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NPD: Modern Warfare, Just Dance Lead A Lackluster January
With a top 10 sellers list that contains few surprises, NPD is reporting low numbers for the month of January.
NPD is reporting that total sales for games, systems, and accessories dropped 34% from January of last year, coming to $750.6 million compared to 2011's $1.14 billion. The most noteworthy statistic is that sales of new games for the month of January are down 99% from last year, when they accounted for 13% of sales. While that sounds like a shocking drop, it's worth noting that the two biggest game releases of the month, Final Fantasy XIII-2 and SoulCalibur V, both released on Jan 31. Last year's January contained releases including Dead Space 2, LittleBigPlanet 2, and DC Universe Online.
While the lack of new titles seems like a valid reason for sluggish sales, Wedbush Securities' Michael Pachter is skeptical of NPD's latest numbers. NPD is claiming that software sales for the month were $355.9 million, whereas for the past seven years January software sales have averaged $518 million. Speaking with USA Today, Pachter stated that it "...makes no sense that sales are below the level from 2004, when games were cheaper and the installed base of consoles was much lower. ... I don't know if the NPD is getting faulty data, but these numbers make no sense."
Whether Pachter's intuition is right or not, here's the list of the top selling games of January:
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
- Just Dance 3
- Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
- NBA 2K12
- Battlefield 3
- Madden NFL 12
- Mario Kart 7
- Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
- Zumba Fitness 2: Party Yourself
- Saints Row: The Third
[Source: USA Today]
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