"Games" is a song performed by American
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
artist
Luke Bryan
Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and television personality. Bryan is a five-time "Entertainer of the Year", being awarded by both the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Count ...
from his seventh extended play ''
Spring Break...Checkin' Out'' (2015). It was written by Bryan and
Ashley Gorley
Ashley Gorley (born April 29, 1977) is an American songwriter, publisher, and producer from Danville, Kentucky, who is based in Nashville, Tennessee. Gorley has written 81 number 1 songs and has over 400 songs recorded by artists including Luke ...
. First released to digital retailers on February 24, 2015 as the first
promotional single
A promotional recording, promo, or plug copy is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as mu ...
off the EP, the song later received airplay on country radio.
Content
"Games" is a mid-tempo country song about the frustration of people that the narrator cares about "playing games" rather than being upfront about their feelings.
The song has been praised by critics such as Bob Paxman at ''
Country Weekly
''Country Weekly'' (known as ''Nash Country Weekly'' from 2015–16) was an American magazine about country music. It was in circulation between April 1994 and May 2016. The publisher, Cumulus Media, now maintains the site Nash Country Daily.
O ...
'' for departing from the "party" theme of Bryan's spring break releases and dealing maturely with the topic.
[
]
Commercial reception
Despite not being officially promoted as a radio single by his label, "Games" was the ninth-most-added song on country radio for the week of March 16, 2015.Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...
chart at number 25 and on the ''Billboard'' Canadian Hot 100
The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007 as the standard record chart in Canada; a new chart ...
chart at number 46 for the week of March 14, 2015.Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' Country Airplay
Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since October 20, 2012, although the magazine also retrospectively recognizes the Hot Country Songs charts from January 20, 1990, through October 13, 2012, ...
chart.[ The song has sold 293,000 copies in the US as of August 2015.]
Chart performance
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
References
{{authority control
2015 songs
Luke Bryan songs
Capitol Records Nashville singles
Songs written by Luke Bryan
Songs written by Ashley Gorley