February 2015 NPD: 3DS family leads hardware

U.S. video game sales results for the month of February 2015 are in.

General

Consumers spent $955.6 million on new games, hardware, and accessories in February, up eight percent from the amount spent over the same period in 2014.

Hardware sales generated $378.2 million, a 10 percent increase from the same period in 2014. PlayStation 4 was a major contributor to that increase, as well as the New 3DS XL.

“Home console hardware declined 5 percent as gains in eighth-generation console sales could not offset the 41 percent loss in dollar sales of seventh generation hardware,” NPD analyst Liam Callahan said.

Software sales generated $378.2 million, which is up seven percent from the $338.9 million spent on games during the same period in 2014.

Top ranking standalone software for the month include:

1. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D (3DS)
2. Evolve (Xbox One, PS4, PC)
3. Dying Light (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
4. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3, PC)
5. Grand Theft Auto V (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3)
6. NBA 2K15 (PS4, Xbox One, PS3, 360)
7. Dragon Ball: Xenoverse (PS4, Xbox One, PS3, 360)
8. Minecraft (360, PS3, Xbox One, PS4)
9. The Order: 1886 (PS4)
10. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (3DS)

Sony Computer Entertainment

PlayStation 4 was the top-selling home console in February, Sony announced.

“Demand for PlayStation 4 remains incredibly strong in the U.S. as it was No. 1 in hardware and software sales in February, according to the latest NPD report,” a Sony spokesperson said in a statement. “PS4 remains the cumulative leader in hardware sales with more than 20.2 million units sold to consumers worldwide demonstrating the fastest growth in PlayStation hardware history.”

Microsoft

Xbox One sales were up 84 percent in February compared to January, to which we can deduce about 276,000 units were sold.

“Xbox One’s fan base continues to grow with record February sales in the U.S. for Xbox One and 84 percent more consoles sold compared to January 2015,”  said Mike Nichols, Corporate Vice President of Xbox Marketing at Microsoft.

“In February 2015, fans spent an average of 74 hours on Xbox Live in the U.S. – three times the amount of hours the average user spends on social networks*. And, Xbox Live set new records, quadrupling global gaming hours on Xbox One and Xbox 360 in February 2015 compared to February 2014. We are grateful to our fans for choosing to play on Xbox One. Offerings and experiences will continue to expand with Xbox One and Halo: The Master Chief Collection available together for $349, new games launching this month including ScreamRide and Ori and the Blind Forest, hundreds of new ID@Xbox games in development, and plans to make gaming even better on Windows 10 and Xbox.”

Nintendo

3DS was the top-selling hardware platform in February, thanks largely to the launches of New 3DS XL, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D, and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate on February 13.

The 3DS family sold nearly 395,000 units in the U.S., the majority of which were New 3DS XL units, which sold 130 percent more in its initial frame than 3DS XL did when it launched in 2012.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D was the top-selling title for the month with more than 515,000 combined physical and digital units sold. The game is now the fastest-selling Legend of Zelda hand-held title in U.S. history.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate sold more than 290,000 combined physical and digital units and is now the fastest-selling Monster Hunter title, across all platforms, in U.S. history. It is also Capcom’s fastest-selling 3DS title in U.S. history.

3DS hardware sales have increased by more than 90 percent over sales during the same period in 2014.

Wii U also had a strong month. Sales for the platform have increased by more than 20 percent over sales during the same period in 2014.

Additionally, life-to-date sales of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and amiibo have surpassed 1.5 million total units and 3.5 million figures, respectively, with an attach rate of nearly 2.5 amiibo figures per game unit sold.

Thanks, Venturebeat, NeoGAF.