October NPD: Wii & Xbox 360 up, PS3 going down

The hardware and software sales data for October is in, and NPD is reporting that video gaming in the U.S. is continuing its upward surge in popularity despite the economic recession. The Wii has absolutely smashed estimates and is number one yet again, while the Xbox 360 saw improved sales. The PS3 meanwhile is going down, but is it out of the running for good?

It’s that time of the month again when we pull apart the latest sales figures for America. The NPD Group has released the latest figures, and October sales show that both hardware and software are continuing to sell despite the global economic slowdown starting to hit ordinary consumers such as you and I.

Official NPD Hardware Sales For October

Nintendo Wii – 803,000
Nintendo DS – 491,000
Xbox 360 – 371,000
Sony PSP – 193,000
Sony PS3 – 190,000
Sony PS2 – 136,000

The hardware figures are pretty astounding when you consider that October was only a four-week month compared to September’s five weeks. This is the first month of the all-important fourth quarter that includes the holiday season, and the figures may give us an indication of how each console will do during the end of 2008 and start of 2009.

According to Ars Technica, overall, sales are up 18 percent on the same period last month, and the year to date figures are up by 25 percent. While all three home consoles are having a healthier 2008 than 2007, some are clearly doing better than others.

Nintendo had a phenomenal month, with the Wii increasing sales from 687,000 to 803,000 in the space of a month. The DS went down slightly but still managed a comfortable second place. Nintendo also succeeded on the software front with Wii Fit, Wii Play, and Mario Kart all making it in to the top ten bestsellers.

Microsoft also had a great month, with the Xbox 360 continuing its upward trend thanks to the September price cuts. Sales went up from 347,000 to 371,000, which saw it massively beating the PS3 yet again. The Xbox 360 also had five titles in the top ten bestsellers list for the month.

Sony may have three consoles on the market but it’s not doing the company much good when the PSP, PS3, and PS2 make up the bottom three every month. All of the consoles took a downward turn from September, and the Xbox 360 managed to sell almost double what the PS3 managed.

I think it’s safe to assume Nintendo has this generation wrapped up at this point. But it’s still all to play for in terms of second placed home console. The PS3 is currently trailing both in total sales and monthly sales and Sony needs to do something fast to prevent this lull becoming a deathbed scene for its number one console. Does anyone fancy a price cut?

• Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony respond to October NPD
• NPD May US sales data – Wii still tops, PS3 beats Xbox 360 by margin
• Wii trounces PS3 and Xbox 360 in the US, again
• Xbox 360 far outsells Wii and PS3 in September thanks to Halo 3
• January NPD sales – The Wii outshines Xbox 360 and PS3 yet again