All Articles: NBA 2K17

For Honor rises to the occasion as the best-selling game of February 2017

Ubisoft’s For Honor conquered all comers during its first month of availability, as The NPD Group declared it the best-selling game during February 2017. The multiplayer brawler faced some tough competition, but it emerged victorious on the retail battlefield, besting both Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (#2) and Grand Theft Auto V (#3).

The only other new release to crack last month’s top ten was Nioh, an action RPG developed by Team Ninja and published by Koei Tecmo.

But the overall retail health of the industry was on a downward swing in February. According to GamesIndustry.biz, hardware and software sales were down: “Total hardware sales amounted to $204 million, down 30% from last year. Console and portable software dropped 14% to $344.2 million, PC software fell 26% to just $25 million, while accessories fell 21% to $150.8 million. All told, industry sales took a 21% hit, declining from $918.7 million to $724 million.”

However, it seems likely that the successful launch of the Nintendo Switch (and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild) will change that trajectory in March.

The complete list of best-selling games from February 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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Resident Evil 7: Biohazard shambles to the top of January 2017’s best-selling games report

It looks like there’s still some life left in the Resident Evil franchise. The latest game in the series, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, topped the NPD Group’s report on the best-selling games in January 2017. The only other new release to crack the top ten was Square Enix’s Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, which camein at #6.

“With only five days in the market, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard was the best-selling game in January. The last time Capcom had the best-selling game of the month (in dollar sales) was in March 2009 with Resident Evil 5,” NPD Analyst Sam Naji told GamesIndustry.biz.

Overall spending on game titles was up 14% last month over January 2016, thanks mostly to continued demand for 2016’s biggest releases including Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (#2), Battlfield 1 (#4), and NBA 2K17 (#5). And Grand Theft Auto V (#3) continues to burn up the charts more than four years after it was first released.

The complete list of best-selling games from January 2017 can be found after the break. (more…)

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CoD: Infinite Warfare, Battlefield 1, The Division are the best-selling games of 2016

The video game industry should definitely be celebrating right now, as The NPD Group has announced that consumers spent $30.4 billion on hardware, software, peripherals, and in-game purchases in 2016. This is a slight increase over 2015 revenues, which totaled a measly $30.2 billion.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, NPD Analyst Mat Piscatella attributed some of this growth to the emergence of virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PlayStation VR. He also cited the “cultural phenomenon” that was Pokemon Go and the subsequent release of Pokemon Sun and Moon on the 3DS.

“Growth in entertainment software consumer spend was seen across the mobile, PC, virtual reality, subscription, portable, and digital console segments,” Piscatella said. “Consumers have more options to purchase and enjoy entertainment software than ever before, while developers have more and easier ways of delivering that content. No matter the delivery platform, entertainment software has never been more engaging, diverse or accessible.”

However, none of those games managed to crack the top ten for 2016, which was once again dominated by Activision’s Call of Duty franchise. Even though it launched to less-than-stellar reviews and a negative fan reaction, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare was still the best-selling game in 2016. Treyarch’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III was also represented in the top ten, at #8.

Tom Clancy’s The Division (#3) and Overwatch (#7) proved that new franchises can still make some noise in the NPD’s annual ranking, but perennial best-sellers like NBA 2K17 (#4), Madden NFL 17 (#5), and FIFA 17 (#9) also sold well in 2016, as did strong sequels such as Battlefield 1 (#2) and Final Fantasy XV (#10).

You can find the NPD’s list of best-selling games throughout all of 2016 after the break. (more…)

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Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare repeats as the best-selling game of December 2016

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare launched on November 4, and it easily took the crown as the best-selling game for the whole month. Today, The NPD Group revealed the best-selling games for December, and Infinite Warfare managed to repeat as the top title.

While Activision’s shooter series continued to be a favorite among gift givers at the end of the year, Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XV had an almost equally impressive retail peformance.

“Although a Call of Duty has now topped the December sales chart for the ninth consecutive year, Final Fantasy XV was the best-selling game for the PS4 during the month,” NPD Analyst Sam Naji told GamesIndustry.biz. “Final Fantasy XV was the second best-selling title for December 2016… Final Fantasy XV experienced the best console launch month in the history of the franchise selling 19% more new physical units than Final Fantasy XIII in its launch month and 54% more in total dollar revenue including digital full game sales.”

