May 2015 NPD: Total Sales Down 18%, The Witcher 3 is #1 & Sells Most On PS4

May 2015 NPD Report: Total Sales Down 13%, The Witcher 3 is #1 & Sells Most On PS4

Update:

NPD analyst Liam Callahan talked about the May drop:

The decline in May 2015 is attributed to poor comparisons to a strong release slate in May 2014, specifically the launches of Mario Kart 8 and Watch Dogs.Collectively, May 2015 launches sold 55 percent less dollars than May 2014 launches, however, catalog games outside of the launch month sold 3 percent more dollar volume compared to catalog games in May 2014.

Callahan adds that current-gen console software unit sales rose 8 percent and “also gained 15 percentage points in overall software unit share to total 54 percent.”

The Witcher 3, meanwhile, “had the best-selling first month unit sales within the role-playing super genre for eighth generation consoles.”

Original Story:

With the PlayStation 4 already claiming the hardware title, full NPD details for May 2015 have been revealed.

Overall, total industry retail sales in the United States were $507.6 million, according to the NPD. Comparing this to May 2014, it’s down 13%. Looking at the individual categories, hardware was at $153.6 million in May (down 18%), while software was at $204.7 million (down 25%).

Looking at the software chart, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was #1 and sold the most on PlayStation 4. Right behind it, Mortal Kombat X and Grand Theft Auto V also saw PS4 sales leading the way.

Here’s the top 10 selling games in May 2015, which totals retail sales across all systems and includes Collectors Editions, GOTY Editions, and bundles, but not those bundled with hardware (sales by platform are ranked in brackets from highest-selling to least-selling):