May Sales Slide

The US game sales for May 2006 were only $286 million, 10 percent below May 2005. NPD figures also fingered weaker-than-expected sales of titles for the PSP, which has seen its momentum slow in recent months. The report also said that sales of DS titles were weaker than expected, even though the number one game for the month was New Super Mario Bros., which generated nearly $9.5 million in sales all by itself.

Overall, what NPD terms “current-generation” software–Xbox, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Game Boy Advance games–slid $96 million to just $188 million for the month, versus May 2005. “Next-generation” software–Xbox 360, DS, and PSP games–hauled in a combined $98 million, far below Wedbush Morgan Securties’ analyst Michael Pachter’s estimates.

And, according to Pachter, May may only be the beginning. “We think that this trend foreshadows continuing weak sales until the holidays, as we expect continued monthly year-over-year declines of 30-40 percent for current-generation software sales, with next-generation software sales growth failing to offset these declines,” he wrote in a report issued today.

As for May’s best-selling console games, after New Super Mario Bros. was last month’s number one game, Kingdom Hearts II for the PS2. Then it was back down to DS town with Brain Age: Train Your Brain In Minutes a Day. The newly $19.95 God of War was behind it at number four, followed by the two top dogs on the Xbox 360: Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Though Major League Baseball 2K6 was relegated to 19th (PS2) and 20th (Xbox) places, Sony’s MLB ’06: The Show was still swinging for the fences at number seven.

TOP CONSOLE GAMES: MAY 2006

1 – New Super Mario Bros. (DS)
2 – Kingdom Hearts II (PS2)
3 – Brain Age: Train Your Brain In Minutes a Day (DS)
4 – God of War (PS2)
5 – Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (Xbox 360)
6 – Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Xbox 360)
7 – MLB ’06: The Show (PS2)
8 – Guitar Hero (with Guitar) (PS2)
9 – Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2)
10 – Kingdom Hearts (PS2)
11 – X-Men: The Official Game (PS2)
12 – Over the Hedge (PS2)
13 – Fight Night Round 3 (Xbox 360)
14 – FIFA World Cup 2006 (PS2)
15 – The Godfather: The Game (PS2)
16 – Gran Turismo 4 (PS2)
17 – Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (Xbox 360)
18 – Midnight Club 3: Dub Ed Remix (PS2)
19 – Major League Baseball 2K6 (PS2)
20 – Major League Baseball 2K6 (Xbox 360)