Despite a noticeable decline in overall sales throughout 2024, October surprisingly bucked the trend with positive momentum. The success of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 can be attributed in part, at a minimum, to its status as the top-selling game of the month; however, it was merely one of several October releases to feature on the month’s bestseller list.
| Complete Video Recreation Gross sales | $4,254 | $4,662 | 10% |
| Video Recreation Content material (Bodily & Digital Full Recreation, DLC/MTX and Subscription client spending throughout Console, Cloud, Cell*, Moveable, PC and VR platforms) | $3,770 | $4,227 | 12% |
| Video Recreation {Hardware} | $323 | $249 | -23% |
| Video Recreation Equipment | $162 | $187 | 15% |
Although hardware gross sales remain lower, the decline is less pronounced than in previous months. In September, hardware gross sales plummeted by 44% year-over-year, a sharp decline from the previous month’s 23% drop. Despite a decline last month, total sports and content revenue showed unexpected resilience, surging 10% – its highest increase since July.
According to Mat Piscatella, Circana’s government producer for video game reviews, online game content expenditure surged by 12% year-over-year, reaching a record high of $4.2 billion. The console segment drove the majority of growth, with a substantial 27% increase in spend compared to the previous year, primarily attributed to robust demand for digital full-game sales. Mobile-free online game subscription spending surged by 16% year-on-year. The release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 as part of Xbox Game Pass served as the primary catalyst for growth.
| Complete Video Recreation Gross sales | $44,841 | $45,360 | 1% |
| Video Recreation Content material (Bodily & Digital Full Recreation, DLC/MTX and Subscription client spending throughout Console, Cloud, Cell*, Moveable, PC and VR platforms) | $38,907 | $40,423 | 4% |
| Video Recreation {Hardware} | $3,973 | $2,815 | -29% |
| Video Recreation Equipment | $1,960 | $2,122 | 8% |
According to Piscatella, console sales across major platforms have declined overall, with Switch sales plummeting by 38% year-on-year, followed by a 20% drop in PlayStation 5 sales and an 18% decline for Xbox Series sales. Equipment spending surged, driven by the enduring popularity of the PlayStation brand, which retained its top spot as the best-selling console.
Circa October 2024: Top 20 Best-Selling Video Games in the United States
| 1 | NEW | Name of Responsibility: Black Ops VII | Microsoft (Corp) |
| 2 | NEW | Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero | Bandai Namco Leisure |
| 3 | NEW | Silent Hill 2 (2024) | Konami Digital Ent. |
| 4 | NEW | Undisputed | Plaion |
| 5 | NEW | Metaphor: ReFantazio | Sega |
| 6 | NEW | Dragon Age: The Veilguard | Digital Arts |
| 7 | NEW | Tremendous Mario Occasion Jamboree* | Nintendo |
| 8 | 3 | Madden NFL 25 | Digital Arts |
| 9 | NEW | Sonic X Shadow Generations | Sega |
| 10 | 1 | EA Sports activities FC 25 | Digital Arts |
| 11 | 5 | EA Sports College Football 2023? | Digital Arts |
| 12 | 4 | The Legend of Zelda: Whispers of Ancient Wisdom | Nintendo |
| 13 | 8 | Hogwarts Legacy | Warner Bros. Video games |
| 14 | 9 | NHL 25 | Digital Arts |
| 15 | 2 | Astro Bot | Sony (Corp) |
| 16 | 14 | Minecraft^^ | Professional Game Developers |
| 17 | 7 | NBA 2K25* | Take-Two Interactive |
| 18 | NEW | Life is Unusual: Double Publicity | Sq. Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 19 | 90 | Remaining Fantasy I-VI Bundle | Sq. Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 20 | 13 | Elden Ring | Bandai Namco Leisure |
Digital sales on Nintendo platforms, not included.
It’s no surprise that Call of Duty claims the top position – it has become a tradition for. Despite being released relatively recently, it’s hardly surprising that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 didn’t immediately surpass EA Sports College Football 25 or Helldivers 2 as the year-to-date best-seller, considering Circana’s report only had a couple of days’ worth of sales data to work with.
According to Circana’s data, Black Ops 6 is not only a lucrative game but also surpassed Modern Warfare III’s performance last year, with full-game dollar sales increasing by 23% over its first two weeks on the market. According to Piscatella, the surge in complete online game revenue from one year to the next is largely driven by the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, outpacing the launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III in 2023.
The latter half of October was actually quite pleasant as well.
The Name of Responsibility game could have easily dominated October’s best-seller list, but surprisingly, a new title has knocked it off its pedestal. Nine new video games have ascended to the top of the chart, claiming eight out of the top ten spots. Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero! Ranking as the second best-selling sport of the month, Tekken 7 also holds a notable position as the third best-selling Bandai Namco-published sport in history, trailing only Elden Ring and Dark Souls III. Among the nine sports listed on the monthly chart, Black Ops 6 stands out as the sole representative to have achieved a year-to-date best-seller ranking.
Notably, the Silent Hill 2 Remake premiered at number three and stands as the second-highest-grossing Silent Hill game to date, trailing only its original counterpart. Newly released titles like Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Super Mario Party, Sonic Origins, and Life is Strange: True Colors leverage their established franchises for success. However, Metroid: Fusion Frenzy stands out by surging up the charts as an original intellectual property. Meet Undisputed, a groundbreaking new boxing sport that’s making waves with its debut title from innovative developer Metal Metropolis Interactive.
Circa October 2024: The Top 20 Best-Selling Video Games of the Year So Far
| 1 | 1 | EA Sports NCAA Football 25 | Digital Arts |
| 2 | 2 | Helldivers II | Sony (Corp) |
| 3 | NEW | Responsibility: Call of Duty: Black Ops VI | Microsoft (Corp) |
| 4 | NEW | Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero | Bandai Namco Leisure |
| 5 | 3 | Title: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023) | Microsoft (Corp) |
| 6 | 7 | Madden NFL 25 | Digital Arts |
| 7 | 4 | EA Sports activities MVP Bundle | Digital Arts |
| 8 | 5 | Elden Ring | Bandai Namco Leisure |
| 9 | 6 | Dragon’s Dogma II | Capcom USA |
| 10 | 10 | EA Sports activities FC 25 | Digital Arts |
| 11 | 8 | MLB: The Present 24^ | Professional Game Developers |
| 12 | 9 | WWE 2K24** | Take-Two Interactive |
| 13 | 11 | Hogwarts Legacy | Warner Bros. Video games |
| 14 | 12 | Grand Theft Auto V** | Take-Two Interactive |
| 15 | 13 | Remaining Fantasy VII: Rebirth | Sq. Enix Inc (Corp) |
| 16 | 14 | Tekken 8 | Bandai Namco Leisure |
| 17 | 15 | NBA 2K24** | Take-Two Interactive |
| 18 | 17 | Minecraft^^ | Several leading video game developers are poised to disrupt the status quo in the gaming industry with their innovative and immersive experiences. |
| 19 | 16 | Madden NFL 24 | Digital Arts |
| 20 | 18 | Can you believe that Harley Quinn’s got a new plan to take down the Justice League? | Warner Bros. Video games |
Aug-Sept digital gross sales not accounted for.
Digital sales on Nintendo platforms not included.
Name of Responsibility: Black Ops VI and Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero! Despite being two of the top October video game releases, they still managed to debut at third and fourth place on the year-to-date checklist, which isn’t entirely unfavorable. As the holiday season arrives, with November’s strong showing and vacation gross sales, Black Ops 6 may well propel itself further up the rankings.