"Explosive hardware growth" led by the PS4 and Xbox One consoles managed to offset continuing declines in physical software sales in US in August, according to industry tracker NPD Group.
PS4 led hardware sales for the eighth consecutive month, according to Sony. But NPD points out that both Sony and Microsoft's new consoles are enjoying strong early-life sales, tracking well ahead of their predecessors during their respective launch periods.
Zoom"When lining up sales of PS4 and Xbox One after ten months on the market, the combined PS4 and Xbox One hardware sales are greater by over 70 percent compared to their predecessors," said NPD Group's Liam Callahan in a report published Thursday afternoon.
Total physical video game (hardware and retail-only software) spending in US for the month of August 2014 hit around $561.3 million, up 8 per cent versus the same month in 2013.
The trend of declining physical retail game sales (since NPD does not track digital downloads) continued, down 22 per cent year-on-year at $238.7 million versus $305 million in August 2013.
Sales on video game accessories also declined slightly by around 2 per cent. Therefore, the the 8 per cent increase in overall spending can be solely accredited to the huge jump in hardware sales this year, with Xbox One and PS4 sales driving hardware spend up 116 per cent year-on-year in August to $231.6 million.
"Eighth generation hardware represented close to 70 percent of August 2014 hardware sales, which is the highest percentage share since the release of the Xbox One and PS4 back in November 2013," noted Callahan.
While NPD doesn't disclose hardware sales, a Sony rep told Games Beat, "PlayStation 4 was No. 1 in hardware sales for the eighth consecutive month. And it remains the cumulative leader for new-generation game consoles."
Despite tailing PS4, Microsoft also expressed please at the Xbox One's August performance. "Xbox One sales are on a positive trajectory, nearly doubling sales in [the last week of] August in the US compared to [the same week in] July due in part to strong demand for the Xbox One Madden NFL 15 bundle," said the firm. [Updated for correction, see bottom].
SCEE president and CEO Jim Ryan announced during the PlayStation Gamescom conference in August that PS4 sales had hit ten million units worldwide.
Software
EA Sports' Madden NFL 15 topped US physical retail software sales in August, edging out Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls and the ever present Minecraft.
"Deep declines in seventh generation software of 57 percent were not offset by growth in eighth generation software, leading to a net decrease of console software sales of $47 million," noted Callahan.
Here's the physical retail software chart:
1)Madden NFL 15 (PS4, XBO, 360, PS3)
2)Diablo III: Reaper of Souls (PS4, XBO, 360, PS3, PC)
3)Minecraft (360, PS3)
4)The Last of Us (PS4, PS3)
5)Call Of Duty: Ghosts (360, XBO, PS4, PS3, PC, Wii U)
6)Lego Marvel Super Heroes (360, PS3, Wii U, PS4, 3DS, NDS, XBO, Vita, PC)
7)Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare (360, PS3, PS4, XBO)
8)Watch Dogs (PS4, 360, PS3, XBO, PC)
9)Battlefield 4 (360, PS3, PS4, XBO, PC)
10)The LEGO Movie Videogame (360, 3DS, PS3, Wii U, PS4, XBO, Vita)
[Update: This report has been edited to rectify the quote from Microsoft, in which the firm had originally claimed that Xbox One sales in August were double that of sales in July. A Microsoft rep contacted CVG on Friday to clarify: "Our reference to nearly doubling Xbox One sales in August in the U.S. compared to July due in part to strong demand for the Xbox One Madden NFL 15 bundle was a reference made to the last week of the month after Madden launched. We are sorry for any confusion."]
