ThePlayStationbrand would never have been as successful as it is today had it not been for the value it derives fromits exclusive games and franchises. Some have gone on to become multiplatform series, but the bulk of their success has still been built on their original brand.
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There are certain other franchises that have always been on PlayStation consoles, seeing so much commercial success that they’ve comfortably outsold multiplatform games. With the PS5 still in its early days, it’s worth checking out the franchises that have pushed the PlayStation brand to the topmost position in the gaming industry.
Updated Aug 08, 2025 by Tom Bowen:Given how much of the PS4’s success can be attributed toits fantastic selection of exclusive titles, it’s little surprise to see Sony taking a similar approach with its latest console. God of War: Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, and Final Fantasy 16 are just three of the big PS5 exclusives expected to land in 2022, though they certainly won’t be the last.The best PlayStation exclusive franchiseshave sold hundreds of millions of units between them since the release of the PS1 in the mid-nineties and will likely sell hundreds of millions more before the PS5 is finally put out to pasture.
12Spyro: 20 Million
TheSpyroseries started out on the PS1, featuring an entire trilogy of games before going multiplatform. These were the franchise’s best days as well, with most ofthe 20 million copies soldcoming around this time. The number is even more impressive considering the smaller userbase for consoles at that time.
The platforming series was also very critically acclaimed during the days of its original trilogy, which is most likely why customers decided to purchase the games in such numbers. Decades later, the overall tally still stands at the top level.
11Singstar: 20 Million
While never the biggest critical darling, theSingstarseries certainly had a tight grip on the casual fanbase back in the day. The fact that it sold as manyas 20 million copiesis a testament to this success. In truth though, with its karaoke-style gameplay, there was very little that could go wrong.
Sadly, the rise of casual games on the Nintendo platform and the oversaturation of the genre, in general, led toSingstarbeing sidelined. Still, the final tally of sales is enough for the series to have its name in the history books as a success for the PlayStation brand.
10The Last Of Us: 24 Million
Impressively,The Last of Ussold more as a remaster on the PS4 than it did as a brand new game on the PS3. The second game’spenchant for hard-hitting weaponsand its deep storyline also proved to be a successful formula, as it piled on the number of units for the series.
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Despite consisting of just two games in,The Last of Usfranchise hassold more than 24 million copies worldwide. It might take a long time for a new entry to give this figure a massive boost, but the second game continues to sell well, so, even without a third title, this total is sure to see a raise.
9Tomb Raider - 26 Million+
Though Lara’s first outing actually debuted on the Sega Saturn before the PS1, that didn’t stop the tomb-raiding treasure hunter from becoming the face of Sony’s first home console. The first fiveTomb Raidergamessold just shy of 26 million units between them, making the series the second best-selling franchise on the console.
After Microsoft released its Xbox console, the series became multiplatform, making it difficult to track how many additional units have been sold since then. Square Enix did reveal thatthe series has sold more than 81 million unitsin 2020 though, so it’s incredibly likely that tens of millions of additional sales have been made on PlayStation consoles since the PS1 era.
8Spider-Man: 26.5 Million
What’s incredible about the success of Insomniac’sSpider-Mangames isn’tthe number of plot holesit ignores, but the fact that the vast majority of its sales have come from one title alone.Spider-ManPS4 solda whopping 20 millioncopies in its first few years on the market and continues to perform strongly to this day.
Spider-Man: Miles Moralescouldn’t replicate the success of the original, althoughit has managed to snag an additional six and a half million or so unitsto boost the franchise’s total sales numbers. With more sequels expected, the series is definitely going to climb much higher in the future.
7Ratchet & Clank: 27.1 Million
Considering the series has now been going on for two decades, it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that earlierRatchet & Clankgames showa 26 million units figurefor itself. Although the bulk of these numbers relate to a few precious titles, the franchise definitely has legs.
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After a number of critical duds, the franchise went dormant for some time before returning with the acclaimed reimagining.Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apartseems to have built upon the previous title’s goodwill,selling more than a million units in its first six weekseven in spite of the limited install base of the PS5.
6Uncharted: 44.02 Million
There have been some rumblings aboutthe lack of morals Nathan Drake displayedduring the series, but that hasn’t stopped fans from purchasing new games and checking out what the character is up to in each entry.A cool 44.02 millionhas even been touted by Sony themselves.
This is a superb achievement for a game that was unknown whenUncharted: Drake’s Fortunefirst launched as a PS3 title. Since then, the franchise has seen growth all the way up untilUncharted 4, which, for the moment, at least, seems destined to be the last of Nathan Drake’s epic outings.
5Tekken: 50 Million
It’s worth noting that the overall figure is boosted quite a bit by recent multiplatform titles likeTekken 6andTekken 7, but theTekkenseries was a PlayStation exclusive for three generations prior to its Xbox debut. Its inclusion of some ofthe best fightersduring this era also helped.
As many as six games were exclusive to PlayStation consoles and achieved massive sales success. The recent games have benefitted from multi-platform releases to seea 50 million sales figureachievement for the iconic fighting game series.
4Crash Bandicoot: 50 Million
The series seemed to have peaked inits critically acclaimed dayswith Naughty Dog, with Activision releasing a variety of titles that never really hit the mark. Still, the nostalgia proved to be strong astheN. Sane Trilogysold welland the series got a boost to the 50 million mark in overall sales.
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As manyas 40 millionof these sales came during the Naughty Dog days, proving the star power that the orange bandicoot commanded when the series was a PlayStation exclusive series.Crash Bandicoot 4was nowhere near as successfuldespite its critical acclaim, but that’s not to say that futureCrashgames couldn’t still sell well.
3God Of War: 51 Million
It’s guaranteed thatGod of War: Ragnarokwill be a huge hit since fans are anxious tohave their questions answeredfrom the previous entry. Regardless, theGod of Warfranchise is already a juggernaut, withan incredible 51 million unitssold as every entry has been a commercial success.
Thanks to the reinvention of the series that arrived withGod of WarPS4, the franchise looks like it is here to stay with many more sequels likely on the way. For the time being, at least, the PlayStation brand can be proud in its support of a series that has seen half a century of sales success.
