October 2017 NPD: PS4 Is Still the Best Selling System of the Year

Some pretty rough results for Bethesda. The Evil Within 2 and Wolfenstein couldn't even make the top 10. I know digital sales aren't tracked for either of them, but still... Can't imagine most people have been opting for digital.

The console sales numbers don’t surprise me. PlayStation will finish strong, but this is the most competition they will have had now with the One X and Switch at full steam.
I’m surprised Shadow of War beat out ACO and SMO. Also, I continue to be surprised that these recycled sports games sell so well. They are making money hand over fist on those FIFA, Madden, WWE, NBA ... etc, etc year after year. Having never bought a single one of these annual sport rehashes, I suppose i can’t be a judge of their apparent greatness, so to each his own.
Also surprised overall software sales are down this year. With all the great titles we’ve had?

I really hope xbox don't come out on top. Not because of some fanboy loyalty ; but rather because their pr is already obnoxious at best. They would be unbearable if they come out on top

@Th3solution
I’m with you on not quite getting how well sports games sell. I imagine lots of kids get it due to multiplayer with friends and not all being allowed to play higher age rated games, then there are those living out a dream they couldn’t achieve in real life. My last games was madden 92. 25 years and still feel burned out on sports games.

@Th3solution I think it's largely down to parents and grandparents knowing that they children like particular sports so pick up the latest releases in time for Christmas. There are usually a lot of console bundles including these games too which must help.

@gingerfrog @Rob_230 Yeah, I’m not one to criticize the free market and if these annual sports games sell, more power to them, but I do find concern that it is rewarding publishers for a complete lack of innovation. I know they try to do roster updates and add manager modes and few creative twists occasionally, but it’s basically paying a $60 annual fee for a service game with little to no “service”, as I see it.
But I agree, the market for them is larger considering the younger players they can target along with the adults

@get2sammyb and @Rob_230 do you think the XB1X could possibly be Microsoft's 'come from behind PS3' moment when it's all said and done? With Microsoft promising to invest in more 1st party IP, developers seemingly entranced by the XB1X's power, and early sales being what they are, plus Microsoft having more marketing money than God, could we see that happening? Mind you, Sony's no slouch and I look forward to their counter strategy. Competition is great for all involved.

GT sport also bombed, right? Do you have sales numbers for it?

@Th3solution Both XXbone and NS will probably run out of steam sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, PS4 is heading strong into 2018, which looks like it will be its best year yet.

"Also surprised overall software sales are down this year. With all the great titles we’ve had?"

Remember, a lot of other systems are on the downswing. The original Xbone has slowed down while the fans waited for the XX. Vita and Wii U are even deader than last year, and NS isn't picking up the slack (just check how many NS games there are in the top 10). Even 2DS and 3DS are slowing down in the US, while they're doing better in Europe.

Next year will Prove Sony has it in the bag. The games they have slated for 2018 beat just about any other line up. And the Threat of FF7 Remake Ep 1, TloU 2 and KH3 in 2019 PS4 would make back any lost ground.

The Real question is will we have enough money to buy all these games and thus keep the sales numbers up? Looking at the first half of next yr there are like 7 games that would be must-haves in any other yr. And they launch so close to each other!

Off the top of my head: God of War, RDR2, Detroit, Monster Hunter World, Shadow of the Colossus Remake, Dissidia NT, Dragonball Fighterz, Ni No Kuni 2

Edit: Isnt DragonQuest 11 supposed to get localised in 2018?

@Th3solution Oh I agree.EA are the worst (when arn't they). The Vita releases of fifa were a joke. Fifa 14 was awesome, but the two subsequent releases were nothing more than updated kits and rosters without any tweaks . And they charged full price for these. Literally no reason not to make the update available for a small fee rather than a whole new cartridge.

@Turismo4GT No. PS3 never struggled as much as people online would have you believe. it sold steady numbers throughout its early life and performed very strongly in Europe. The UK market is often more closely aligned to the US market, so it can act as a veil for how strong the brand is in the rest of Europe. In some parts of Europe , the xb1 has hardly made a dent. And it is literally only selling in the hundreds in Japan. Microsoft made a big song and dance about how the x sold out in Japan. But that is because the shipment was so incredibly low. Meanwhile, the PS3 always sold strongly in its homeland and the PS4 has done very well ; at least untill switch came along.

