Ghostbusters game sales ahead of Transformers and Up

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Screen shot of Ghostbusters game, featuring the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Credit: Atari.

Ghostbusters, the game, has outpaced its blockbuster-movie-cum-game rivals. The title sold 440,000 copies in June, the month it released, according to a post in The Times’ Company Town. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen sold 296,000 copies, and THQ’s Up, based on the Pixar Animation Studios film, sold 270,000.

Here’s what Times entertainment writer Ben Fritz said:

Given that all those games were helped by tens of millions of dollars in marketing for their companion movies, whereas ‘Ghostbusters’ hasn’t had a theatrical presence since 1989, that’s a notable accomplishment. It’s also a much-needed boost for struggling publisher Atari and should benefit Sony Pictures, which licensed the rights.

There’s some irony in the fact that Activision, publisher of the Transformers game, dropped Ghostbusters when it merged with the game’s original publisher, Vivendi Games.

-- Alex Pham

Follow my random thoughts on games, gear and technology on Twitter @AlexPham.