Video Game Sales Decline

Dec. 21, 2009— -- As many retail sectors struggle to stay in the black this holiday shopping season, one area is already destined to end up showing steep sales declines. Sales of video games and consoles, which posted stellar returns the past two years, are set to show double-digit declines when the final numbers are tallied, industry analysts say.

Despite the blockbuster release of "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," which sold 6 million copies in the United States, sales of video games and consoles fell 7.6 percent in November from the same month in 2008, according to research group NPD.

The game industry posted $2.7 billion in sales last month, down from $2.9 billion a year earlier, NPD figures show. "It's a notable decline," NPD analyst Anita Frazier said.

Sales numbers are even worse for the year. "The industry is still trying to find a silver lining," she said

From January through November, the video game industry suffered through a 12 percent drop in sales from the same period last year, reaching $14.1 billion.

Despite a surprisingly strong retail sales season overall, most experts don't expect to see a turnaround in games sales during the holiday crush, when video game companies typically take in about 40 percent of their annual sales.

"No one should think that year-end sales will surge during the holiday season," said Jesse Divnich, an analyst with Electronic Entertainment Design and Research. "Video games sales will be down for the year."

The picture would have looked much worse if it were not for "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2". The wildly popular game accounted for roughly $360 million in U.S. sales in November alone, more than 25 percent of all game sales. Other top sellers in November included Assassin's "Creed II, Left 4 Dead 2" and "Dragon Age: Origins."

Sales of music-based games, such as the "Beatles: Rock Band" and "Guitar Hero 5," have also lagged, according to sales data.

The economic turmoil cutting into consumer spending appears to be only part of the reason video game sales are down.

The larger problem, say observers, is innovation -- or lack of it. Although core audiences for video games remain strong, fewer new games to the market are luring casual players. The result: Sales of new games simply haven't met expectations.