Valve capped off 2016 by revealing the year’s 100 highest-grossing games on Steam, which is a pretty interesting list. If you’ve been following Alec’s prolonged breakdown over the weekly charts you’ll not be shocked by revelations that Grand Theft Auto V and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive are near the top, but you might not expect them to be joined by the likes of No Man’s Sky or the free-to-play Dota 2.

When I asked Alec if he fancied writing up this chart too, he began hissing “The Venga Bus is coming the Venga Bus IS coming the Venga Bus is coming to take me away ho-ho hee-hee ha-haaa” so you get me and my GIFs instead.

Valve’s Steam Top 100 doesn’t reveal a preceise order or specific numbers, instead grouping games into four revenue blobs with silly names. The top dozen highest-grossing games are declared Platinum, the next dozen are Gold, then 25th-40th are Silver and 41st-100th are Bronze. And, to stress, do bear in mind that this is by revenue, not copies sold.

I’ll not list all 100 – go here for the full list – but I will go over the ‘Platinum’ games and put GIFs in which I understand is what happens in our charts. My own breakdown manifests in different ways to Alec’s but I’ll do my best.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

CS:GO is a permanent fixture of the weekly charts, and I’d be fascinated to know how much of that is thanks to banned players buying new copies on new accounts. Cheating online is so 2002 but I suppose some sourpusses have to ruin everyone’s fun.

Rocket League

Our favourite game of 2015 did gangbusters across 2016 too. I’m glad the serious sport of carball continues to spread.

No Man’s Sky

Fuck what you heard!

It’s what you hearin’ (it’s what you hearin’)

It’s what you hearin’ (listen!)

It’s what you hearin’ (listen!)

It’s what you hearin’ (listen!)

Which is that a great many people have bought this lovely sci-fi walking simulator despite the bad survival game someone accidentally put it in.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Another cracker from 2015, which this year wrapped up with a stonking expansion.

Fallout 4

The latest Bethesda open-world RPG will always be huge. Along with stuff like Civ, they’re games that certain types of player will return to all year – possibly even the only game they’ll play. As almost everyone who ever would play Skyrim already owns it, it’s Fallout 4’s turn to entertain folks who enjoy little virtualives with virtuapals in virtuaworlds.

Dota 2

Ooh! This is an interesting one. Dota 2 never appears in the regular charts because it’s free. But looking at revenue, lawks Valve must sell a staggering number of wizard hats.

Tom Clancy’s The Division

The shooter MMO isn’t what it may have first appeared to be, but what it is made it one of our favourite games of 2016. “Junk food,” Brendan and Adam called it. Because a macaroni pie from the all-night bakery on Leith Walk is sometimes exactly what you want. Often about 2am.

Total War: Warhammer

People like Total War a lot and this is the newest one of those.

Dark Souls III

A good end to a good series! Dark Souls III didn’t get a nod in our 2016 Advent Calendar but, y’know, that’s not a slight as much as a consequence of how we compile our list. Not everyone’s into a whole lot of dying but hey, enough of y’all like parry-countering for this to be one of 2016’s biggest games. Good on you.

Sid Meier’s Civilization VI

This was one of our favourite games of 2016. A new Civ will always be huge, a game some folks will happily pick at for years. There’s no urgency surrounding Civ, no desire to get in before the ending is ruined and the secrets revealed, and I’m sure it’ll be a staple until the next one launches. It’s not all roses but Firaxis are still patching it up.

XCOM 2

Another game that I’m sure some people will pick up and pick at for a while to come. Turn-based strategy games live different lives with different audiences. It’s pretty good! Another of our 2016 favs. I genuinely enjoyed some of its bugginess.

Grand Theft Auto V

Don’t look so surprised.

That’s yer Platinum lot, then down into the Gold category we find more free-to-play games in Waframe and Team Fortress 2, along with stuff like Stardew Valley and Dead by Daylight, and moving onwards… ahh, check out the full list yourself.

But wait, no Devil Daggers? The best game of 2016 isn’t there at all? I’ve had enough!

[Disclosure: chartmaster Alec worked on No Man’s Sky a bit, writing some of those there words it has.]