Flyin' high

NBA 2K13 scored a convincing three-pointer in the latest NPD report, as the rest of the North American video games industry continued its downward trend. The sector as a whole earned $755.5 million for the period, a figure which compares negatively to last year’s $1 billion.

While the figures aren't especially pleasant, analyst Liam Callahan believes there’s reason to be optimistic as we rapidly approach the holiday season: "While we saw declines in hardware unit sales across all platforms year-over-year, when looking at average sales per week versus September, several consoles realized higher sales: the 360, PS3, NDS and 3DS. This is a sign of increasing momentum as we move into the holiday season."

Hardware sales accounted for $187.3 million of October’s overall total, a 37 per cent decrease over last year’s $259.9 million. The Xbox 360 was the best-selling platform again, but because Sony doesn’t release numbers, we're not sure how far behind the PS3 was.

Despite the disappointing hardware figures, though, accessories continued to grow. The segment saw a 5 per cent increase year-over-year based on the popularity of Skylanders toys and digital currency gift cards.

Meanwhile, portable software actually increased by 37 per cent, but it wasn’t enough to offset the overall downward curve. Software sales fell by 25 per cent in total, raking in just $432.6 million compared to last year’s $576.8 million.

As previously mentioned, NBA 2K13 was the best-selling game of the month. It “outsold last year’s 2K12 by over 60 per cent in both units and dollars”. Elsewhere, Dishonored did extremely well for a new IP, selling 460,200 units and finishing in fourth. XCOM: Enemy Unknown sold 114,000 units, but it’s worth remembering that the NPD doesn’t take into account digital figures.

We’ve reproduced the full top ten below. Feel free to tell us about your October purchases in the comments section.

1. NBA 2K13 (360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PC)
2. Resident Evil 6 (360, PS3)
3. Pokémon Black Version 2 (NDS)
4. Dishonored (360, PS3, PC)
5. Pokémon White Version 2 (NDS)
6. Madden NFL 13 (360, PS3, Wii, PSV)
7. FIFA Soccer 13 (360, PS3, Wii, PSV, 3DS, PSP)
8. Medal of Honor: Warfighter (360, PS3, PC)
9. Borderlands 2 (360, PS3, PC)
10. Skylander Giants (Wii, 360, PS3, 3DS)