| List of years in video games |
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Numerous video games were released in 2012. Many awards went to games such asMadden NFL 13,NBA 2K13,WWE '13,Borderlands 2,Far Cry 3,Journey,Mass Effect 3,Dishonored,The Walking Dead, andXCOM: Enemy Unknown. The year began with the worldwide release ofSony's handheld game console, thePlayStation Vita, originally launched in Japan in December 2011. The end of the year marked the worldwide release ofNintendo's home game console, theWii U.
Series with new installments in 2012 includeAlan Wake,Assassin's Creed,Borderlands,Call of Duty,Counter-Strike,Darksiders,Dead or Alive,Diablo,Fable,Far Cry,Forza Motorsport,Guild Wars,Halo,Hitman,Mario Party,Marvel vs. Capcom,Mass Effect,Max Payne,Medal of Honor,Modern Combat,Need for Speed,Ninja Gaiden,PlanetSide,Pokémon,Prototype,Resident Evil,Silent Hill,Sniper Elite,Spec Ops,Super Mario,Tekken,The Darkness,Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon,Transformers,Trials,X-COM andYakuza.
In addition, 2012 saw the introduction of several new properties, includingAsura's Wrath,Dishonored,Gravity Rush,Journey,Lollipop Chainsaw,Sleeping Dogs andForza Horizon.
| 3DS | Nintendo 3DS,3DS Virtual Console,iQue 3DS | DROID | Android | DS | Nintendo DS,DSiWare,iQue DS |
| iOS | iOS,iPadOS,iPad,iPhone,iPod | LIN | Linux | OSX | macOS |
| PS2 | PlayStation 2 | PS3 | PlayStation 3 | PSN | PlayStation Network |
| PSP | PlayStation Portable | PSV | PlayStation Vita | Wii | Wii,WiiWare,Wii Virtual Console |
| WiiU | Wii U,WiiU Virtual Console | WIN | Microsoft Windows, all versionsWindows 95 and up | X360 | Xbox 360,Xbox 360 Live Arcade |
The examples and perspective in this sectiondeal primarily with North America and do not represent aworldwide view of the subject. You mayimprove this section, discuss the issue on thetalk page, or create a new section, as appropriate.(November 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |

The list of game consoles released in 2012.
| Date | Console | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| February 15 | PlayStation Vita | |
| August 19 | Nintendo 3DS XL | |
| September 25 | PlayStation 3 Super Slim | |
| November 18 | Wii U | |
| December 7 | Wii mini(Canada) | |
| December 18 | Neo Geo X |
The following were 2012's top ten highest-grossing video games in terms of worldwide revenue (including physical sales,digital purchases,subscriptions,microtransactions,free-to-play andpay-to-play) across all platforms (includingmobile,PC andconsole platforms).
| No. | Game | Revenue | Publisher(s) | Genre | Platform(s) | Business model | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Call of Duty: Black Ops II | $1,000,000,000 | Activision(Activision Blizzard) | FPS | Buy-to-play | [1] | |
| Crossfire | $1,000,000,000 | Smilegate /Tencent | FPS | WIN | Free-to-play | [2] | |
| 3 | World of Warcraft | $986,000,000 | Blizzard Entertainment(Activision Blizzard) | MMORPG | WIN | Subscription | [3] |
| 4 | FIFA 13 | $444,000,000 | EA Sports(Electronic Arts) | Sports | Buy-to-play | [4][5] | |
| 5 | Borderlands 2 | $300,000,000 | 2K Games | ARPG | Buy-to-play | [6][7] | |
| 6 | World of Tanks | $280,000,000 | Wargaming.net | Vehicular combat | WIN | Free-to-play | [8] |
| 7 | Pokémon Black 2 / White 2 | $267,000,000 | Nintendo /The Pokémon Company | RPG | DS | Buy-to-play | [9][10] |
| 8 | New Super Mario Bros. 2 | $238,000,000 | Nintendo | Platformer | 3DS | Buy-to-play | [9][11] |
| 9 | Minecraft | $237,000,000 | Mojang | Sandbox | Buy-to-play | [12] | |
| 10 | League of Legends | $200,000,000 | Riot Games /Tencent | MOBA | WIN | Free-to-play | [13] |
Metacritic (MC) andGameRankings (GR) are aggregators of video game journalism reviews.
