The PlayStation 4 couldn’t slow the momentum of the Nintendo Switch in January 2018’s NPD report, as the Mario maker’s latest piece of hardware topped unit sales in what was an amazing month for the United States games industry overall. However, Sony will be secretly pleased, as its system generated the most revenue, proving that it’s held its value impressively heading into its fifth year in stores.
It was, unquestionably, an incredible January for all consoles, however. Revenue was up a whopping 59 per cent year-over-year, totalling a mind-melting $1.096 billion. Hardware sales saw the biggest boost, perhaps owing to the success of the Switch alongside the continued momentum of the PS4 and Xbox One. However, software revenue also increased by a very agreeable 51 per cent.
Monster Hunter: World played a big part in that, registering “an all-time launch month high” for the franchise. Where are the doubters now, eh? It topped the software charts, just edging out Dragon Ball FighterZ, which recorded the best launch sales for the anime series since 2002’s Dragon Ball Z: Budokai.
An absolutely storming month all around, then, and signs that the games industry is in really good health right now. This pattern is likely to continue right throughout the year, with the relatively new Nintendo Switch edging out the ageing PS4 and Xbox One. If the sales stay as close as this month is reported to be, though, all three manufacturers can look forward to a very good year in the US.
NPD Software Top 20: January 2018
- Monster Hunter: World
- Dragon Ball: FighterZ
- Call of Duty: WWII
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds*
- Grand Theft Auto V
- NBA 2K18
- Super Mario Odyssey**
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild**
- Mario Kart 8**
- Madden NFL 18
- Star Wars: Battlefront II*
- Assassin’s Creed: Origins
- UFC 3
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
- FIFA 18*
- Dragon Ball: Xenoverse
- The Sims 4*
- Splatoon 2**
- Dissidia: Final Fantasy NT
- Need for Speed: Payback*
NPD PS4 Software Top 10: January 2018
- Monster Hunter: World
- Dragon Ball FighterZ
- Call of Duty: WWII
- Grand Theft Auto V
- NBA 2K18
- Madden NFL 18
- Dissidia: Final Fantasy NT
- Star Wars: Battlefront II
- UFC 3
- FIFA 18
* No PC digital sales
** No digital sales
[source venturebeat.com]
Comments 21
Wow, well done Monster Hunter and Dragon Ball.
Great news all round, we all benefit when the industry and all three console makers are doing well. Great to see two japanese-made games doing so well, truly impressive that the 3DS has had it's highest january sales in five years too !
Some fascinating numbers all around. Great start to year.
Switch selling the most units, but PS4 driving the most revenue is surprising. I guess more people are picking up Pro's?
Probably not a lot between them.
Funny to see the first Xenoverse game so high up the charts.
It pleases me to no end to see battlefront 2 slipping from the top ten.
well that will shut up all the naysayers who said this would be the last gen of console, but hey these people say it ever gen!
Japanese games is back on top (and second)
"Where are the doubters now, eh?"
That horse sure is dead and you won't be able to carve more materials out of it
@suikoden ni no kuni best looking game ever.and best rpg on the ps3.consoles are here to stay.them guys dont know what they are talking about.ps5 will also be a retail console not streaming like crapbox.word up son
@sinalefa word up son console is here to stay.been a PlayStation fan since day 1 in 1995.best console ever with my favorite console the sega genesis.worddd uppp
PS4 and Switch are doing great, still not sure about Xbone because MS is not sharing their sales. At least we have Aaron Greenberg being a tool on social media...
Monster Hunter is a big hit, impressive numbers.
Like @playstation1995 says: word up son!
@sinalefa and the nail was hit that day
Sweet news! Hope the huge profits can be used to create new IP and new jobs. And it seems console, PC and mobile gaming can co-exist despite the critics and fanboys saying one is better than the other
The Switch just had its driest month since launch and still managed to take the top spot. Sony and MS received two of the most hyped early games of the year, there were some great deals I saw for an Xbox One S and yet neither competing console could slow down Nintendo. Anybody expecting/hoping Switch sales to fall off a cliff in 2018 is going to be severely disappointed (that's a good thing, a healthy, thriving Nintendo makes the industry better).
@Gamer83 Switch is not even a year old. Of course people are buying it... PS4 is five years old and already sold 76 million. Do you really expect it to sell even more than Nintendo's new gen? Come on, be real.
@YeYa
Well, considering how poorly Wii U sold and dropped like a rock even early on and that everybody thought Nintendo was going to fade into the sunset, and considering PS4 is at a mass market price, still has the best overall library of games, and not everybody has bought it, yeah I would expect PS4 to keep outselling Switch, but it's not. You can do whatever you want to discredit people who are happy to see the Switch having success, you can down play the system's sales all you want. But go back to even just a month before the Switch released and people were expecting (and hoping) it would fail. That hasn't been the case. And that's 'being real' about it.
@Gamer83
This is US only, and even then, the margins were slim. You have to imagine that in respect of the more important worldwide sales, Sony is still dominating.
Not trying to downplay the Switch here, I love my Switch to bits.
I do hate when gaming sites lump the PS4 and Xbox ONE together to look like they are both doing well. Well outside of the USA the Xbox brand is dead(slightly alive in the UK I guess) But maybe the USA and UK are the 'World' according to the internet and Gaming sites Anyway well done SONY and Nintendo
Yay Monster Hunter!
@Gamer83 I never said anything about Switch on this site. Why are you assuming I was hoping for Switch to fail? Even though I prefer PlayStation, I respect Nintendo and competition is always good and needed. Cool down, not everyone is gonna stab you in the back for loving Nintendo.
@Fight_Teza_Fight the ps4 pro costs much more. What o took out of it was the switch and ps4 were neck and neck for the month.
Good to see my consoles of choice doing well! Love my PS4 and Switch!
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