US Gaming Market Sees Strong Growth in October 2024: Circana Report

According to Circana market reports, shared by Mat Piscatella on Bluesky, the US gaming market experienced a significant resurgence in October 2024. The market’s total revenue rose by 10% compared to the same month in 2023, with growth driven by strong sales of gaming content and accessories. While some sectors thrived, gaming hardware sales saw a notable decline.

Key Revenue Drivers

Gaming content sales led the charge with a 12% year-over-year (YoY) growth, and accessory sales soared by 15%. Despite this, hardware sales dropped sharply, falling 23% from October 2023. However, the market’s overall performance remains promising due to robust content and subscription spending.

Console gaming stood out, with spending on console games seeing a remarkable 27% YoY increase. Accessories also performed well, with the PlayStation Portal emerging as the top-selling item in dollar terms during October.

In numbers:

• Total Video Game Sales: $4,662 million, up 10%
• Video Game Content: $4,227 million, up 12%
• Video Game Hardware: $249 million, down 23%
• Video Game Accessories: $187 million, up 15%

Mixed Performance in Hardware Sales

The hardware segment faced challenges as major consoles reported significant declines in sales. Nintendo Switch sales dropped 38% YoY, while PlayStation 5 (PS5) and Xbox Series S|X saw declines of 20% and 18%, respectively. Despite the dip, the PS5 continues to lead the hardware market, ranking as the best-selling console in both unit and dollar sales.

Subscriptions on the Rise

Spending on gaming subscriptions grew by an impressive 16%, driven largely by the popularity of services like Game Pass. This surge is primarily attributed to the launch of the highly anticipated Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on day one on services.

Year-to-Date Market Insights

For the first ten months of 2024 (January to October), the US gaming market showed modest growth, posting a 1% improvement compared to the same period in 2023. This indicates a stable upward trend despite the fluctuating hardware sales.

In numbers:

• Total Video Game Sales: $45,360 million, up 1%
• Video Game Content: $40,423 million, up 4%
• Video Game Hardware: $2,815 million, down 29%
• Video Game Accessories: $2,122 million, up 8%

Game Sales Highlights

October saw the release of major titles that boosted game sales significantly. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 dominated the charts, becoming the best-selling game of the month and the third best-selling title of 2024 within just two weeks of release. Its launch outperformed last year’s installment, with sales 23% higher than Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III during its initial weeks. Notably, 82% of its console sales came from PlayStation users.

Other standout titles included Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero, which ranked second in October sales and fourth in 2024 overall. It has become the best-selling Dragon Ball game in the US in terms of revenue, trailing only Bandai Namco’s blockbuster titles, Elden Ring and Dark Souls III.

Meanwhile, the remake of Silent Hill 2 secured third place in October, delivering the second-highest launch sales in the series’ history, just behind the original.

Top 20 Best-Selling Games (Physical and Full Game Digital) in Oct 2024:

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (Microsoft Corp)
2. Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero (Bandai Namco Entertainment)
3. Silent Hill 2 (2024) (Konami Digital Ent.)
4. Undisputed (Plaion)
5. Metaphor: ReFantazio (Sega)
6. Dragon Age: The Veiguard (Electronic Arts)
7. Super Mario Party Jamboree* (Nintendo)
8. Madden NFL 25 (Electronic Arts)
9. Sonic X Shadow Generations (Sega)
10. EA Sports FC 25 (Electronic Arts)
11. EA Sports College Football 25 (Electronic Arts)
12. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom* (Nintendo)
13. Hogwarts Legacy (Warner Bros. Games)
14. NHL 25 (Electronic Arts)
15. Astro Bot (Sony (Corp))
16. Minecraft (Multiple Video Game Manufacturers)
17. NBA 2K25 (Take-Two Interactive)
18. Life is Strange: Double Exposure (Square Enix Inc (Corp))
19. Final Fantasy I-VI Bundle (Square Enix Inc (Corp))
20. Elden Ring (Bandai Namco Entertainment)

Top 20 Best-Selling Games (Physical and Full Game Digital) in the Last 10 Months of 2024 (until November 2, 2024):

1. EA Sports College Football 25 (Electronic Arts)
2. Heldidvers II (Sony (Corp))
3. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (Microsoft (Corp))
4. Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero (Bandai Namco Entertainment)
5. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023) (Microsoft (Corp))
6. Madden NFL 25 (Electronic Arts)
7. EA Sports MVP Bundle (Electronic Arts)
8. Elden Ring (Bandai Namco Entertainment)
9. Dragon’s Dogma II (Capcom USA)
10. EA Sports FC 25 (Electronic Arts)
11. MLB: The Show 24 (Multiple Video Game Manufacturers)
12. WWE 2K24 (Take-Two Interactive)
13. Hogwarts Legacy (Warner Bros. Games)
14. Grand Theft Auto V (Take-Two Interactive)
15. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth (Square Enix Inc (Corp))
16. Tekken 8 (Bandai Namco Entertainment)
17. NBA 2K24 (Take-Two Interactive)
18. Minecraft (Multiple Video Game Manufacturers)
19. Madden NFL 24 (Electronic Arts)
20. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League (Warner Bros. Games)

For more details, refer to the Circana market report shared by Mat Piscatella on Bluesky. And subscribe to GAMING FOODLE for more news.