NPD 2008 in Review
Here is the NPD year end data for console and game sales in 2008. These numbers show the continued growth of all three consoles but really show how the might have fallen with the Wii in first and the PS3 in last.
Consoles in 2008
Wii 10.1m (17.5m)
360 4.7m (13.9m)
PS3 3.5m (6.8m)
Top Selling Games, Annual 2008
1. WII PLAY W/ REMOTE 5.28 million
2. WII MARIO KART W/ WHEEL 5.00 million
3. WII FIT W/ BALANCE BOARD 4.53 million
4. WII SUPER SMASH BROS: BRAWL 4.17 million
5. 360 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV 3.29 million
6. 360 CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR 2.75 million
7. 360 GEARS OF WAR 2 2.31 million
8. PS3 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV 1.89 million
9. 360 MADDEN NFL 09 1.87 million
10. NDS MARIO KART 1.65 million
In the Wii's second full years of sales in the US the game console has only continued to shine. In 2008 the Wii saw a 42% increase in sales over 2007 and managed to have four of the top selling games in 2008. What's absolutely crazy is that the number 2 item on lasts year's top 10 is now number 1: Wii Play w/Remote. I fully expect every console moving forward to bundle a game with a controller since it's worked so well for Wii Play. The Wii will break 20 million sometime midyear 2009 and will easily break 40 million in the US when it's all said and done.
Again Microsoft has another solid year selling consoles and games. I'd guess that Microsoft would have liked to see more 360 titles in the top ten but should be happy they have four spots. The 360 has continued to see sales grow year over year and is about 500K units way from selling more consoles this generation compared to last generation in the US. That's in three years compared to five. The 360 is easily on pace to sell over 20 million in the US.
It's easy to second guess Sony because of their lack of a price cut in 2008. Still the game consoles posted good sales early in 2008 and saw substantial growth compared to last year. Unfortunately as BluRay players got cheaper and the Xbox 360 cut it's price, the PS3 sales started to slide which lead to a pitiful holiday season. Sony got a huge boost from the release of Gran Theft Auto 4 (their only game in the top ten) in the Spring but was not able to compete the 360 with a huge Holiday game for it's own console. The PS3 needs another price cut to boost sales. I expect the PS3 will hang around for a long time as Sony can't afford to kill it off. The success of Kill Zone 2 will make or break 2009 for the game console.
Consoles in 2008
Wii 10.1m (17.5m)
360 4.7m (13.9m)
PS3 3.5m (6.8m)
Top Selling Games, Annual 2008
1. WII PLAY W/ REMOTE 5.28 million
2. WII MARIO KART W/ WHEEL 5.00 million
3. WII FIT W/ BALANCE BOARD 4.53 million
4. WII SUPER SMASH BROS: BRAWL 4.17 million
5. 360 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV 3.29 million
6. 360 CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR 2.75 million
7. 360 GEARS OF WAR 2 2.31 million
8. PS3 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV 1.89 million
9. 360 MADDEN NFL 09 1.87 million
10. NDS MARIO KART 1.65 million
In the Wii's second full years of sales in the US the game console has only continued to shine. In 2008 the Wii saw a 42% increase in sales over 2007 and managed to have four of the top selling games in 2008. What's absolutely crazy is that the number 2 item on lasts year's top 10 is now number 1: Wii Play w/Remote. I fully expect every console moving forward to bundle a game with a controller since it's worked so well for Wii Play. The Wii will break 20 million sometime midyear 2009 and will easily break 40 million in the US when it's all said and done.
Again Microsoft has another solid year selling consoles and games. I'd guess that Microsoft would have liked to see more 360 titles in the top ten but should be happy they have four spots. The 360 has continued to see sales grow year over year and is about 500K units way from selling more consoles this generation compared to last generation in the US. That's in three years compared to five. The 360 is easily on pace to sell over 20 million in the US.
It's easy to second guess Sony because of their lack of a price cut in 2008. Still the game consoles posted good sales early in 2008 and saw substantial growth compared to last year. Unfortunately as BluRay players got cheaper and the Xbox 360 cut it's price, the PS3 sales started to slide which lead to a pitiful holiday season. Sony got a huge boost from the release of Gran Theft Auto 4 (their only game in the top ten) in the Spring but was not able to compete the 360 with a huge Holiday game for it's own console. The PS3 needs another price cut to boost sales. I expect the PS3 will hang around for a long time as Sony can't afford to kill it off. The success of Kill Zone 2 will make or break 2009 for the game console.
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