The remainder of the top ten should look familiar as it contains several of 2016’s biggest games including Battlefield 1 (#3), Madden NFL 17 (#4), NBA 2K17 (#5), Watch Dogs 2 (#6), FIFA 17 (#8), and Pokemon Sun and Moon (#8 and #10, respectively). 2013’s Grand Theft Auto V also cracked the best-sellers list for December at #7.

You can find the complete top ten in list form after the break. (more…)

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CoD: Infinite Warfare was the best-selling game of November 2016, but it sold less than Black Ops III

Ever since it was first announced, the public reaction to Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare has been less than kind. Fans furiously downvoted the debut trailer, while others pledged not to purchase something that strayed so far from the franchise’s roots. But it looks like not everyone felt that way.

According to the NPD Group’s latest report (via GamesIndustry.biz), Infinite Warfare was the best-selling game of November 2016. However, it performed much worse for retailers than the first-month sales of Call of Duty: Black Ops III last year.

Total game sales were down roughly 19% versus November 2015, but a few new releases put up big numbers including Pokemon Sun (#3), Pokemon Moon (#4), and Watch Dogs 2 (#8). And in hardware news, it was reported that Nintendo sold 196,000 NES Classic Edition consoles during its first month on sale.

The full Top 10 from November 2016 can be found after the break. (more…)

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EA, 2K dominate October’s best-selling games list as Battlefield 1, Mafa III lead the way

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More games get released in October than any other month (though November is probably close), so it shouldn’t be surprising that megapublishers like Electronic Arts and 2K Games nearly ran the table with the NPD Group’s monthly best-sellers report.

EA’s Battlefield 1 took the top spot, and the publisher placed three other games in the top ten including FIFA 17 (#4), Titanfall 2 (#9), and Madden NFL 17 (#10). 2K Games had an equally strong month, thanks to Mafia III making gamers an offer they couldn’t refuse (and the #2 spot on the list). It was followed by NBA 2K17 (#5), WWE 2K17 (#7), and Civilization VI (#8).

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, NPD’s Sam Naji said that overall industry revenues were up 6% in October 2016, though hardware and accessories aren’t selling as well as they did a year ago.

The full Top 10 from October 2016 can be found after the break. (more…)

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Sports! NBA 2K17, Madden 17, FIFA 17, NHL 17 are the best-selling games in September 2016

nbalogoFootball season is in full swing, and the NBA season is getting ready to tip-off this weekend, so it’s a great time to check out this year’s newest sports simulations. Gamers definitely agreed, as four sports titles were at the top of September 2016’s sales report from The NPD Group.

2K’s NBA 2K17 was #1, and it was followed by three from EA Sports: Madden NFL 17 (#2), FIFA 17 (#3), and NHL 17 (#4). Shooters dominated the rest of the list with BioShock: The Collection rounding out the Top 5, and Destiny: The Collection (#6), Overwatch (#8), and Call of Duty: Black Ops III (#10) all in the Top 10.

Believe it or not, Minecraft failed to find a place in the Top 10 for the first time in nearly a year. Perhaps this is why hardware, software, and accessory sales totaled $838.2 million last month, which is down from September 2015’s $1.09 billion tally. But the NPD is pinning the blame on the PS4 Slim and Xbox One S.

“Spending on software, hardware, and accessories declined by 23% compared to this time last year,” NPD Analyst Sam Naji told GamesIndustry.biz. “The release of the PS4 Slim and the second month of the Xbox One S was not enough to stimulate total hardware spending and this month’s new software releases could not compete with last year’s stronger slate of new games.”

The full Top 10 from September 2016 can be found after the break. (more…)

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Xbox Store Today: NBA 2K17, Just Sing, Mount & Blade Warband, more

The 2016-2017 NBA season won’t tip off until next month, but 2K Games wants to get hoops fans ready with today’s release of NBA 2K17, which is now available to download for the Xbox One and Xbox 360 through the Xbox Games Store. In addition to updated rosters and improved graphics, the publisher focused their effort this year on a brand new MyCareer mode, and even recruited Michael B. Jordan (Creed) to lend authenticity to the “immersive new narrative.”

Also available to download today is Ubisoft’s Just Sing, a karaoke-styled spinoff from their popular Just Dance franchise. Players can choose to sing along or lip sync to their favorite songs on the Xbox One with a microphone or the free Just Dance Companion App for their smartphone.

Finally this week, Mount & Blade: Warband brings medieval battlefields and “realistic mounted combat” to the Xbox One. Players can tell their own knight’s tale by becoming anything from a “lonesome adventurer” to the “ruler of a faction.”

More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)

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