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November NPD: MW3 Fuels Record Breaking Month

Hey, guess what. November broke records, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was obviously the catalyst. …not shocked in the least, are you?

The November NPD numbers have arrived and it turned out to be the largest November in gaming history.

US game retail sales hit $3 billion for the month, which just barely beat out last year's performance. Software sales were up 16% to $1.74 billion, although hardware sales fell 9% to $982.4 million), and accessory sales fell 34% to $273.8 million (just remember that Microsoft launched Kinect in November 2010). Modern Warfare 3 predictably claimed the top software spot, beating last year's Black Ops by 7%. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim came in a strong second and in fact, sold nearly as many copies in its first month as its predecessor, Oblivion , sold lifetime. Pretty darn impressive.

Battlefield 3 came in third, followed by Assassin's Creed: Revelations and Just Dance 3 . For the record, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception dropped into 7th position, which isn't bad, as it topped the only other exclusive on the top 10 list, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword .

And here's Sony's monthly statement from SCEA Sr. Director of Corporate Communications, Patrick Seybold:

"PlayStation 3 is off to a phenomenal start to the holiday season, recording the best ever Black Friday sales period in the console's five-year history. According to the November NPD report the PS3 saw a 70% increase in hardware and a 30% increase in software year-over-year. Consumer demand has been very strong for our holiday bundles and for recent first and third party blockbuster titles such as UNCHARTED 3, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. We're excited that millions of people are joining the PlayStation community and realizing its incredible entertainment value across games, movies, TV, music, and more."

May NPD: Sales Slide But L.A. Noire Nabs #1 Software Slot

After two straight months of growth, the video game industry suffered a slide in May.

The NPD Group has released the numbers for last month, and after a 20% spike in April's year-over-year financial results, May fell 14% to $743.1 million. The highlight of the month was Rockstar's L.A. Noire , the excellent crime drama that forces players to think, investigate, and deduce. Ironically, the publisher's Red Dead Redemption claimed top sales honors last May.

In second place came Bethesda's Brink , LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean enjoyed a third-place slot, Valve's Portal 2 had another strong performance at #4, and Mortal Kombat rounded out the top 5. One of the reasons overall sales fell was simply because there were far fewer games released in May 2011 when compared to May 2010, as NPD analyst Anita Frazier noted. As for hardware, the Xbox 360 was once again in the top spot, although PlayStation 3 sales did grow 14%.

Here's the monthly statement from Patrick Seybold, SCEA Sr. Director of Corporate Communications:

"We are pleased to see that according to the May NPD report, PlayStation 3 hardware sales increased 14% year-over-year, marking the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth. The PS3 platform is stronger than ever, and with the launch of Infamous 2, we continue to show our commitment to delivering the best and freshest content line-up available to our consumers. At E3 last week, we saw first-hand the consumer excitement for 3D, PlayStation Move and our first party franchise titles that will continue to drive the brand."

November NPD: Black Ops Reigns, Monthly Records Broken

The NPD numbers are in for November and only one guess which game topped the software list.

But the best news is that it turned out to be the best November on record; the NPD Group has reported a monthly earning total of $2.95 billion, which is a 9% increase in overall sales of non-PC hardware, software and accessories. The previous best November came in 2008, but we beat it by around $30 million last month, and the Nintendo DS and Call of Duty: Black Ops were a big part of that upswing.

The DS sold more than any other platform, coming in at 1.5 million units and although Sony didn't release hardware numbers for the PS3 or PSP, we know the Xbox 360 was the best-selling console hardware system for November. Accessories were up the highest, thanks to PlayStation Move and Kinect popularity; revenues in this category jumped 69% to $413.3 million. Software sales rose 4% to $1.46 billion and of course, we have to remember about that $650 million debut week for Call of Duty: Black Ops .

