Xbox One scores high number of preorders
The upcoming console has picked up more preorders than its predecessor over the same period of time, says Microsoft.
The Xbox One is apparently a hit even before it officially launches.
Preorders for the Xbox One have surpassed those for the Xbox 360 during its prelaunch months, Microsoft announced Thursday. The upcoming console has sold out in preorder status at most of its major retailers in the U.S., the company added.
Meanwhile, the Xbox 360 continues to heat up sales.
For the 30th month in a row, the Xbox 360 was the top-selling home console in the United States last month with consumers snagging more than 140,000 units. Total spending on the Xbox 360 including hardware, software, and accessories hit $197 million in June, research firm NPD said Thursday, the highest number for any console in the U.S.
Nintendo also played well in June, as its 3DS earned the top hardware sales spot across all gaming platforms for the second month in a row, beating even the Xbox 360, according to NPD.
"To quote Nintendo during E3, 'software sells hardware', which is evident in this month's 3DS results," NPD analyst Liam Callahan said in a statement. "Strong double-digit increases in the 3DS hardware sales were coupled with triple-digit digit increases in software for June sales. 3DS software sales momentum is building due to a steady flow of content over the past few months, leading to positive year-to-date sales results."
And what of the rest of the video game industry? As usual, not so bright a picture.
Sales of video game hardware fell to $142 million last month, a 30 percent drop from June 2012. Sales of video games nestled in at $296 million, down 10 percent from the same month last year. Still, some titles lit up the charts.
The Last of Us was the top selling game last month at retail, Callahan said. "To put this in context, it had the second highest first-month sales of a PS3 first-party game, after 'God of War 3' in March 2010. 'The Last of Us' was also the third highest game to launch during the month of June since NPD began tracking sales in 1995."
Rounding out the top 5 titles: Animal Crossing: New Leaf (3DS), Minecraft (Xbox 360), Call of Duty: Black Ops II (Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Wii U), and NBA 2K13 (360, PS3, Wii, Wii U, PSP, PC).