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September 2014 NPD - Hardware Drives Growth Despite Sluggish Software Sales
The NPD Group has issued its report for the month of September 2014. Sony already revealed that PlayStation 4 won the month, which is a five-week period instead of the normal four. Destiny was a big driver, leading the month.
Other new releases that charted in September include: FIFA 15, Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, NHL 15, The Sims 4, and Disney Infinity 2.0.
NPD reports that industry sales amount to $1.1 billion, a 2 percent increase. Hardware sales were the major motivator at $432.7 million, up 136 percent over September 2013. New-gen hardware comprised 85 percent of the units sold in September 2014, the highest since the Xbox One and PS4 launched in November 2013.
Software was down significantly though, despite Destiny's performance. Last September marked the release of Grand Theft Auto V, which rocketed to $1 billion dollars in sales in three days. Spending was down to $481.2 million from $754 million in September 2013, a drop of 36 percent. NPD's Liam Callahan notes that the top ten games in September 2014 amount to only 59 percent of sales of the top 10 one year ago. Grand Theft Auto V's release last year and the uptick in digital we've heard about from publishers helps explain this.
Nintendo had a strong month, seeing hardware sales growth for both the Wii U (up 50 percent over August) and the 3DS, which saw big performance on the back of 705,000 copies of Smash Bros. The holiday period is just beginning, and all three platform holders will need to bring their A-game and woo customers (some of whom might be in the market for a second or third platform).
Here's the top 10 best selling titles at retail in the United States. As a reminder, this ranking does not include digital purchases, nor are bundles factored in. This is especially relevant given Sony's touted performance of the Destiny bundle, as there were more standalone Xbox One retail copies sold.
- Destiny (Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3)
- Madden NFL 15 (360, PS4, PS3, Xbox One)
- FIFA 15 (PS4, 360, PS3, Xbox One, Wii, Vita, 3DS)
- Super Smash Bros. for 3DS (3DS)
- Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- NHL 15 (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3)
- Minecraft (360, PS3)
- The Sims 4 (PC)
- Disney Infinity 2.0 (360, PS3, Wii U, PS4, Xbox One)
- Diablo III: Reaper of Souls (PS4, 360, PS3, Xbox One, PC)
Callahan also notes that if the top ten list were ordered by sku rather than title, Hyrule Warriors would have placed. As it stands, it came in at number 11.
Our Take
It's good to see the hardware numbers up over a relatively sluggish August, but this needs to be the start of major growth for the holiday for both hardware and software. Microsoft is still playing from behind. Sony will want to keep its lead. Nintendo will need to be extremely aggressive to salvage the Wii U, possibly creating compelling bundles with both Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. This is the year to pull out all the stops as the narrative is already starting to become very familiar.
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