The US gaming industry finished strong in 2022 despite an otherwise slow year, according to industry research firm The NPD Group. While the year was down slightly overall – in line with the common view that 2022 is a “bust” corrective year after the pandemic boom – hardware and subscription spending drove sales to a slight year-over-year increase for December.
| December 2022 Dollar sales, millions | Dec 2021 |
Dec 2022 |
Change |
| Total video game sales | $7,428 | $7,583 | 2% |
| Video Game Content (physical and digital full game, DLC/MTX, and consumer subscription subscriptions across console, cloud, mobile*, portable, PC, and VR platforms) | $5,597 | $5,547 | -1% |
| Video game hardware | $1,319 | $1,533 | 16% |
| Video game accessories | $512 | $503 | -2% |
“U.S. consumer spending on video game content, hardware and accessories totaled $7.6 billion in December 2022, up 2% from a year ago,” said NPD analyst Mat Piscatella. “Video game hardware spending was up 16%, offsetting declines in both content (-1%) and accessories (-2%).”
In addition to monthly sales, NPD also provided its year-end statistics, which include sales figures for individual games in 2022. Total game revenue for 2022 was 5% lower than in 2021, a smaller difference than the company has recorded in previous months. Hardware sales have actually improved in 2022, suggesting that supply chain issues from earlier this year have eased.
| Dollar sales in 2022, millions | 2021 | 2022 | Change |
| Total video game sales | $59,620 | $56,556 | -5% |
| Video Game Content (physical and digital full game, DLC/MTX, and consumer subscription subscriptions across console, cloud, mobile*, portable, PC, and VR platforms) | $50,833 | $47,475 | -7% |
| Video game hardware | $6,060 | $6,570 | 8% |
| Video game accessories | $2,726 | $2,511 | -8% |
Piscatella added, “December growth brought full-year 2022 spending to $56.6 billion, 5% below 2021 levels. Gains in hardware and subscription spending were offset by declines in other spending areas. Factors impacting 2022 spending included continued console hardware supply constraints, a relatively light streak of new premium releases, and macroeconomic conditions.
December 2022 NPD: Top 20 Best Selling Games of the Month in the US
NPD tracks physical sales at retailers, but also gets digital data directly from publishers. Not every company participates. For example, Nintendo doesn’t share its sales with the first party, and Activision Blizzard doesn’t deliver its Battle.net sales.
These charts are sorted by dollar sales – not units sold. And this is for full game sales and does not include in-game expenses.
| Rank | Last Month Rank |
All platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 3 | Pokémon: Scarlet/Violet* | Nintendo |
| 3 | 2 | God of War: Ragnarok | Sony (company) |
| 4 | 5 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 5 | 6 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 6 | 4 | Sonic Limits | Sega |
| 7 | 11 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 8 | NEW ONES | Need for Speed: Unbound | Electronic art |
| 9 | 13 | Mario Kart 8* | Nintendo |
| 10 | NEW ONES | Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII: Reunion | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 11 | 7 | NBA 2K23* | Take 2 Interactive (Corp) |
| 12 | 27 | Just Dance 2023 Edition | Ubisoft |
| 13 | 14 | Mario+Rabbids: Sparks of Hope | Ubisoft |
| 14 | 18 | Minecraft | Multiple video game manufacturers |
| 15 | 21 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* | Nintendo |
| 16 | 25 | Nintendo Switch Sports* | Nintendo |
| 17 | NEW ONES | The Callisto Protocol* | Krafton Games Union |
| 18 | 12 | Animal Crossing: new horizons* | Nintendo |
| 19 | 24 | Splatoon 3* | Nintendo |
| 20 | 8 | Gotham knights | Warner Bros. Interactive |
The list of best-selling games – both for the month and for the year (see below) – doesn’t really hold any major surprises this month. Several games have jumped back up the list, thanks in part to holiday sales, and heavy-running franchises like Pokémon and Call of Duty continue to top the list. November releases, Sonic Frontiers and God of War Ragnarök, both continue to do well.
Of the new games released in December, Need for Speed Unbound has topped the charts, beating Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion, likely due to the latter’s console exclusivity. The Callisto Protocol also managed to hit the charts. Despite its release at the end of the year, the title launched without much competition.
Recently, Ubisoft announced that it is cutting back on game development and canceling three unannounced titles. One of the factors it cited in these measures was the underperformance of the late 2022 titles, namely Just Dance 2023 and Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. Both titles managed to make the December best-seller list, probably thanks in part to holiday sales.
