NPD: Uncharted 2 & Borderlands Make Strong October Debuts

October’s NPD numbers are in, and it’s turned out to be a very interesting month. Unfortunately, this month is down from last year in both the software and hardware categories. Nintendo’s Wii has reclaimed console supremacy, with PlayStation 3 following behind it. In addition we’ve got a surprise showing on the top three games sales from Borderlands at third place and a not-so-surprise showing from Uncharted 2 at number one.

In total, the industry is down nearly 20 percent from last year. Hardware sales dropped from $496.96 million to $380.74 million for an overall decrease of 23 percent. Fewer games flew off the shelves, with sales dipping to $572.73 million from $698.35 million, a decrease of 18 percent.

The hierarchy of console sales shows the PS3 continuing to beat out the 360:

Wii: 506.9K
PlayStation 3: 320.6K
Xbox 360: 249.7K

Sony’s PSPgo doesn’t appear to have helped the struggle to overtake the Nintendo DS, as a large gap remains between the competing portables:

Nintendo DS: 457.6K
PSP: 174.6K

Naughty Dog’s PS3 exclusive flew up the charts, leaving last month’s best seller Halo 3: ODST in position 6. Borderlands made a surprising debut at number three in software sales, while the heavily-marketed Brutal Legend failed to make the top 10:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves: 537,000 (PS3)
Wii Fit Plus: 441,000 (Wii)
Borderlands: 418,000 (360)
Wii Sports Resort: 314,000 (Wii)
NBA 2K10: 311,000 (360)
Halo 3: ODST: 271,000 (360)
NBA 2K10: 213,000 (PS3)
Forza Motorsport 3: 175,000 (360)
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days: 169,000 (DS)
FIFA Soccer 10: 156,000 (360)

Any guesses on where (or if) Brutal Legend landed in the top 20, or any other games that are alarmingly MIA from the top 10 for that matter?