UK Sales Chart, Week Ending December 11th

With no significant releases due before Christmas, Need for Speed: Underground 2 looks all but certain to be the Christmas number one. Call of Duty has an outside chance of ousting it, if it manages to generate good word of mouth in the next week, but in all likelihood the top two are likely to remain static for some time to come. The entry of The Battle for Middle-Earth at number sixteen is likely to be the last new entry in the top twenty this year, with the only release left all year being Metal Slug Advance. Even so, there has been a surprising amount of activity in the top ten, with the mixed critical reaction to Prince of Persia: Warrior Within not preventing it from jumping six places to number six. The even more critically mauled The Getaway: Black Monday has also risen this month, while the equally pilloried GoldenEye: Rogue Agent is holding steady at number seven.