UK Charts: Final Fantasy X-2 makes a number one debut

Square Enix' PS2 RPG Final Fantasy X-2, published in Europe by EA, has debuted at number one in the UK software charts, knocking Sega's Sonic Heroes off the top spot, while the Cube and Xbox versions of Prince of Persia have also sold well.

Prince of Persia is at number three in both the Xbox and GameCube charts (with Sonic Heroes still at number one in both of those rankings), and its arrival on those formats has propelled it from number 29 up to number eight in the full-price chart.

Other than that it's largely a quiet week, with the only other new game in the full price top 40 being Acclaim's Urban Freestyle Soccer, which creeps in at number 39 after a couple of weeks on sale.

Last week's number one title Sonic Heroes drops a single place to number two, and Need for Speed Underground falls a place to number three, while The Simpsons Hit & Run holds firm at number four. Norton Internet Security 2004 is at number five this week - no doubt helped by the PC virus scares which have been ongoing for the past month or so.

The success of Final Fantasy X-2 - the first direct sequel in the Final Fantasy series, and interestingly a game whose marketing has skewed heavily towards the female audience - should hopefully reignite interest in Japanese RPG titles among publishers and consumers alike, following heavy criticism of the failure of companies to bring RPG titles to Europe despite being released in the USA.

Next week's big title of course is James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing, which should easily take the top spot on all three consoles. Other games to look out for on the 27th include Empire's Bad Boys II (all consoles), Nintendo's Kirby Air Ride (Cube), the Xbox and Cube versions of Ubisoft's excellent Beyond Good & Evil, and Eidos' apparently controversial Whiplash.

You can find the full set of charts, as ever, on the [GamesIndustry.biz Charts Page].