ELSPA (Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association) today announced the list of videogames vying for the number one spot this Christmas. And leading bookmaker Ladbrokes makes Call of Duty: World at War its 1/3 favourite for the festive accolade.

The list of candidates includes a variety of gaming genres catering for all age groups. There are some widely creative titles that represent the industry's cutting edge development and innovation. Some of the titles have been gracing the charts for the majority of the year and offer gamers a real interactive family experience. Together with some of the year's highly anticipated hardcore titles they are battling it out for the top spot, proving a wide range of titles are popular with gamers.

There are a few family orientated titles and social titles in the mix, including: Guitar Hero World Tour, Wii Music and Wii Fit.

The Christmas number one spot has, for many years, been passionately contested. The position has - in years past - been taken by an underdog, and in other years the hot favourite has stormed top spot.

According to the bookies, Call of Duty: World at War will fight it out with FIFA Soccer 09, available at 6/1 and 7/1 chance Mario Kart Wii has closed in ominously from a previous price of 40/1. Confirming really, that all of the games Ladbrokes have listed have a great chance of claiming the top position and are testament to a thriving industry.

So will this year see the favourite slip into the lead or will one of the other great titles swoop in last minute?

Michael Rawlinson, Managing Director, ELSPA, commented: “Christmas 2008 will be yet another great year for videogames and we are all dying to know which of the amazing front runners this Christmas will make it to No1.  We are currently experiencing a boom time for inventiveness and creativity within the industry and the variety of games for different age groups, families and Hardcore Gamers is vast. There are more and more games hitting the top spots in the charts that are family orientated, proving once again that the most popular games are often the games families can play together.

There are, as always, a remarkable array of competitors for the number one slot and it is impossible to tell if the favourite will make it or be pipped to the post.”

Ladbrokes spokesman, Nick Weinberg, said: “The battle for Christmas supremacy gets bigger and better each year. It's now a staple part of our festive betting diet. Call of Duty is the field's stand out favourite. It's going to take a monumental effort to wrest the gong from the market leader's hands.”

Please note, Ladbrokes rules apply and though prices are correct at time of writing they are subject to change at any time. Combined multi-format sales will dictate the winner in the week ending 21st December. Ladbrokes will take the final result from ELSPA/Chart-Track and this result is final. Electronic Theatre does not endorse gambling and would like to remind you that by UK law you must be at least 18 years-of-age to gamble.

ManPac

12/12/08