NPD: US declines continue

The US videogame market brought in 20 per cent less in February than it did last year, according to the NPD Group.
Total physical videogame sales at US retail came to $1.06 billion (£671m), down from $1.33 billion in February 2011. There were declines in every sector, with hardware sales down 18 per cent, software down 23 per cent, and accessories down 16 per cent.
NPD notes, however, that hardware sales actually increased in terms of unit sales, but cheaper prices hit revenue hard. The figures include just four days of PlayStation Vita sales; in terms of units sold, hardware sales rose 62 per cent during the month without Vita numbers, and 87 per cent with sales of Sony's new handheld taken into account.
The company's data only tracks sales of new, physical games at US retail, and NPD analyst Anita Frazier estimates that sales through other channels - pre-owned, DLC and full-game downloads, mobile games, rentals and subscriptions - brought in between $550 million and $600 million.
Xbox 360 was the month's best-selling hardware, with Activision'sCall Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 topping the software chart.

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