NPD: November Sees 'Blistering' 10 Percent Growth, 2 Million Wiis, Gears 2 Dominant

The video game industry saw November revenues up 10 percent over last year to nearly $3 billion -- even amid an economic recession, and despite the fact that last November had seven more post-Thanksgiving shopping days, the NPD reported today. This brings the industry's revenues to date to $16 billion -- and according to the NPD's Anita Frazier, who describes this month's revenue performance as "blistering," the games biz is still on track to reach NPD's previously-estimated $22 billion for 2008 as a whole. "One reason for the continued strength of the industry compared to other forms of entertainment comes from a number of sources," says Frazier. "Certainly, the expanded audience for gaming due to the availability of a wider variety of compelling content is a strong contributor." Hardware Hardware revenue was up 10 percent year over year to $1.21 billion, and 14 percent over 2007's year-to-date total. The Wii was the victor in spades, selling an unprecedented 2.04 million units, over twice what it sold during November of 2007 when its supply was considerably more constrained Nintendo's DS handheld sold 1.57 million units, followed by the Xbox 360 at 836,000 units. Having recently received a price cut, the Xbox 360 more than doubled the PlayStation 3's 378,000 units in November. Sony's PSP beat its home console with 421,000 units, and the PlayStation 2 still made a showing with 206,000 units. Wii - 2.04 million DS - 1.57 million Xbox 360 - 836,000 PSP - 421,000 PS3 - 378,000 PS2 - 206,000 "The expanded supply of Wii systems at retail was clearly evident in the sales figures this month," says the NPD's Frazier. "The 360 realized a nice unit sales bump over last November and the PS3 year-to-date unit sales growth is impressive." "It's clear there can be more multiple victors this generation, and while price is certainly a strong factor, particularly as the current economic situation continues to prevail, the most important factor that will drive success in 2009 will be the line-up of compelling games that will keep consumers involved in the industry." Software Video game software grew 11 percent year over year in November, representing 31 percent growth in year to date sales. Gears of War 2 topped the month's top ten, selling 1.56 million units in November, and the NPD pegs its attach rate to the Xbox 360's install base at 13 percent. The Xbox 360 SKU of Call of Duty: World at War came in at a close second with 1.41 million units, and Wii Play still maintained its chart tenacity in third place. The software top 10 for November is surprisingly broad-ranging: 1. Gears of War 2 (Microsoft, Xbox 360) - 1.56 million 2. Call of Duty: World At War (Activision Blizzard, Xbox 360) - 1.41 million 3. Wii Play (Nintendo, Wii) - 796,000 4. Wii Fit (Nintendo, Wii) - 697,000 5. Mario Kart (Nintendo, Wii) - 637,00 6. Call of Duty: World At War (Activision Blizzard, PS3) - 597,000 7. Guitar Hero: World Tour (Activision Blizzard, Wii) - 475,000 8. Left 4 Dead (Electronic Arts, Xbox 360) - 410,000 9. Resistance 2 (Sony, PlayStation 3) - 385,000 10. Wii Music (Nintendo, Wii) - 297,000 "After a soft introduction last month, Wii Music came back to score a spot on the top 10 list for the month," said Frazier, calling it a "testament" to Nintendo's marketing power and the Wii's brand equity. Frazier also notes that Blizzard's World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King sold 1.4 million during the month, its debut at retail. She also speculates that the recession could actually be aiding video game sales: "Economic factors are also at play, given that a video game is a relatively inexpensive form of entertainment for the hours of value it provides," she says. "Our Consumer Spending Indicator shows that video games is the category consumers are least likely to cut back on this holiday."