Will be updating this post with Hardware numbers as soon as it comes out.

December 2010 Top 10 Games (New Physical Retail only; across all platforms incl. PC)

Call of Duty: Black Ops** (360, PS3, Wii, NDS, PC) 1 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
Just Dance 2 (Wii) 2 UBISOFT
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm** (PC) 3 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood** (360, PS3) 4 UBISOFT
Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii) 5 NINTENDO
Disney Epic Mickey** (Wii) 6 DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS
Madden NFL 11 (360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP) 7 ELECTRONIC ARTS
Michael Jackson The Experience** (Wii, NDS, PSP) 8 UBISOFT
NBA 2K11 (360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PS2, PC) 9 TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (360, PS3, Wii, PC) 10 ELECTRONIC ARTS

Annual 2010 Top 10 Games (New Physical Retail only; across all platforms incl. PC) Rank Publisher

Call of Duty: Black Ops** (360, PS3, Wii, PC, NDS) 1 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
Madden NFL 11 (360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP) 2 ELECTRONIC ARTS
Halo: Reach** (360) 3 MICROSOFT
New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii) 4 NINTENDO
Red Dead Redemption (360, PS3) 5 TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE
Wii Fit Plus** (Wii) 6 NINTENDO
Just Dance 2 (Wii) 7 UBISOFT
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2** (360, PS3, PC) 8 ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood** (360, PS3) 9 UBISOFT
NBA 2K11 (360, PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, PC) 10 TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE

PORT WASHINGTON, NY, January 13, 2011 – According to leading market research company, The NPD Group, the preliminary estimate* for total consumer spend on gaming content via all monetization methods, including new physical video and PC games, used games, game rentals, subscriptions, digital full-game downloads, social network games, downloadable content, and mobile game apps, is between $15.4 to $15.6 billion. This total consumer spend on games content in 2010 represent sales that are flat to down by as much as 1 percent when compared to 2009.

Based on this estimate, spending on new physical content at retail continues to account for the majority of the total consumer spend on games content. U.S. retail sales of new physical video game content, which includes portable, console and PC game software, generated revenues of $10.1 billion, a 5 percent decline over the $10.6 billion generated in 2010.

Bright spots came from PC games new physical retail software, which was up 3 percent in 2010, as well as increases in the consumer spend on used games sales, full-game digital downloads and downloadable content, mobile gaming apps, and social network gaming, which offset declines in console and portable new physical game sales, rentals, and subscriptions.

“December 2010 represented one of the strongest monthly performances the industry has ever had at retail. It was a robust finish to a year marked by innovation and engaging millions of consumers through a multitude of delivery models,” said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association, the trade group that represents U.S. computer and video game publishers. “Computer and video games led all other entertainment options as we responded to consumers’ demands for creative content on every platform from consoles to smart phones to handheld game devices. I look forward to a strong 2011 with a great pipeline of titles, many of which will be unveiled at the global center of video games—the E3 Expo.”

“The dynamics of games content purchasing changed dramatically in 2010 with options ranging from the physical product to digital downloads on connected devices as well as in-store digital kiosks,” said Anita Frazier, industry analyst, The NPD Group. “The increasing number of ways to acquire the content has allowed the industry to maintain total consumer spend on content as compared to 2009, and we should expect 2011 to be a growth year in the games industry as the consumer demand for gaming continues to evolve.”

ardware for December

DS – 2.5 million
Wii – 2.36 million
360 – 1.9 million
PS3 – 1.21 million