Hardware
360 – Over 1,700,000
Wii – 1,060,000
PS3 – Around 936,000
No handheld numbers are currently available, though both the 3DS and DS had increased sales compared to the previous month.
Software – December 2011
1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3*
2. Just Dance 3
3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim*
4. Mario Kart 7
5. Battlefield 3*
6. Madden NFL 12*
7. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations
8. NBA 2K12
9. Super Mario 3D Land
10. Batman: arkham City*
Software – Annual
1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3*
2. Just Dance 3
3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim*
4. Battlefield 3*
5. Madden NFL 12*
6. Call of Duty: Black Ops*
7. Batman: Arkham City*
8. Gears of War 3*
9. Just Dance 2
10. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations
*Includes all versions of the game except those bundled with hardware.
^Bolded items indicate Nintendo exclusives.
Some more useful information: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was the #10 best-selling individual SKU of December 2011, though it didn’t make the list of the top ten overall software titles. Star Wars: the Old Republic, the new BioWare MMO, moved 600,000 copies this December but only made it to the #14 spot, which means all the top ten finishers had better sales than that. Also, dollar sales of all Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure games and merchandise gave it the fourth-highest sales in December, and tenth-highest sales for all of 2011.
Overall, video game sales are down. 2011 saw an 8% decrease in sales, and December alone had a 21% decrease, compared to 2010. When combined with digital sales, however, it is estimated to only be a 2% total decrease for all of 2011; clearly, digital sales are increasing markedly. Total industry sales were $3.99 billion in December, and $17.02 billion for the entire year. The Wii no longer is the dominant console, as the Xbox 360 was responsible for 40% of video game sales this year.
It seems like the industry could use a bit of a shot in the arm. It’s hard to say how much of the sales decrease is due to the economy, and how much is due to the Wii no longer selling like gangbusters; the fact that the 360 and PS3 are enjoying increased sales seems to suggest that it’s a little of both. This is probably a good time for Nintendo to release a new console, all things considered. I’m glad to see impressive sales for both Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land; I get the sense that they’re going to be staying on the sales charts for a long time, like New Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart DS did in the past.