Black Ops , by the way, is now the 7th best selling video game in US history, coming in at 8.4 million retail units in the US. The blockbuster accounted for 1/4 – that's 25%, people – of all US software units sold in November. Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood came in second in the software category, and Gran Turismo 5 cracked into the Top 10 even though it was only available for one week at the end of the month.

And although we don't have hard figures from Sony, they did provide a few stats with their standard statement: firstly, PS3 hardware sales continue to increase month over month (up 112%), and secondly the PS3 had a 5% increase in year-to-date sales in November. Said Patrick Seybold, SCEA Sr. Director of Corporate Communications:

"This holiday season PlayStation celebrates, along with the video game industry, as NPD reports a 9% year over year industry increase in overall dollar sales. The early blockbuster success of PlayStation Move has undoubtedly helped to pave the way for us as we head into 2011. The library of hard core and social gamer titles currently on the store shelves (EyePet, Get Fit with Mel B, Gran Turismo 5, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11, SingStar Dance) as well those to come (Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, LittleBigPlanet 2, Twisted Metal, Killzone 3) will only continue to solidify our place in the living room.

In fact, the strength of Move’s technology infrastructure in allowing our developers to make already released titles Move compatible, will help broaden the net of their existing PS3 titles, bringing them to life even further with PlayStation Move. We’re pleased that consumers continue to look to PlayStation for innovative and unique entertainment experiences. As we head into the new year, with almost every PlayStation Move sku in short supply and on allocation, I think we will continue to see a steady surge of positive growth for our home entertainment offerings simply because customers looking for strong product value, quality entertainment offerings, depth in gaming and content (original programming, NetFlix, Hulu Plus, NHL, MLB), will choose PlayStation."

September NPD: Industry Slides, New Halo Dominates

The comprehensive numbers are gone but at least we can still get a bird's-eye view of the industry.

The NPD Group has released the industry results for September and true to their warning, it is devoid of specific hardware and software numbers. It does, however, tell us that overall hardware sales fell 19% to $383 million, and software sales slid 5% to $655 million. The report also noted that $614 million of those sales came from console and handheld software, which means PC software only tallied $41 million for the month of September…times have certainly changed, haven't they?

Anyway, it should be little surprise to anyone to learn the Xbox 360 was the top console last month; a little clue as to why can be found on the software chart, where Halo: Reach dominated (3.3 million copies sold thus far). However, even with the new blockbuster, non-PC software fell 6% overall. Here's a look at the software top 10 for September:

Yes, MW2 is still on the list. The lone bright spot for September can be found in the Accessories category, as sales jumped 13% to $180 million. The NPD's Anita Frazier attributes this rise mostly to PlayStation Move, which saw each of its various pieces finish in the Top 10 for the month. By the way, Sony is plenty happy with these results.

NPD Group Alters Sales Reporting

For those who want to argue sales numbers, the NPD's data is always crucial to the discussion.

But the debaters are going to have to do without, at least in regards to hard facts. It has been revealed that the NPD Group will change the way they share industry sales information with the consuming public. Firstly, while we'll still be told how well hardware is selling in relation to other hardware, we won't receive actual sales numbers. Secondly, we won't get any actual numbers for software sales, either, although we'll still get a monthly top 10. Here's the rundown:

— Removal of monthly hardware unit sales figures

— A shift in the Top 10 software from sku level with unit sales for the Top 5, to Top 10 software at the title level with no unit sales

— Revised footnote explaining that the monthly retail data reflects new physical purchases, not total consumer spend (digital, subscriptions, mobile games, rentals, used or social network games). The NPD Group will release a total consumer spend report to press on a quarterly basis

— Monthly analysis from NPD industry analyst, Anita Frazier, will include software sales figures at both the sku and title level for various new releases

We have to remember that the numbers have always been viewed as a promotional tool for the NPD and if it isn't much of an advantage, it's going to disappear. In the end, journalists and gamers should still have everything they need to get a bird's eye view of the industry landscape and as a bonus, the console wars won't receive quite as much fuel. It may not sound like a fun change – and it basically isn't – but we understand the reasons behind it.