Diablo II rules August

Blizzard Entertainment's role-playing game expansion Diablo II: Lord of Destruction took the top spots in NPD's latest weekly and monthly lists of best-selling games. The expansion pack adds a number of new features to Blizzard's popular role-playing game Diablo II, including two new character classes, a new fifth act, and a large new area to explore. GodGames' third-person shooter Max Payne took second place for the month of August, followed by Electronic Arts' virtual-life game The Sims. Microsoft's Flight Simulator 2000 climbed to fourth place on the monthly list, up from sixth place the month before. EA's two expansion packs for The Sims, The Sims: House Party and The Sims: Livin' Large, came in at fifth and sixth, respectively, followed by Blizzard's Diablo II in seventh place.

On the latest weekly list, which covers the week of September 2-8, 2001, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction took first place, followed by The Sims in second place and Max Payne in third. Sierra's latest role-playing game, Arcanum, came in at fourth place, and Codemasters' latest first-person shooter, Operation Flashpoint, took fifth place.

The lists below rank games according to retail sales. To see a list of games ranked according to GameSpot review score, visit our 6013054Top Games page .

Top-selling games for the week of September 2-8, 2001:

Rank / Title / Publisher / Average price
1 / Diablo II: Lord of Destruction / Vivendi Universal / $35
2 / The Sims / Electronic Arts / $42
3 / Max Payne / GodGames / $42
4 / Arcanum / Vivendi Universal / $40
5 / Operation Flashpoint / Codemasters / $43
6 / The Sims: House Party / Electronic Arts / $29
7 / Madden NFL 2002 / Electronic Arts / $35
8 / Diablo II / Vivendi Universal / $40
9 / The Sims: Livin' Large / Electronic Arts / $29
10 / RollerCoaster Tycoon / Infogrames / $28

Top-selling games for the month of August 2001:

Rank This Month / Rank Last Month / Title / Publisher / Average Price
1 / 1 / Diablo II: Lord of Destruction / Vivendi Universal / $34
2 / 8 / Max Payne / GodGames / $43
3 / 2 / The Sims / Electronic Arts / $42
4 / 6 / Flight Simulator 2000 / Microsoft / $29
5 / 3 / The Sims: House Party / Electronic Arts / $29
6 / 7 / The Sims: Livin' Large / Electronic Arts / $29
7 / 4 / Diablo II / Vivendi Universal / $40
8 / 5 / RollerCoaster Tycoon / Infogrames / $27
9 / 9 / Age of Empires II: Age of Kings / Microsoft / $44
10 / * / Kings Quest VIII: Mask of Eternity / Vivendi Universal / $18
11 / 14 / RollerCoaster Tycoon: Loopy Landscapes / Infogrames / $28
12 / 10 / Half-Life: Blue Shift / Vivendi Universal / $29
13 / 16 / Sim Theme Park / Electronic Arts / $20
14 / 11 / Black & White / Electronic Arts / $42
15 / 15 / Myst III: Exile / Ubi Soft / $43
16 / 20 / SimCity 3000 / Electronic Arts / $18
17 / * / MechCommander 2 / Microsoft / $43
18 / * / Age of Empires II: The Conquerors / Microsoft / $30
19 / 12 / Train Simulator / Microsoft / $47
20 / 13 / Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal / Interplay / $29