Sony can do no wrong in the United States it seems, as the PlayStation 4 was once again the best selling system in the all-important nation during July. Despite a lack of new releases, the continued popularity of the Japanese giant's exclusive Batman: Arkham Knight bundle pushed the organisation's box out in front – a spot that it's occupied three months in a row now.
"We are truly humbled by the success of the PS4, and we would like to thank gamers for making it the top-selling console and number one in software sales in the United States in July," a spokesperson told Games Beat. "We are looking forward to delighting fans next month with the launch of the Limited Edition Destiny: The Taken King PS4 bundle on 15th September."
While it was a particularly pleasant month for PlayStation, the industry as a whole fared just fine. Total physical spend reached $541.9 million, up six per cent year-over-year. This wasn't down to the release of new software, however. "[The growth was] driven by modest hardware growth and double-digital accessory growth as software sales remained flat," said NPD analyst Liam Callahan.
LEGO Jurassic World topped the charts, as part of a double-header for Warner Bros. Naturally, the brilliant Batman: Arkham Knight finished in second, while Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto V fleshed out the top four. Rory McIlroy PGA Tour was the best selling new game in July, exceeding the launch numbers of its predecessor by a whopping 70 per cent. That's despite mixed reviews, too.
The one thing that the software chart doesn't take into account is bundle sales, so it's likely that Rocksteady's sequel was actually the best selling game when you consider the aforementioned PS4 packages, but obviously we can't say that for certain without access to the actual numbers.
Still, we reckon that the August results are going to be tough to call. With some moderately sized Xbox One exclusives on the agenda this month and shoppers waiting for that abovementioned Destiny set, we suspect that things could be closer. With bundles proving so popular at the moment, though, Sony will be pretty excited about those Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 and Star Wars: Battlefront packages that it inevitably has waiting in the wings.
Top Ten Physical Retail Releases: July 2015
- LEGO Jurassic World (360, 3DS, PS3, Xbox One, Wii U, PS4, Vita)
- Batman: Arkham Knight (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
- Minecraft (360, PS3 ,Xbox One, PS4)
- Grand Theft Auto V (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3, PC)
- Rory Mcilroy PGA Tour (PS4, Xbox One)
- The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited (Xbox One, PS4, PC)
- Destiny (Xbox One, PS4, 360, PS3)
- Mortal Kombat X (PS4, Xbox One)
- FIFA 15 (PS4, 360, Xbox One, PS3, Wii, Vita, 3DS)
- Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3, PC)
[source venturebeat.com, via venturebeat.com]
Comments 19
Not surprising I guess. Smart money would be on PS4 for August as well, but there was Rare Replay, Gears comes out later in the month and Madden 16 will be heavily advertised along with the Xbox One.
September should go to PS4 due to the marketing deal with Konami for MGS V. Most Forza fans probably already have an Xbox One. October-December will be the real interesting months. MS has the exclusives and it seems Fallout 4 will be featured more along with that brand. But Sony has Star Wars and CoD deals.
@Gamer83 I can see X1 leading for the next few months (Oct - Jan) with Madden, Gears and a more fleshed out Forza. Also if that does not happen I can envisage Microsoft jumping to the next gen sooner rather than later - As in 2-3 years. This gen is not going to be as procrastinated as the last one.
I'm getting Madden on PS4.
It's actually going to be the first one I have bought since Madden 12 on PS3. I loved Madden on PS2 but wasn't a fan on PS3. It looked nice but I enjoyed the gameplay better on PS2.
@themcnoisy I can't, Sony has all the holiday deals.
I think I look forward to these hardware sales reports to see what Kaz gif will be used, and I laugh every time!
@themcnoisy
I'd agree about a possible quick plug on this gen. At least for Xbox One. But I don't see the jump being to new consoles, at least in the traditional sense. I'm in the camp that thinks both Sony and MS will eventually move PlayStation and Xbox in a more service based direction.
@Splat
Bought Madden last year when I got the Xbox One. The PS2-era Maddens are still the best because EA just doesn't give a crap anymore.
@themcnoisy
No reason for a new XBox in 2 years. As long as the console sells better than expected I don't see a reason for that. The XBox sells well, its just that the PS4 sells very well.
I read a good article somewhere explain why this holiday season is the time for Microsoft to get the jump on Sony. Compared side by side (at the moment), Microsoft has a lot of exclusive games coming out. If they do not get the jump on Sony, then they never will.
@Kohaku I agree. No need for any new consoles any time soon. Like you said they are both selling well but one better than the other
For the full effect, try playing Music For Chameleons by Gary Numan while watching that gif.
when we can see good many first party games for ps4 ?
at this time i'm only seeing 3 or 4 good first party game for ps4 .
thanks
@themcnoisy But changing too soon is going to be bad for them as well. You'll have about 60 or 70 million PS4 owners and all those Xbone owners will be told "Sorry, we screwed up. Now give us more money and this time we'll do better. Honest!" So all those customers can give MS another fat wad of cash and then bend over for phase 2, or they can move over to the far cheaper PS4 with a large install base and a large catalogue of games. No one will want to develop for the tiny install base of Xbone 720s when the PS4 will have a huge install base and there's the ugly history of the original Xbone behind them.
The way it stands at the moment, Sony say when the next gen starts, not Microsoft. Just like how no one considered the Wii U to be the start of this gen, but rather it was the release of the Xbone and PS4 that signalled that.
@ZeD If that made a difference, the Wii U would be in the position of the PS4 and the PS4 would be in the position of the Wii U. The success of the PS1, PS2 and PS3 wasn't down to first-party games. The N64, GC and Wii U all have a ton of first-party games and all sold badly and got absolutely trounced by the various Playstations. It's not even down to the power of the console, as we can see again by comparing the N64 and GC to their Sony counterparts, and the original Xbox to the PS2.
@Matroska If ps4 wins the months Oct - Jan then Microsoft have no choice but to rethink their strategy. Obviously that's a big IF and sheer speculation as I can see the x1 selling like hot cakes this chrimbo.
@Johnnycide I can't believe nobody else has commented on the amazing Kaz / Partridge GIF! Top marks @get2sammyb, I'd never seen it before but it is definitely now one of my favorites
@SteveButler2210 Thanks but @ShogunRok takes credit for that one - I hadn't seen it either!
@themcnoisy
You'd imagine Xbox One will sell very well this holiday season. Just to be sure, MS may want to do one of its 'limited time' price drops down to $300 though. For me first party exclusives will always carry more weight than third party timed exclusive deals (either on full games or dlc) but I'm not ignorant to what the mass market goes for. It's pretty much been shown so far that it's the third party games that move hardware and Sony has made some key moves on that front. The Star Wars deal was a big get for Sony.
Yes, a nice change of pace from Wednesday's doomed atmosphere. The PS4 is fine, but of course the total lack of Japanese games on that top ten could be a cause of concern.
And the sun rised as well lol. In all seriousness, it'll be interesting to see how it plays out with the holidays. Sony has the edge with marketing and third-party games, but MS has Halo 5 coming. I think they might get one month as a victory, but just barley, and the rest will go to Sony.
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