Retail video game sales last month in the U.S. sank by 19 percent compared to July 2012, as has been widely expected. The anticipation for new consoles is strongly impacting hardware sales, to the extent that hardware sales dropped 34 percent from last year to total only $99.4 million for the month. Software sales alone dropped 19 percent, while accessories only fell 3 percent.
The only bright spot, such as it was, came with sales of Nintendo 3DS, the only platform to show growth over July of last year. The console was helped by the strong performance of Animal Crossing: New Leaf, which took the overall number five best-selling position among software titles for the period.
“July 2013 was another positive month for 3DS software sales, with strong double-digit growth in both units and dollars,” said NPD’s Liam Callahan. “Besides launches like Shin Megami Tensei IV, growth was driven by continued success from games that have launched over the past few months like Animal Crossing: New Leaf, and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.”
The top selling game overall for the month was NCAA Football 14, with Minecraft for the Xbox 360 in second place, and The Last of Us in third.
Source: NPD
