Games Released in 1997

1,809 new games debuted in 1997 across 10 platforms, with PlayStation seeing 501 releases. December was the busiest month, with 216 releases. Final Fantasy VII was the most popular release of the year.

Which days had the most releases?

February 28 was the busiest single day of 1997 with 38 releases.

38 releases

February 28

33 releases

March 28

32 releases

December 18

32 releases

September 30

Which month had the most releases?

The busiest release month of 1997 was December, totaling 216 titles.

How did each season compare?

Q4 was the busiest quarter of 1997 with 524 releases.

Q1 (Jan–Mar)

383 releases

Most popular release in Q1

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

Having been awoken from his eternal slumber by the reappearance of Castlevania, Alucard must once again face the evil minions of darkness. Use your vampiric powers, along with weapons, potions, and other magical relics to change the tide of battle. A mixture of platform and role-playing action with many hidden areas and secrets. Can you discover them all?

Q2 (Apr–Jun)

330 releases

Most popular release in Q2

Star Fox 64

The update to the 16-bit Super NES title continues the original's on-rails 3D shooting action on the Nintendo 64. Starring Fox McCloud, Peppy Hare, Falco Lombardi, and Slippy Toad, this new 64-bit version contains 15 plus levels, easy, medium, and difficult paths, forward-scrolling levels as well as full 3D realms, and a three-part multiplayer mode using a four-player split screen. In addition to plenty of Arwing action, the game introduces a new hover tank and even features a submarine level. The 8-megabyte cartridge also boasts voice samples from 23 different characters instead of the original's animal noises. Star Fox 64 was the first game to feature Rumble Pak support. A Rumble Pak bundle and standalone version of the game were sold. Released in Europe under the name Lylat Wars.

Q3 (Jul–Sep)

395 releases

Most popular release in Q3

Final Fantasy VII

The Western release of Final Fantasy VII (released as Final Fantasy VII International in Japan) included additional elements and alterations, such as streamlining of the menu and Materia system, reducing the health of enemies, new visual cues to help with navigation across the world map, and additional cutscenes relating to Cloud's past.

Q4 (Oct–Dec)

524 releases

Most popular release in Q4

Age of Empires

Age of Empires (AoE) is a history-based real-time strategy video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft. The game uses the Genie, a 2D sprite-based game engine. The game allows the user to act as the leader of an ancient civilization by advancing it through four ages (the Stone, Tool, Bronze, and Iron Ages), gaining access to new and improved units with each advance.

Which platforms saw the most releases?

PlayStation received 501 new titles in 1997, holding the most releases. The runner up was PC with 384 new titles.

PlayStation501 releases

PC384 releases

Sega Saturn310 releases

Mac75 releases

Nintendo 6470 releases

Arcade59 releases

DOS59 releases

Game Boy56 releases

Satellaview50 releases

Super Famicom32 releases

What genres were most popular?

Adventure was the dominant genre in 1997 with 290 titles. Shooter followed closely with 203.

Adventure290

Shooter203

Sport189

Simulator182

Strategy165

Puzzle157

Role-playing153

Racing118

Arcade116

Platform108

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