NPD: July Sales See 28% Growth, NCAA Atop Charts

The North American video game industry's revenues hit $1.19 billion in July, up 28 percent over last year, while the year-to-date total increased 35 percent year-over-year. The biggest leap was in software revenues, up 41 percent on the year to $591.1 million, led by Electronic Arts' NCAA Football 09 on Xbox 360, which sold 397,600 units during the month -- the same month in which it debuted. Also making a strong showing was Nintendo's Wii Fit and Balance Board bundle, which ranked second with 369,600 units sold, even at a price point higher relative to its chart peers. Interestingly, all Nintendo titles to chart were games that sold bundled with peripherals, also including Wii Play and Mario Kart. Once again, the Nintendo systems - specifically the Wii and DS - were the top sellers, followed by the PlayStation 3, the PSP, and then the Xbox 360. July Hardware Hardware revenue in June totaled $446.9 million across all platforms, a 17 percent increase over the same period last year. Video game hardware has pulled in a year-to-date total of $3.33 billion in revenues, a 22 percent increase year-over-year. Per unit sales are as follows: Nintendo DS - 608.4K Wii - 555K PlayStation 3 - 224.9K PlayStation Portable - 221.7K Xbox 360 - 204.8K Playstation 2 - 155.5K This represents a modest lull almost across the board for hardware sales -- particularly for the Wii, which falls somewhat short of conservative industry estimates. Some analysts, however, anticipated a summer tailing-off for hardware sales as a ramp-up to a "hardware storm" in the Fall and holiday seasons -- perhaps not to the extent experienced, though. July Software North American game software revenues reached $591.1 million in July, a 41 percent leap from the same month last year -- year-to-date total software revenues have now reached $4.9 billion, up 48 percent on the year. The top 10 titles of the month by units sold are as follows: 1. NCAA Football 09 (Xbox 360, EA) - 397.6K 2. Wii Fit (Wii, Nintendo) - 369.6K 3. Guitar Hero: On Tour (DS, Activision) - 309.7K 4. Wii Play w/Remote (Wii, Nintendo) - 284K 5. NCAA Football 09 (PS3, EA) 242.5K 6. Soul Calibur IV (Xbox 360, Namco) - 218.9K 7. Mario Kart w/Wheel (Wii, Nintendo) - 174.5 K 8. Rock Band Bundle (Wii, MTV/EA) - 165.8K 9. Soul Calibur IV (PS3, Namco) 155.8K 10 Sid Meier's Civilization: Revolution (Xbox 360, Take-Two) - 147.6K