FIFA 11 first-week sales hit 2.6 million

FIFA 11 may be EA's second soccer sim to see release this year, but that hasn't stopped the game from achieving blockbuster sales. Five months after releasing the highly regarded 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa edition, EA has again struck success, announcing today that internal estimates indicate that FIFA 11 has sold more than 2.6 million units in Europe and North America through October 2.

FIFA 11's first-week haul secures it the title of "fastest selling sports game ever," according to EA. It was also a lucrative one, as the publisher noted that the game generated more than $150 million at retail between September 28 and October 1, with sell-through up 29 percent from last year's title. EA went on to note that the latest FIFA franchise entrant is having its best start ever in a number of markets, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and North America.

Gameplay also spiked this year, as the publisher called October 1-2 the "busiest two-day period for online gaming in EA Sports history." During that window, the entire EA Sports online collection accrued more than 18.6 million play sessions, 11.3 million of which were from FIFA 11.

FIFA 11's key new feature is Personality+, which distinguishes individual footballers from one another by using a database that evaluates and grades each player's skill set over 36 attributes and 57 traits. This means a footballer's real-life skills will be reflected in the game. EA has also introduced a new Pro Passing system, which determines pass accuracy directly from a gamer's ability on the controls.

For more information, check out GameSpot's previous coverage of FIFA 11.