December 2022 NPD: Top 10 Best Selling Nintendo Platform Games in the US
| Rank | Last Month Rank |
Nintendo platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | Pokémon: Scarlet/Violet* | Nintendo |
| 2 | 5 | Mario Kart 8* | Nintendo |
| 3 | 6 | Mario+Rabbids: Sparks of Hope | Ubisoft |
| 4 | 11 | Just Dance 2023 Edition | Ubisoft |
| 5 | 2 | Sonic Limits | Sega |
| 6 | 8 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* | Nintendo |
| 7 | 10 | Nintendo Switch Sports* | Nintendo |
| 8 | 4 | Animal Crossing: new horizons* | Nintendo |
| 9 | 9 | Splatoon 3* | Nintendo |
| 10 | 19 | Kirby and the Forgotten Land* | Nintendo |
December 2022 NPD: Top 10 Best Selling PlayStation Platform Games in the US
| Rank | Last Month Rank |
PlayStation platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | 2 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 1 | God of War: Ragnarok | Sony (company) |
| 3 | 3 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 4 | 4 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 5 | NEW ONES | Need for Speed: Unbound | Electronic art |
| 6 | NEW ONES | Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII: Reunion | Square Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 7 | 6 | NBA 2K23* | Take 2 Interactive (Corp) |
| 8 | 11 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 9 | 5 | Sonic Limits | Sega |
| 10 | NEW ONES | The Callisto Protocol* | Krafton Games Union |
December 2022 NPD: Top 10 Best Selling Xbox Platform Games in the US
| Rank | Last Month Rank |
Xbox platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 2 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 3 | 3 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 4 | NEW ONES | Need for Speed: Unbound | Electronic art |
| 5 | 8 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 6 | 6 | NBA 2K23* | Take 2 Interactive (Corp) |
| 7 | 4 | Sonic Limits | Sega |
| 8 | 5 | Gotham knights | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 9 | 7 | NHL 23 | Electronic art |
| 10 | 9 | Forza Horizon 5 | Microsoft (company) |
Full Year 2022 NPD: 20 Best Selling Games of 2022
| Rank | Last Month Rank |
All platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | 1 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | 2 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 3 | 3 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 4 | 5 | God of War: Ragnarok | Sony (company) |
| 5 | 4 | LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 6 | 7 | Pokémon: Scarlet/Violet* | Nintendo |
| 7 | 9 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 8 | 6 | Pokémon Legends: Arceus* | Nintendo |
| 9 | 8 | Horizon II: Forbidden West | Sony (company) |
| 10 | 10 | MLB: The Show 22^ | Multiple video game manufacturers |
| 11 | 13 | Mario Kart 8* | Nintendo |
| 12 | 11 | Call of Duty: Vanguard | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 13 | 12 | Gran Turismo 7 | Sony (company) |
| 14 | 14 | Kirby and the Forgotten Land* | Nintendo |
| 15 | 17 | NBA 2K23* | Take 2 Interactive (Corp) |
| 16 | 23 | Sonic Limits | Sega |
| 17 | 15 | Gotham knights | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 18 | 16 | Minecraft | Multiple video game manufacturers |
| 19 | 18 | Nintendo Switch Sports* | Nintendo |
| 20 | 22 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* | Nintendo |
^Xbox & Switch digital sales not included
Full Year 2022 NPD: Top 10 Best Selling Games Across Nintendo Platforms
| Rank | Nintendo platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | Pokémon: Scarlet/Violet* | Nintendo |
| 2 | Pokémon Legends: Arceus* | Nintendo |
| 3 | Mario Kart 8* | Nintendo |
| 4 | Kirby and the Forgotten Land* | Nintendo |
| 5 | Nintendo Switch Sports* | Nintendo |
| 6 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* | Nintendo |
| 7 | Animal Crossing: new horizons* | Nintendo |
| 8 | LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 9 | Mario Party Superstars* | Nintendo |
| 20 | Splatoon 3* | Nintendo |
Full Year 2022 NPD: Top 10 Best Selling Games on PlayStation Platforms
| Rank | PlayStation platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | God of War: Ragnarok | Sony (company) |
| 3 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 4 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 5 | Horizon II: Forbidden West | Sony (company) |
| 6 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 7 | MLB: The Show 22 | Sony (company) |
| 8 | Gran Turismo 7 | Sony (company) |
| 9 | LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 10 | Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Sony (company) |
Full Year 2022 NPD: Top 10 best-selling games across Xbox platforms
| Rank | Xbox platforms | Publisher |
| 1 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022) | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 2 | Elder ring | Bandai Namco Entertainment |
| 3 | Madden NFL 23 | Electronic art |
| 4 | LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 5 | FIFA23 | Electronic art |
| 6 | Call of Duty: Vanguard | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 7 | Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War | Activision Blizzard (Corp) |
| 8 | Gotham knights | Warner Bros. Interactive |
| 9 | Forza Horizon 5 | Microsoft (company) |
| 10 | Saints Row (2022) | Plaion |
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