The other key difference is that the xbox 1 does not have much in the way of exclusive software. Those games it does have are also on pc. This fractures the market and reduces the number who will buy an xbox to play. PS3 performed so strongly at the end of its life because the quality of exclusive software was ridiculous. And there was so much of it. Xbox 1 doesn't have that luxury, particularly as Sony are again flexing their muscle with incredible and (importantly) varied exclusives, not just dudebro shooters. Next year looks insane already for Sony.

So no, I don't see it happening. The X is a device for enthusiasts. It is not a device for the general gaming community, many of whom haven't upgraded to 4k yet. It will sell well; largely to those who have an xbox already who want a little more power.and they will make money. But it won't able the course of this generation. And I think the switch could genuinely beat life time sales of the xbox one family.

@3Above while I agree with you on the slate for 2018 nailing it for Sony (spiderman will be a monster hit I feel), square has never said ff7 is exclusive sadly. KH 3 is coming next year and is also coming out on xbox. Although with the remasters on ps4 only, plus the history the franchise has with the platform, I predict the majority of sales on Sony's platform

@Rob_230 Thanks for your feedback.

@ShogunRok

I guess I am reading it the other way. Considering that Bethesda games drop in price real fast, TEW2 is a Japanese horror game and W2 was sandwiched by Odyssey and ACO I would say they are high. Hoping they had a good digital sale share.

@get2sammyb Thanks Sammy. As for how dead the Xbox brand is in other countries, while that may be true, I see it's doing pretty well here in Barbados. The new X sold out here at one retailer that was selling it at $1745 (!!) and I was told it is now a special order item.

In truth, all video game related items here are expensive: PS4 Pro is $1200, Switch is $1299, games on Blu-ray are anywhere around $150 - $190 depending on title...

@3Above Yep, we're supposed to be getting localised Dragon Quest XI at some point in 2018.

I bet Middle Earth Shadow of War is filling up some used bins somewhere right now. Though trading a digital copy might be more difficult. @ShogunRok Did you see Microsoft sold 1000 or so Xbox One Xs in the land of the rising sun? It probably beat PS3.

@3Above Dont forget Yakuza 6

"zeitgeist"

Sammy wins the Internet today.

@Mahe Very true. I have the habit of looking at things through the lens of a PlayStation consumer, but you’re right - the other consoles are not really adding much by way of software compared to years past. It would be interesting to see the software numbers broken down by console. For example, even though total software sales are down 20%, maybe PlayStation software is stable or up from last year, just not enough to make up for xbox’s poor software output. 🤔

@legalstep When 1000 units is a relative victory you know it's time to stop. Microsoft has just never been able to get a foothold in Japan.

@Rob_230 I DID forget Yakuza 6, too many good games! At the E3 2015 announcement of FF7 Remake ( god that was long ago now) they said "Coming first to PS4." Of course that could be only 3 months exclusivity. But i think it and KH would sell most on PS4 and i doubt Switch versions would be made of those 2 games. Unreal Engine 4 hasn't produced the best results on Switch. Still no word on the port of DQ11.

@ShogunRok Thats another game im really Looking forward to. Ive never played A DQ game before.

@Turismo4GT Your Bajun? I in Tobago!!

@3Above That I am, how's it going down in TrinBago?

@Turismo4GT It real cool down here. Been playing The Frozen Wilds. Say JL last night and going to play Battlefront 2 this evening.

@3Above Good move. Enjoy Battlefront 2 man.

@JoeBlogs Fair enough. I imagine MS is currently making quite a loss on each X sold, but I hope it continues to do well.

@ShogunRok Wolfenstein only released on the 27th and up against ACOrigins with CoD and SWBF2 releasing soon after. I think the Evil Within 2 was always going to struggle in such a packed month. The first was good but wasn't perfect so maybe people were willing to 'miss out' at launch and pick up if the reviews were favourable at a later date.

As for console sales, its not surprising that PS4 is the best selling console of 2017 (so far) and something I expect will continue - even if they lose November and December as the 'best selling' for those months. The PS4 is the 'best' HD games console on the market and the 'Pro' has had 10months of being the 'only' UHD console option. The Switch has done well but I still struggle to see this as a 'home' console - more of a Handheld that can be 'docked' to play on a big screen. Its that 'hybrid' approach though that has helped with its success as well as Nintendo's games.

