May NPD: Wii and PS3 lag behind Xbox 360 by 34,000 and 95,000 units, respectively
Sony and Microsoft have responded to last night's NPD figures, and despite May 2011 being the lowest May on record for a number of years, both companies seem rather pleased with the respective outcome.
Sony focuses on hardware growth
SCEA has said in a statement that PS3 sales increased 14 percent year-over-year, with May 2011 marking the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth. According to a report from Wedbush Morgan, the console moved 175,000 units for the month, lagging significantly behind its rivals.
The less-than-stellar sales of the console can more likely than not be attributed to PSN being down for almost the entire month due to the well-documented hack on the system.
The firm also focused on the recent release of Infamous 2, and its commitment to "delivering the best and freshest content line-up available" to its customers.
Sony also focused on buzz out of E3 stating that it saw "first-hand the consumer excitement for 3D, PlayStation Move," and first-party franchise titles which it said will continue to drive the PlayStation brand.
Software sales for PS3 were down 16 percent year-over-year, and PSP software sales were down 43 percent.
The three best-selling titles for PS3 during May were L.A. Noire, Mortal Kombat, and Brink, respectively.
Microsoft tops hardware for fifth straight month in 2011
The Seattle firm was once again pleased to see its Xbox 360 console topping the hardware sales chart for the fifth month in a row. May marked the eleventh consecutive month the console was the number one seller out of the past 12 months.
Xbox 360 moved 270,000 units in May, and sales were up 39 percent year-over year. Game sales on the platform reached $140 million, and total retail spend on the console reached $265 million. Kinect has sold 10.4 million units through March.
During the month of May, four of the top ten console game titles were for Xbox 360 including: L.A Noire, Brink, Portal 2, and Mortal Kombat, respectively, bit overall, software sales for the console were down 10 percent year-over-year.
Microsoft said that the second half of 2011 promises to be "monumental for Xbox 360 with the biggest blockbuster games, Kinect games and experiences, as well as movies, music and TV together all in one place."
It believes the combination of the aforementioned feature will " propel Xbox 360 to be number one worldwide by the end of the year," outselling both PS3 and Wii.
The firm also took the opportunity to mention the line-up of titles it announced at E3 last week, which along with a remastered Halo 1 and a new Halo on the way, was mainly Kinect-centric.
Wii showing a 29 percent decline year-over-year
As of post time, Nintendo has yet to release a response to last night's NPDs; however, according to a report from Wedbush Securities, Wii moved 236,000 units in May, which is 34,000 less than Xbox 360 for the month, and a 29 percent decline year-on-year for the console.
Sales for 3DS fell 50 percent from its second month total, and "well below" the 180,000 estimate Wedbush published before the NPD figures were released for May. Software for the handheld were at an "all-time low for a new hardware launch," and came in at tie ratio of 2:1.
Wii software sales were down 35 percent years over year for the reporting period, and NDS sales were down 22 percent. 3DS software sales were $7 million in its third month.
The top-top three best-sellers for Wii during May were Lego Pirates of the Caribbean, Just Dance 2, and Zumba Fitness, respectively. On NDS, the top-sellers were Pokemon White, Pokemon Black, and New Super Mario Bros. DS, respectively.