NPD released the January sales chart for PC games and it was completely dominated by two franchises. Can you guess which two, without referring back to the title of this article? In case you couldn’t, the two franchises are Warcraft and The Sims.

What’s really weird is the number of older titles in each series that have shown staying power. The Warcraft III Battlechest and Sim City 4 Deluxe both charted in the top 20. While Sim City Societies or the newest The Sims 2 expansion packs would seem sure bets, these classics are showing some true longevity. Perhaps it’s a side-effect of their sequels bringing in new fans who want to explore the games’ past?

It’s interesting to note how vanilla the PC game charts have become. Beyond the two main franchises you find almost every other title is a casual game, first-person-shooter or real-time-strategy. What happened to the golden days of PC gaming when lots of different genres were represented? Sure, different genres still sell, but it can’t be a good sign for the health of the platform when expansion packs and sequels for a couple of titles dominate all sales. What the PC needs now, more than in a long time, is another Doom or The Sims that turns the industry on its head. Actually, using The Sims as something that is needed more just feels wrong in this instance.

January PC sales chart

1. World Of Warcraft
2. Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
3. World Of Warcraft: Battle Chest
4. World Of Warcraft: Burning Crusade
5. The Sims 2 Deluxe
6. Diner Dash
7. 15000 Games
8. The Sim City 4 Deluxe
9. The Sims 2 Teen Style Stuff
10. Crysis
11. The Sims 2 Bon Voyage
12. Half Life 2: Episode 2 The Orange Box
13. Battlefield 2
14. Warcraft III Battle Chest
15. Pirates Of The Burning Sea
16. Rock Tour Tycoon
17. Sim City 5: Societies
18. The Sims 2 Seasons
19. Age Of Empires III
20. Age Of Empires III: Asian Dynasties