European Video Game Sales Decline in November Despite Strong Showings from Pokémon and God of War

According to the latest data from GSD, 18.1 million video games were sold across Europe in November 2022, marking a 17% decline from the same period in 2021. The drop was seen in both digital and physical sales, with 7.8 million games downloaded and 10.4 million purchased in stores, representing a decrease of nearly 15% and 18% respectively. A key factor contributing to this decline was the release of Call of Duty: Vanguard in November 2021, whereas this year's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was released in October. Despite this, Modern Warfare 2 remains a top seller, having already surpassed the sales of its predecessor after just one month. Another game that experienced weaker sales in November compared to the previous year was FIFA, which also impacted overall sales negatively. However, there were several notable new game releases during the month, with God of War Ragnarok being the best-selling game in November. The PS5 and PS4 title saw a significant launch, with 62% more units sold in its first three weeks compared to its 2018 predecessor. The majority of Ragnarok's sales, 69%, were for the PS5 version. If Nintendo had shared digital sales data and combined the sales of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the two games would have likely been the top-selling product for the month, with total sales only slightly lower than God of War Ragnarok. Across the two Pokémon titles, 56% of sales were for the Violet version, with 44% for Scarlet. Their first two weeks on the market saw sales 17% higher than those of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl in the previous year, and 23.5% higher than the debut of Pokémon Sword and Shield in 2019. Sega also released two new titles, Sonic Frontiers and Football Manager 2023, which debuted at No.6 and No.10 respectively. The top 20 games saw six titles from both Sony and Nintendo. In terms of console sales, the Nintendo Switch remained the top-selling console across Europe, but its sales were down year-over-year. In contrast, both the PS5 and Xbox Series S and X saw growth, with the PS5 experiencing a 49% increase and the Xbox Series S and X a 22% increase. The sales of peripherals also declined, with 1.8 million accessories sold across tracked European markets, representing an 11% drop from November 2021. The PS5 DualSense controller was the best-selling device, with sales up 66% over the previous year. Two million points and subscription cards were sold during the month, a decline of nearly 19% year-over-year, with strong sales of PlayStation Store credit, Steam, and Roblox Game Cards offset by a decline in Xbox and Nintendo cards.