European Video Game Market Sees 7.3% Decline in January Sales

According to the latest data from GSD, a total of 12.14 million video games were sold across European markets in January, representing a 7.3% decrease compared to the same period last year. The data encompasses both physical and digital game sales from major publishers, excluding Nintendo. EA Sports FC 24 emerged as the top-selling game, with sales figures nearly identical to those of FIFA 23 during the same period in 2023. The Last of Us: Part 2 Remastered debuted as the best-selling new game, with its opening two weeks surpassing The Last of Us: Part 1 by more than two and a half times. This can be attributed to the upgrade offer for PS4 owners and the expanded PS5 install base. Tekken 8 entered the charts at number seven, boasting an 80% increase in sales compared to Street Fighter 6's debut week. Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice saw a significant surge in sales, rising to number eight after a steep discount on Steam. Ubisoft's new Prince of Persia game, The Lost Crown, also made it into the top ten, debuting at number nine. In terms of console hardware, sales reached nearly 475,000 units in January, a slight decline of 1.4% from the previous year. Strong PS5 sales offset the decline in Nintendo Switch sales, which is approaching its seventh anniversary and expected to be succeeded by a new console this year. Additionally, Xbox Series S and X sales experienced a slight dip. The sales of peripherals and accessories also decreased by 1.4%, with 1.8 million units sold in January. The GSD digital data includes sales from participating companies such as Activision Blizzard, Bandai Namco, and Electronic Arts, among others, and covers games sold via Steam, Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, and Nintendo Eshop. Notable absentees from the data include Nintendo and 505 Games, as well as smaller studios.