| Game | Publisher | Release Date | Platform | MC score | GR score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Walking Dead: Episode 5 – No Time Left | Telltale Games | November 21, 2012 | WIN | 89/100 | 94.75% |
| Persona 4 Golden | Atlus | June 14, 2012 | PSV | 93/100 | 94.16% |
| The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series | Telltale Games | November 21, 2012 | PS3 | 94/100 | 92.5% |
| Mark of the Ninja | Microsoft Studios | October 16, 2012 | WIN | 91/100 | 93.33% |
| Super Hexagon | Terry Cavanagh | November 27, 2012 | WIN | 88/100 | 93.33%[16] |
| The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series | Telltale Games | November 21, 2012 | WIN | 89/100 | 93.2% |
| Mass Effect 3 | Electronic Arts | March 6, 2012 | X360 | 93/100 | 92.17% |
| Cave Story | Nicalis | October 4, 2012 | 3DS | 93/100 | 92% |
| Mass Effect 3 | Electronic Arts | March 6, 2012 | PS3 | 93/100 | 91.65% |
| Journey | Sony Computer Entertainment | March 13, 2012 | PS3 | 92/100 | 92.56% |
| Fire Emblem Awakening | Nintendo | April 19, 2012 | 3DS | 92/100[17] | 92.52%[18] |
| The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series | Telltale Games | November 21, 2012 | X360 | 92/100 | 91.8% |
| Trials Evolution | Microsoft Studios | April 18, 2012 | X360 | 90/100 | 91.52% |
| Dishonored | Bethesda Softworks | October 9, 2012 | WIN | 91/100 | 90.57% |
| Borderlands 2 | 2K | September 18, 2012 | PS3 | 91/100 | 90.48% |
| NBA 2K13 | 2K | October 2, 2012 | WIN | 90/100 | 91%[19] |
| Far Cry 3 | Ubisoft | December 4, 2012 | X360 | 91/100 | 89.14% |
| Mark of the Ninja | Microsoft Studios | October 16, 2012 | WIN | 90/100 | 90.43% |
| Ōkami HD | Capcom | October 30, 2012 | PS3 | 90/100 | 90.29% |
| Borderlands 2 | 2K | September 18, 2012 | WIN | 89/100 | 90.1% |
| Guild Wars 2 | NCsoft | August 28, 2012 | WIN | 90/100 | 90.02% |
| NBA 2K13 | 2K | October 2, 2012 | PS3 | 90/100 | 89.68% |
| FIFA 13 | EA Sports | September 25, 2012 | X360 | 90/100 | 89.47% |
| Far Cry 3 | Ubisoft | December 4, 2012 | PS3 | 90/100 | 89.18% |
| Dark Souls: Artorias of the Abyss | Namco Bandai Games | October 23, 2012 | X360 | 89/100 | 90%[20] |
| XCOM: Enemy Unknown | 2K | October 8, 2012 | X360 | 90/100 | 88.96% |
| The Lord of the Rings Online: Riders of Rohan | Turbine, Inc. | October 15, 2012 | WIN | 88/100 | 90%[21] |
| Date | Event | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| February 3-29 | Sega reduces western business after the release ofBinary Domain, and focuses on digital on PC and Mobile | |
| March 5–9 | Game Developers Conference 2012 held in San Francisco, California. | |
| April 6–8 | PAX East 2012 held inBoston Convention and Exhibition Center. | |
| April 27 | TheKirby franchise celebrated it's 20th anniversary in Japan. | |
| May 2-5 | Korean e-Sports Association,Ongamenet,Blizzard Entertainment andGOM TV announced the introduction ofStarCraft II: Wings of Liberty to professional competitions in South Korea withStarCraft: Brood War being completely phased out in October. | [36] |
| June 5–7 | E3 2012 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. | [37] |
| July 13 | TheMetal Gear franchise celebrated it's 25th anniversary in Japan. | |
| August 2–5 | QuakeCon 2012: The massive annualLAN party held in Dallas, Texas. | |
| August 15–19 | Gamescom 2012 held in Cologne, Germany. | |
| August 30 | TheStreet Fighter franchise celebrated it's 25th anniversary in Japan. | |
| September 20-23 | Tokyo Game Show 2012 held in Chiba, Japan. | |
| September 26-29 | Eurogamer Expo 2012 held in Earls Court, London. | |
| October 24 | Polygon is launched. | |
| November 6 | TheRatchet & Clank franchise celebrated it's 10th anniversary in North America. | |
| December 7-9 | Spike Video Game Awards | |
| December 17 | TheMega Man franchise celebrated it's 25th anniversary in Japan. |
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The examples and perspective in this sectiondeal primarily with North America and do not represent aworldwide view of the subject. You mayimprove this section, discuss the issue on thetalk page, or create a new section, as appropriate.(November 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |