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Video game sales continue to grow as the pandemic continues, according to industry watchdog The NPD Group. The NPD game report from March 2021 is the first time that a year-on-year comparison will have an effect on early home stay orders.
“Consumer spending in March 2021 on video game hardware, content and accessories reached a record $ 5.6 billion in March,” said NPD analyst Mat Piscatella. ”[That is] 18% higher compared to a year ago. ”
| Total video game sales | $ 4,762 | $ 5,608 | 18% | |
| Video game hardware | $ 463 | $ 680 | 47% | |
| Video game content (full physical and digital game, DLC / MTX consumption and subscription on Console, Cloud, Mobile *, portable, PC and VR platforms) | $ 4,062 | $ 4,628 | 14% | |
| Video game accessories | $ 238 | $ 300 | 26% | |
| * Mobile expenses provided by Sensor Tower |
And in the first three months of 2021, the industry aims well before 2020.
“Consumer spending in the first quarter totaled $ 14.9 billion, up 30 percent from the first quarter of 2020,” Piscatella said.
This makes sense given that the pandemic, which boosted spending on video games, did not start seriously until the end of March. This year it also has new hardware from Sony and Microsoft.
| Annual sales so far in 2021 dollars, millions | YTD 2020 | YTD 2021 | Change | |
| Total video game sales | $ 11,480 | $ 14,920 | 30% | |
| Video game hardware | $ 778 | $ 1,405 | 81% | |
| Video game content (full physical and digital game, DLC / MTX consumption and subscription on Console, Cloud, Mobile *, portable, PC and VR platforms) | $ 10,199 | $ 12,798 | 25% | |
| Video game accessories | 504 USD | $ 717 | 42% | |
| * Mobile expenses provided by Sensor Tower |
Let’s get to the software graphics.
NPD March 2021: the top 20 best-selling games of the month in the US
NPD tracks physical sales from retailers, but also receives digital data directly from publishers. But not every company participates. For example, Nintendo does not share its primary sales, and Activision Blizzard does not offer its Battle.net sales.
These charts are sorted by sales in dollars – not the number of units sold. And this is for complete game sales and does not include in-game expenses.
| Rank | Last month’s ranking | Top 20 March 2021 games (complete physical and digital game on Nintendo eShop, PlayStation, STEAM and Xbox platforms for Digital Leader Panel publishers) ranked in sales in dollars | Editor |
| 1 | 2 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | NEW | Monster Hunter: Rise | Capcom USA |
| 3 | NEW | Outriders | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 4 | 1 | Super Mario 3D World * | Nintendo |
| 5 | 4 | Marvel Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Sony (Corp) |
| 6 | 9 | Mario Kart 8 * | Nintendo |
| 7 | 7 | Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla | Ubisoft |
| 8 | 10 | Animal Crossing: New Horizons * | Nintendo |
| 9 | 16 | Super Mario 3D All-Stars * | Nintendo |
| 10 | 8 | Minecraft | Several video game manufacturers |
| 11 | 11 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 12 | 14 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate * | Nintendo |
| 13 | 19 | Pokemon: Sword / Shield * | Nintendo |
| 14 | 15 | Mortal Kombat 11 | Warner Bros. interaction |
| 15 | 65 | Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s time | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 16 | 20 | Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild * | Nintendo |
| 17 | 5 | Madden NFL 21 | Electronic Arts |
| 18 | 13 | NBA 2K21 * | Take-Two Interactive |
| 19 | 22 | Super Mario Party * | Nintendo |
| 20 | 12 | FIFA 21 | Electronic Arts |
| * Digital sales are not included |
When it comes to software, Switch is still one of the biggest stories. Nintendo released seven of the top 20 best-selling games in March. But Monster Hunter: Rise is exclusively Switch, and Crash Bandicoot 4 is back in the top 20 thanks to its Switch version.
As the PlayStation 5 and Xbox grow their audience, Nintendo gains a highly successful generation.
Let’s see what Piscatella has to say about games.
Call of Duty
Call of Duty maintained its evergreen status in March.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops – The Cold War returned to the top of the monthly bestseller charts in March,” Piscatella said. “Call of Duty: Black Ops – Cold War was also the best-selling title in both the first quarter and the 12-month period ending in March.”
Monster Hunter: Rise
As for the new games, Monster Hunter: Rise was the biggest this month. He sold everything except Call of Duty.
“Monster Hunter: Rise debuted as the second best-seller in March, while it topped the Switch,” Piscatella said. “With just one month on the market, Monster Hunter: Rise’s lifetime coin sales are the second largest of all Monster Hunter franchises, following only Monster Hunter: World.”
Outriders
Despite the launch, at no extra cost, for Xbox Game Pass subscribers on Xbox, the cooperative online shooter Outriders also had a strong debut.
“Outriders has launched as the third best-selling game of March,” Piscatella said. “Outriders ranked 3rd best-selling game on the Xbox and PlayStation platforms.”
