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NPD: Xbox 360 moves 297K units, PS3 sales up 13%

Stephany Nunneley-Jackson avatar
News by Stephany Nunneley-Jackson News Editor
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NPD has reported that in April, industry sales were up 20 percent year-over-year to $961.2 million, with Easter holiday sales attributed to $60 million of the total figure. Xbox 360 was once again the best-selling console for the month, and Mortal Kombat was the clear software winner.

Hardware up 12 percent, Xbox 360 moves 297,000 units

Total hardware sales for the period were up 12 percent to $279.9 million, making it the third consecutive month the sector has seen growth.

PS3, PSP and Xbox 360 all saw an increase in sales year-over-year,  with Xbox 360 once again the best selling hardware for the month, followed by Nintendo DS.

NPD said PS3 consoles saw double-digit hardware growth in April with PS3 sales up nearly 13 percent to 204,300.

Xbox 360 was was again the number one console in April, making it tops for 10 out of the last 11 months. The continued momentum was attributed to demand for Kinect.

The console sold 297,000 units in April, which is a 60 percent increase year over year,and total retail spend on the Xbox 360 platform, which includes hardware, software and accessories, reached $310 million for the month - the highest among current generation consoles.

Nintendo reported that Wii moved 172,000 units which is down 38 percent year-over-year, and 40 percent compared to March's figured. It also said in a statement that 3DS moved 194,000 units.

NeoGAF has posted preliminary figures for life-to-date hardware sales as well as year-to-date figures, which we cannot totally confirm, but it should give you a base idea of how each offering is doing (thanks Mike):

YTD units sold

  • 360: 1,646,214
  • PS3: 1,238,948
  • Wii: 1,235,870
  • 3DS: 592,000

LTD units sold

  • 360: 27,041,373
  • PS3: 16,700,921
  • Wii: 35,385,494
  • 3DS: 592,000

Software up, Mortal Kombat king

Sales of videogame titles were up 26 percent to $503.2 million, with NPD the growth to the release of Mortal Kombat which moved close to 900,000 units. This was the first time since November 2010 that software sales have shown growth for a reporting period.

Portal 2 was the second best-selling game for the month, and LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, debuted in the third spot. Call of Duty: Black Ops maintained a spot in the top five, and once again, Ubisoft had two dance titles in the top 10.

"The content slate was stronger this year versus last April," said Frazier. "Five games sold more than 250,000 units in April 2011 as opposed to just two last April. Games that would appear in the top ten ranking on a SKU basis for April include "NDS Pokemon Black Version," and "PS3 SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs.

"If sales of the SOCOM Move accessory bundle were combined with software sales, this game would have ranked in the top ten titles as well."

Sony software sales were up, with a 40 percent increase year-over year.

"We continue to see a lot of great momentum at the retail level, and appreciate the support we've received from our partners, retailers and customers since the criminal attack on the PlayStation Network," said Patrick Seybold, SECA's director of corporate communications in a statement.

"We hope to have services restored as soon as we can."

Microsoft reported Dance Central sales have eclipsed 2.5 million units worldwide, and that the firm plans to triple the size of its Kinect portfolio by the end of the year. The firm also said sales for Kinect Sports have surpassed 3 million units worldwide.

During the month of April, half of the top ten console game titles were available for Xbox 360 including: Mortal Kombat, Portal 2, Crysis 2, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters, and Michael Jackson: The Experience.

NPD Software Top 10 (figures posted by NeoGAF)

  1. Mortal Kombat - 900,000; over 1 million with special editions
  2. Portal 2 - 637,000
  3. LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
  4. Call of Duty: Black Ops
  5. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters
  6. Crysis 2 - 236,000
  7. Just Dance 2
  8. Michael Jackson The Experience
  9. Pokemon White Version
  10. NBA 2K11 - 190,000

Other bits and bobs

Accessories were up 20 percent to $147.6 million, and during April, the Xbox 360 Live 1600 Points Game Card was the top seller.

"On a year-to-date basis, video games accessories realized the greatest year-over-year percentage increase of all categories," said NPD's Anita Frazier.

"Sony's SOCOM 4: Full Deployment Bundle, which included the Sharpshooter as well as the Move, was the top new accessory release."

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