The XB1s, the only rival to the PS4, as good as it is just can't compete on gaming and the 4k HDR bluray isn't a USP for 1080p TV owners. You are still better off buying a PS4 and letting the TV upscale to 4k than buying an S as the upscaling the S has to do makes the games look worse overall because of a lower res starting point. Also the PS4 generally has higher performance too. Point is, the XB1s has 'struggled' to be competitive on delivering the same PQ and performance as a PS4, let alone the Pro for gaming. That may change now the X is out and more and more people are moving to 4k but with the price difference, you can still see the much cheaper Pro having the edge in sales. Whether that price differential is worth or not it will be on a per person basis but I still think that the cheaper Pro could still be more popular. Games may not 'look' as good on a 4k screen but its not like they look 'terrible' and people are missing out on games. Sony also has some great exclusives on the Horizon and a lot are potential console sellers, MS on the other hand seem to be relying more on the fact that their X will be the 'best' place to play multi-platform releases and the 'exclusives' are more 'bonuses' rather than system sellers in their own right. Even Forza, which maybe one of the 'best' racing games on the market isn't 'unique' enough as you can buy Project Cars as an alternative. GTS isn't in my opinion because it lacks a lot of the features of PC2 and F7 inc Career, dynamic weather etc. Point is though, you don't need to buy an Xbox for a 'great' racing Sim but you do need a PS4 for games like Spider-Man, Last of Us 2, Detroit, Dreams, Days Gone etc. Maybe I am being a bit harsh as Sea of Thieves (for example) could be 'unique' and PUBG too for that matter - at least until it comes to PS.

As for the year on year sales decline, I do wonder if some of that is due to an increase in Digital purchases. I also wonder if we are seeing 'fewer' big game releases too and some of those that do release have been broken (ME:A for example), controversial (SWBF2, NFS Payback for example) - funny how its EA games that spring to mind LOL - and sequel after sequel - some of those sequels to 'average/mediocre or poorly received/critically underwhelming' titles - like Evil Within 2 for example. Some games like CoD:IW haven't sold as well as other CoD games. I know that's a 2016 release but the sales still continue in 2017. The fact that GTAv is still one of the 'best selling' games week on week - often selling more than 'newly' released games is telling too. If we had had a lot of big AAA game releases without 'issues', I wonder if GTAv would have been in the top 5 most weeks this year and would it still be in the top 10 best selling games of 2017? No RE7 or ME:A in the top 10 - two of the biggest franchises yet their new games didn't usurp a lot of console exclusives - games available on just 1 platform yet these had multi-platform sales potential.

Anyway, no doubt we will see a 2017 breakdown sometime in January when games like Fifa, CoD etc are likely to be amongst the biggest selling games of the year.

Extremely happy for Middle-Earth. I saw it becoming a successful even before the first one launched and surprisingly made no one's most anticipated list. Then the critics loved it and the fans gave it a try.

Ouch at GT Sport. Not really surprised but it's pretty sad to see. Hopefully that sends Polyphony and Sony a message, though I doubt it will. Mom's spaghetti.

@get2sammyb @ShogunRok both games are already 50 % off right now for xbox gold members..wow

@Rob_230 wow you predict the majority of KH3 sales will be on playstation and not xbox ballsy

@Turismo4GT
I think Xbox One X could make the system the top dog in North America when all is said done (just like Kinect and strong marketing deals helped push 360 past Wii in the final years of last-gen) but unless it turns into a situation where the One X is helping that brand outsell the PS4 brand 2-1, or more, the chances of Sony giving up the global lead are small. It's true PS3 caught 360 last gen, but people overlook that while 360 was doing extremely well in NA and the UK, it wasn't doing well at all in Japan and other parts of Europe heavily favored PS3. So while MS was racking up NPDs wins, Sony was still managing to gain ground worldwide pretty much from the start. As long as PS4 sales don't totally fall off a cliff, it should reach 90 mil, 100 mil when its run is over. I'm not sure Xbox One is going to get that high though I do think it's going to end up with a larger install base than most people expect.