Grand Theft Auto V is the third best-selling game of all time

Though we typically restrict our focus on the Gaming Deals' blog, some milestones are too big to ignore. Per GameSpot, Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V has now sold 90,000,000 copies. Not only does this make GTA V by far the most successful entry in one of gaming's biggest franchises, but one of the best selling games of all time.

For some context, GTA V has now sold about the same amount of copies as the four previous games in the main series (III, Vice City, San Andreas and IV) combined.  Mojang's Minecraft is the only other game from this decade to have made it into the top ten.

Selling on both the Xbox One and the PS4, GTA V's achievement is significant for several reasons beyond the obvious. Many of the games joining it on the all-time best sellers list are from older generations of consoles, when competition was more limited and choice was less. Pokémon Red and Blue (8th on the list), for example, was one of the premier game on the Game Boy, which in the late 90s was effectively the only game in town when it came to handheld consoles. Modern games have to compete with a huge number of AAA releases every year, as well as external threats from things such as mobile gaming.

Also incorporated into the list are pack-in games that came free with consoles. Tetris (the best selling game of all time) and Wii Sports (4th) were both included free with the Game Boy and Wii, respectively. Not only was this not the case with GTA V, but it's not featured much at all in bundles. We often see games shoot up the best selling charts when they're included in a good value bundle. GTA V is, because of its enduring popularity, not often spotted in bundles, and the PS4 hard bundle it was part of is now almost impossible to find.

And yet GTA V continues to sell. Last year alone, 15 million copies were bought, which alone would have been enough to earn the game the title of 47th best selling game ever. That's despite the game now approaching its fifth birthday.

It's unlikely that GTA will surpass its current ranking as the 3rd best selling game ever. Above it are Minecraft, which is still itself selling in incredible quantities and is around the 144,000,000 mark. Tetris remains the king at 170,000,000, a number unlikely ever to be surpassed.