GAMR - Hardware drives videogame industry sales to best gain since late 2021
2023-03-29 14:42:29 ET
Videogame sales rose 6% year-over-year in February, their biggest percentage growth since October 2021, with broad jumps buoyed by sharply higher spending on consoles.
Overall sales rose to $4.6B from the previous February's $4.321B, according to Circana (the research company resulting from the merger of NPD Group and IRI).
And hardware spending jumped 68% from the prior year to $495M - the highest spending on hardware in a February since 2009. That was driven by growth in spending on the PlayStation 5 ( NYSE: SONY ), which was the best-selling platform in both unit terms and dollar terms. Year-to-date hardware spending is up 29% so far in 2023, to $888M.
Accessory sales showed their own rebound in February, rising 13% to $212M. Sales of gamepads dropped, but were offset by growth in virtual reality headsets. Year-to-date, accessory sales are just off 2022's pace by 1%, at $377M.
The biggest category, videogame content, eked out a mild gain as PC/console game sales rose and made up for ongoing declines in mobile game sales. Content sales rose 1% year-over-year to $3.893B; that helped soften a year-to-date decline for 2023 to -2% ($7.681B).
And while several best-selling games repeated their positions from January, it was a splashy new property that boosted the group: Warner Bros. Games' Harry Potter- based Hogwarts Legacy ( NASDAQ: WBD ) debuted atop the dollar sales list, and became 2023's year-to-date best-seller as well.
It bumped January's top 4 down a notch each. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II ( NASDAQ: ATVI ) dropped to No. 2; Dead Space ( NASDAQ: EA ) fell to No. 3; Madden NFL 23 ( EA ) dropped to fourth; and FIFA 23 ( EA ) to No. 5.
As The Last of Us: Part I ( SONY ) made its way toward the PC platform -- nicely timed with the hit TV series on HBO ( WBD ) -- it jumped back up to the No. 6 spot in dollar game sales, bumping Elden Ring ( OTCPK:NCBDY ) to No. 7.
And the top 10 in game sales was rounded out by three new February releases: at No. 8, Wild Hearts ( EA ); at No. 9, Like a Dragon: Ishin ( OTCPK:SGAMY ); and at No. 10, Octopath Traveler II ( OTCPK:SQNNY ).
As for mobile, the top 10 games in February spending according to Sensor Tower were Candy Crush Saga ( ATVI ), Roblox ( RBLX ), Royal Match, Pokémon Go ( OTCPK:NTDOY ), Coin Master, Township, Bingo Blitz ( PLTK ), Homescapes, Jackpot Party, and Evony.
Related tickers: OTCPK:NTDOY , SONY , MSFT , HEAR , LOGI , CRSR , EA , ATVI , TTWO , WBD , OTCPK:UBSFY , OTCPK:NCBDY , OTCPK:SQNNY , OTCPK:CCOEY , OTCPK:SGAMY , OTCPK:KONMY , SKLZ , SE , NTES , OTCPK:TCEHY , RBLX . Retail stock: GME .
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Hardware drives videogame industry sales to best gain since late 2021