
November 19Beyond Good & EvilWindows
November 19'Xbox
November 20'Windows
November 24'GBA
November 25'Xbox
November 26BlowOutGCN, Xbox
November 30'Windows
December 11080° AvalancheGCN
December 2Beyond Good & EvilXbox
December 2'WindowsXbox
December 2'PS2
December 2'XboxGBA
December 2Pac-Man Vs.GCN
December 2Silent Hill 3Windows
December 2The Sims Bustin' OutGBA
December 3Gotcha ForceGCN
December 5Counter-Strike Xbox
December 8'PS2
December 9Crouching Tiger, Hidden DragonXbox
December 9'GBA
December 10PS2
December 11Beyond Good & EvilGCN
December 14Medabots InfinityGCN
December 30Sonic HeroesPS2, Xbox, GCN

Trends

s continue to lose ground to console video games with a US sales drop of 14% in 2003. Total 2003 entertainment software sales in the United States grew slightly to US$7 billion; console sales increased to $5.8 billion and computer games accounted for the remaining $1.2 billion.

Video game consoles

The dominant video game consoles in 2003 were:
The dominant handheld systems in 2003 were:
Additionally, two new handheld consoles were introduced in 2003, the Game Boy Advance SP and Nokia's N-Gage.

Video game sales

The top 10 selling console video games in 2003 in the United States ranked by units sold, according to , were:
RankTitlePlatformPublisher
1Madden NFL 2004PS2EA Sports
2Pokémon RubyGBANintendo
3Pokémon SapphireGBANintendo
4'GBANintendo
5'GameCubeNintendo
6'PS2Rockstar Games
7'GameCubeNintendo
8Mario & Luigi Superstar SagaGBANintendo
9Enter the MatrixPS2Infogrames
10WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the PainPS2Yuke's

Titles with notable critical reception

and GameRankings are aggregators of video game journalism reviews.

Critically acclaimed titles

Critically panned titles