U.S. retail sales of video-game hardware, software and accessories fell for a sixth consecutive month in May.
According
to market tracker NPD Group, sales fell 28 percent from a year earlier
to $517 million. The study tracks sales of new physical products - about
50 percent to 60 percent of the total spending. Excluded are sales of
used games and rentals as well as digital and social-network spending.
Sales
of console and portable software - the video games themselves - fell 32
percent from a year earlier to $255 million, while sales of hardware
fell 39 percent to $139 million. That was offset partly by a 7 percent
increase in sales of accessories, to $122 million.
NPD also listed
the top-selling games in May and said it was the first time since July
2010 that a PC-only game was a top seller for the month.
The top 10 are:
1. "Diablo III" for PCs, Activision Blizzard Inc.
2. "Max Payne 3" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PCs, Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
3. "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Ubisoft Group.
4. "Prototype 2" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Activision Blizzard Inc.
5. "NBA 2K12" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2, PCs, Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
6. "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PCs, Activision Blizzard Inc.
7. "Sniper Elite V2" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, 505 Games
8. "Battlefield 3" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PCs, Electronic Arts Inc.
9. "Dragon's Dogma" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Capcom USA
10. "Just Dance 3" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, Ubisoft Group.
Microsoft Corp. makes the Xbox 360, Sony Corp. makes the PlayStation devices and Nintendo Co. makes the Wii.