The economy may be slowing, but the video-game industry seems to be wearing its bulletproof vest — with the notable exception of Sony.
According to the NPD Group, sales of U.S. video games and hardware rose 18 percent from the year-ago period. Specifically, hardware sales were up five percent to $494.7 million.
“In the U.S., third-quarter total industry unit sales grew eight percent versus 2007, even as the economy showed accelerating signs of recession,” said Anita Frazier, an NPD analyst.
“As would be expected at this point in the console life cycle, games sales are starting to take the spotlight even as the average retail prices of games increased slightly,” she continued. “Heading into the critical fourth quarter, the U.S. game industry is on solid ground.”
Nintendo Leads the Charge
In down markets, video-game consoles tend to maintain their sales strength, largely because gaming consoles are perceived as high-value purchases, according to Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile strategy for Jupitermedia.
“When there is a downturn in the economy, often that’s when consumers spend their money on in-home entertainment,” Gartenberg said. “It’s for the same reason that game consoles sell well in lower-income households.”
Nintendo led the way once again with its Wii console. Nintendo sold 803,000 Wii units in October, up from 687,000 in September. In all, Nintendo has sold more than 13 million units since it debuted in November 2006 — and might have sold more if it hadn’t seen widespread shortages of the console.
“With the Wii, the perception is that this console is not only going to be valued by the gamer in the family, but it’s going to have appeal to lots of family members beyond the hard-core gamers,” Gartenberg said. “That helps drive adoption.”
Clash of the Consoles
Microsoft’s Xbox 360 game console sold 371,000 units in October, just…