The former NPD Group (they’ve now inexplicably changed their name to the much less memorable “Circana”) has released its full North American sales data for February, which was a solid month for the industry. Players spent $4.6 billion on games, additional content, and hardware in February, a 6 percent year-on-year increase. This was largely driven by hardware sales, which were up a whopping 68 percent year-on-year. In terms of unit sales, the PS5 was the #1 console, followed by the Switch and Xbox Series X/S. When looking at dollar sales, it was PS5 #1, XSX #2, and Switch #3.
Turning to software, Hogwarts Legacy took the #1 spot, unseating Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II. Hogwarts is currently the #1 selling game of 2023, a record it has a solid chance of retaining at the end of the year. Other new additions to the charts include Wild Hearts at #8, Like a Dragon: Ishin at #9, Octopath Traveler II at #10, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe at #15, Company of Heroes 3 at #16, and Theatrythm Final Bar Line at #20. Meanwhile, despite some reports to the contrary, Dead Space held strong sales-wise, remaining at the #3 position in February, and The Last of Us Part I popped up to the #6 position based on the popularity of the HBO series.
Here are February’s top 20 games according to NPD/Circana:
1 – Hogwarts Legacy
2 – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II
3 – Dead Space
4 – Madden NFL 23
5 – FIFA 23
6 – The Last of Us Part I
7 – Elden Ring
8 – Wild Hearts
9 – Like a Dragon: Ishin!
10 – Octopath Traveler II
11 – God of War Ragnarok
12 – Minecraft
13 – Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
14 – Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
15 – Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe
16 – Company of Heroes 3
17 – Sonic Frontiers
18 – The Last of Us Part II
19 – NBA 2K23
20 – Theatrhythm Final Bar Line
And here are the top games of 2023 to date:
1 – Hogwarts Legacy
2 – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II
3 -Dead Space
4 – Madden NFL 23
5 – FIFA 23
6 – Elden Ring
7 – Fire Emblem Engage
8 – God of War Ragnarok
9 – The Last of Us Part I
10 – Forspoken
What are your thoughts on the February charts? Any big surprises or things you’re happy to see?
