The NPD group has released the latest batch of US video game sales figures. Cataloguing results on both a digital and retail front for the region during December, it wasn’t too great a month for fans of the racing genre.
General results for the month show a very strong showing for Call of Duty: WWII which not only finishes as the month’s best seller but also 2017’s. Spending on video game software moves up 1% from 2016, showing a nice, steady growth for the industry. Hardware also continues to boom, largely due to the impressive launch year performance of the Nintendo Switch.
December’s biggest winner in terms of realistic(ish) racing games was Need For Speed Payback. Ghost Games latest racer is performing well in the UK and this latest information in the US suggests similar results across the pond. For the month, Payback was the 15th best seller across all platforms.
The only other racing game to appear in the list was Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, placing in fifth position. Clearly the Nintendo Switch momentum in the region is helping the port make fantastic sales numbers, even months after release.
As a result of the above, this means that Gran Turismo Sport and Forza Motorsport 7 did not chart for December. Despite releasing in the tail-end of the year, both exclusives don’t seem to have the staying power for North American audiences.
Interestingly, FM7 is staying a best seller on the Xbox platform, coming in as the 10th best performer on the console. On the other hand, GT Sport is not and doesn’t place in the PS4’s Top 10. The only racing game to appear in this list is Need For Speed Payback, finishing as the console’s 8th best seller.
The full list of sales performance during December 2017 is listed below.
Top 20 Selling Video Games in December 2017 (US)
- 1st: Call of Duty: WWII
- 2nd: Star Wars: Battlefront II 2017*
- 3rd: Super Mario Odyssey**
- 4th: NBA 2K18
- 5th: Mario Kart 8**
- 6th: Madden NFL 18
- 7th: PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds*
- 8th: Assassin’s Creed: Origins
- 9th: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild**
- 10th: Grand Theft Auto V
- 11th: FIFA 18*
- 12th: Destiny 2*
- 13th: Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2
- 14th: Splatoon 2**
- 15th: Need for Speed: Payback*
- 16th: Xenoblade Chronicles 2**
- 17th:Just Dance 2018
- 18th: The Sims 4*
- 19th: Pokemon: Ultra Sun**
- 20th: Pokemon: Ultra Moon**
* No PC digital sales
** No digital sales
Top 10 Best Sellers on PlayStation 4 For December 2017 (US)
- 1st: Call of Duty: WWII
- 2nd: Star Wars: Battlefront II 2017
- 3rd: NBA 2K18
- 4th: Madden NFL 18
- 5th: Assassin’s Creed: Origins
- 6th: Grand Theft Auto V
- 7th: FIFA 18
- 8th: Need for Speed: Payback
- 9th: Destiny 2
- 10th: Horizon Zero Dawn
Top 10 Best Sellers on Xbox One For December 2017 (US)
- 1st: Call of Duty: WWII
- 2nd: PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
- 3rd: Star Wars: Battlefront II 2017
- 4th: NBA 2K18
- 5th: Madden NFL 18
- 6th: Assassin’s Creed: Origins
- 7th: Grand Theft Auto V
- 8th: FIFA 18
- 9th: Destiny 2
- 10th: Forza Motorsport 7
Featured image courtesy of Ak1504.
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