Mario Kart 8
Meanwhile, Mario Kart 8: Deluxe is Call of Duty for pets.
“Mario Kart 8 ranked sixth in the top sellers of March 2021,” said Piscatella. “Mario Kart 8 is the best-selling racing video game in US history.”
Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s time
Activision didn’t just have Call of Duty in the top 20. Crash found its way back to the top 20 thanks to the Switch.
“The March release of the Switch version of Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time helped the title climb to 15th place in the March bestsellers after it ranked 65th in February,” Piscatella said.
The best selling 20 games of 2021 so far
| Rank | Year to the end of March 2021 Top 10 games (Physical and Full Digital Game on Nintendo eShop, PlayStation, STEAM and Xbox platforms for Digital Leader Panel publishers) ranked in sales in dollars | Editor | |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 2 | Super Mario 3D World * | Nintendo |
| 3 | 3 | Marvel Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Sony (Corp) |
| 4 | NEW | Monster Hunter: Rise | Capcom USA |
| 5 | 4 | Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla | Ubisoft |
| 6 | 7 | Mario Kart 8 * | Nintendo |
| 7 | 6 | Minecraft | Several video game manufacturers |
| 8 | 5 | Madden NFL 21 | Electronic Arts |
| 9 | 8 | Animal Crossing: New Horizons * | Nintendo |
| 10 | NEW | Outriders | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| * Digital sales are not included |
Top 10 best selling games of the last 12 months
| Rank | Last month’s ranking | 12 months to the end of March 2021 Top 10 games (physical and fully digital game on Nintendo eShop, PlayStation, STEAM and Xbox platforms for publishers in the Digital Leader Panel) ranked on sales in dollars | Editor |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 4 | Madden NFL 21 | Electronic Arts |
| 3 | 2 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 4 | 5 | Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla | Ubisoft |
| 5 | 6 | Marvel Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Sony (Corp) |
| 6 | 3 | Animal Crossing: New Horizons * | Nintendo |
| 7 | 7 | The last of us: part II | Sony (Corp) |
| 8 | 8 | The ghost of Tsushima | Sony (Corp) |
| 9 | 9 | Super Mario 3D All-Stars * | Nintendo |
| 10 | 10 | Mario Kart 8 * | Nintendo |
| * Digital sales are not included |
NPD March 2021: Top 10 best-selling Nintendo games in the US
| Rank | Last month’s ranking | Top 10 games of March 2021 (complete physical and digital game for the publishers of the Digital Leading Panel) ranked on sales in dollars | Editor |
| 1 | NEW | Monster Hunter: Rise | Capcom USA |
| 2 | 1 | Super Mario 3D World * | Nintendo |
| 3 | 2 | Mario Kart 8 * | Nintendo |
| 4 | 3 | Animal Crossing: New Horizons * | Nintendo |
| 5 | 5 | Super Mario 3D All-Stars * | Nintendo |
| 6 | 4 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate * | Nintendo |
| 7 | 7 | Pokemon: Sword / Shield * | Nintendo |
| 8 | 8 | Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild * | Nintendo |
| 9 | 10 | Super Mario Party * | Nintendo |
| 10 | 16 | Luigi’s mansion 3 * | Nintendo |
| * Digital sales are not included |
NPD March 2021: Top 10 best-selling games on the PlayStation platform in the US
| Rank | Last month’s ranking | Top 10 games of March 2021 (complete physical and digital game for the publishers of the Digital Leading Panel) ranked on sales in dollars | Editor |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 2 | Marvel Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Sony (Corp) |
| 3 | NEW | Outriders | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 4 | 5 | Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla | Ubisoft |
| 5 | 4 | Madden NFL 21 | Electronic Arts |
| 6 | 9 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 7 | 6 | Minecraft | Microsoft (Corp) |
| 8 | 11 | The ghost of Tsushima | Sony (Corp) |
| 9 | 7 | NBA 2K21 * | Take-Two Interactive |
| 10 | 12 | Mortal Kombat 11 | Warner Bros. interaction |
| * Digital sales are not included |
NPD March 2021: Top 10 best-selling Xbox platform games in the US
| Rank | Last month’s ranking | Top 10 games of March 2021 (complete physical and digital game for the publishers of the Digital Leading Panel) ranked on sales in dollars | Editor |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 3 | Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla | Ubisoft |
| 3 | NEW | Outriders | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 4 | 4 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 5 | 9 | Mortal Kombat 11 | Warner Bros. interaction |
| 6 | 2 | Madden NFL 21 | Electronic Arts |
| 7 | 6 | Forza Horizon 4 | Microsoft (Corp) |
| 8 | NEW | It takes two | Electronic Arts |
| 9 | 16 | Marvel Avengers | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 10 | 22 | Watch Dogs: Legion | Ubisoft |
| * Digital sales are not included |
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