Although some big budget games such as Max Payne 3, Medal of Honor War fighter, and FIFA 13 has been released in 2012, the gaming market in the United States saw a deep fall in sales last month. According to NPD, the whole sales slumped by 25%, compared to the same period last year. However, there is still a slim chance of recovery this fall. But that will need lot of hard work.
The statistics say that the fall affects both consoles and game sales. According to Port Washington report, the major fall was in the sales figure of consoles. It declined 37%, which means about 187.3-million dollars drop in comparison with the sales figure of October,2011. Another report from NPD states that gaming software sales also fell 25% to $432.6 millions. However, Microsoft once again topped for consecutive 22nd month in the console sales. Last month, it sold 270,000 Xbox 360 units, even though the figure is 31% lower from 393,000 units last year.
Now, there are several reasons behind the sales drop this year. It is already assumed that the gamers of the United States now want new upgrades in consoles with more graphical contents and more user-friendly interface. A good example of this is the newly released Assassin’s Creed III in PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles. Although the sales is high, it still hasn’t met the expectations. Another reason is the number of digital downloads from the internet, rise of mobile and social gaming.
But there is still a hope of light. As the holiday season is approaching, there are still a few big budget games and previously successful franchises in the pipeline. The Assassin’s Creed III is yet to release in Microsoft Windows. The 5th Installment of Hitman series “Hitman: Absolution” is yet to come. The long-awaited Black Ops 2 is coming on Nov 13. Not only that, Sony Entertainment promised a new PlayStation interface to its users. These may facilitate the recovery process of the sales of games in USA till the end of 2012.
Source: Financial Post, Slash Gear
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