After April 2016's desperately dire NPD report, the US industry has rebounded in May, with total physical spend up four per cent year-over-year – raking in a handsome $528.6 million. While hardware and accessories declined yet again (by 10 per cent and two per cent respectively), it was software that propelled the growth, with Uncharted 4: A Thief's End contributing to an 18 per cent upswing in momentum compared to the same period in 2015.
Unsurprisingly, Naughty Dog's romp shot straight to the top of the charts – beating off strong competition from multiformat titles like DOOM and Overwatch. It's a really good result from the exclusive outing, though it's worth noting that it did launch very early in the month, maximising its sales potential. Nevertheless, with numbers totalling 2.8 million globally in just a week, it's safe to assume that the title's been a success.
As alluded above, though, it was a really good month for new releases in general, and sales nearly doubled those accured in May 2015 in terms of software units sold. Battleborn, which charted somewhat higher than expected, contributed to that, while evergreen releases like Grand Theft Auto V, Minecraft, and NBA 2K16 – currently free for PlayStation Plus members – helped. The excellent MLB 16: The Show also held on for a third successive month in ninth.
Bizarrely, though, Sony declined comment on this week's results for a second time. It's widely believed that, as was the case last month, the PS4 was the best-selling system yet again – though there's no official confirmation of that at the time of typing. Still, it's nice to see some growth in the American market for once – and it's especially reassuring to see that it's been propelled by stellar software. Next stop: E3 2016.
Top Ten Physical Retail Releases: May 2016
- Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (PS4)
- DOOM (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- Overwatch (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- Battleborn (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- Grand Theft Auto V (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3, PC)
- Minecraft (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3)
- NBA 2K16 (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops III (Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3, PC)
- MLB 16: The Show (PS4, PS3)
- Dark Souls III (PS4, Xbox One)
[source venturebeat.com, via neogaf.com]
Comments 20
Will. It. Ever. End.?
I'm glad DOOM did so well......
@sub12 Really impressive result. Word of mouth is really strong so it should keep going, too.
Doom only came out a few days after uncharted
Well done SONY & ND + rumours are that the PS4 sold between 201/213k and the Xbox ONE sold only between 100/139k!?
GTA 5 is still on top sellers list?
Feel like its going to outlast all those games at staying on top sellers list.
PS4 hardware numbers must be really sh*t for Sony to stop commenting all the sudden. Maybe it thinks the 'Neo' is necessary to reignite slumping sales?
@Gamer83
Sony and Microsoft are both tip-toeing around the announcement of new console iterations. Even Shu and Spencer have been oddly quiet in the last couple of months.
Weird Sony have been quiet these last few months. Usually they love to shout out "winning" NPD!?
PS4: 207.3k (+35.8% YoY)
XBO: 107.1k (-23.3% YoY)
3DS < 72k (down at least 25.77% YoY)
Wii U: 25.3k (-40.7% YoY)
360: 11.9k (-53.5% YoY)
PS3: 10.7k (-44.5% YoY)
Games are always the most important factor when it comes to selling consoles. Its not surprising that the market fluctuates depending on the popularity of the games released.
@Dodoo
Source?
@Gamer83 They're actually up year-over-year, so I've no idea why they're not commenting anymore. Perhaps they feel there's no point at the moment.
@Gamer83 Aquamarine - http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/post.php?id=7933086
@Dodoo
Thanks
@get2sammyb They want us to assume ps4 is always winning
@Gamer83 Anytime
@get2sammyb
Perhaps it's for the better that they don't release statements, at this point they have already won the generation unless they do something incredibly wrong. Being humble has some qualities.
I think there is a strategy to not comment in the lead up to mid-cycle upgrades. I think sales are good but they might not want to draw attention to them when you have new hardware on the horizon.
@Rudy_Manchego
Yeah, that makes sense for sure.
@Gamer83 I don't think they are sh*the necessarily, just declining a little overall. At this point the ps4 is well established as THE console this generation, and there is nothing Microsoftor Nintendo can do to change that perception among gamers. I think Sony is just going quiet before E3 and then we will be hit with some impressive sales figures. There timing really couldn't be better, just as hardware sales are starting to slip we get PSVR and PS4k, smart move imo.
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