Videogame sales fall again in April despite more console gains (NASDAQ:EA)

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Close up of young Asian woman playing video game console in neon lights living room at home. — MTStock Studio/E+ via Getty Images

U.S. videogame sales fell year-over-year for the second straight month in April, as a broad content decline more than offset more gains in console sales.

Overall sales dipped 5% to $4.123B from last March’s $4.32B, according to research group Circana.

On a year-to-date basis, sales are down 2% so far in 2023 from the same period in 2022, to $17.71B.

But hardware sales kept up a string of gains that started after some post-pandemic relief in the supply chain — rising 7% from the prior April to $367M (the best April in that category since April 2020, analyst Mat Piscatella noted).

PlayStation 5 (NYSE:SONY) was again the best-selling platform in dollar terms, while Nintendo Switch (OTCPK:NTDOY) was the leader in unit sales. Year-to-date, PlayStation 5 leads in both dollar and unit terms. And on a year-to-date basis, hardware sales are up 18% to $1.82B.

Accessories spending was flat year-over-year at $158M; the PlayStation 5 DualSense Edge Wireless Controller Black held on as top seller for the month and for 2023 as a whole. Year-to-date, accessories spending is up 1% to $779M.

It was game content (by far the biggest component) that once again disappointed, falling 6% to $3.598B, and with broad declines. All segments of content spending fell from the previous April except for one: nonmobile subscription content, which ticked up 2%.

That came despite two new-release best-sellers for the month. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (NASDAQ:EA) debuted atop the April dollar-sales chart despite only selling for a couple of days in April; it became 2023’s fourth-best seller in that short span.

It finished just ahead of Dead Island 2 (OTC:EBCRY), which debuted as April’s second-best seller and took a year-to-date spot of sixth best.

Rounding out the top 10 were No. 3, MLB: The Show 23; No. 4, Resident Evil 4 (OTCPK:CCOEY); No. 5, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (ATVI); No. 6, Hogwarts Legacy (WBD); No. 7, PGA Tour (EA); No. 8, Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection (OTCPK:CCOEY); No. 9, FIFA 23 (EA); and No. 10, Mario Kart 8 (OTCPK:NTDOY).

In mobile game spending, trends were relatively stable month-over-month, according to Sensor Tower, but the firm noted Pokémon Go (OTCPK:NTDOY) dropped out of the top 10 for the first time in a year after a controversial decision to boost the price of some in-app purchases.

The top 10 mobile games by U.S. spending: Candy Crush Saga (ATVI), Roblox (RBLX), Royal Match, Coin Master, Gardenscapes, Evony, Township, Jackpot Party, Homescapes, and Bingo Blitz (PLTK).

Related tickers: OTCPK:NTDOY, SONY, NASDAQ:MSFT, HEAR, LOGI, CRSR, EA, ATVI, TTWO, WBD, OTCPK:UBSFY, OTCPK:NCBDY, OTCPK:SQNNY, OTCPK:CCOEY, OTCPK:SGAMY, OTCPK:KONMY, OTCPK:NEXOY, SKLZ, SE, NTES, OTCPK:TCEHY, RBLX. Retail stock: GME.