14 DAY TRIAL // The NPD numbers for hardware and software sales on the North American market are expected to arrive soon and it seems that after the rosy patch that September was, the videogames industry is set to return to its blue period, with falling sales, less revenue brought in through console sales and falling profits made from the most recent releases.
Doug Creutz, who is watching the industry for the Cowen Group, is saying that a 9% fall in software sales is to be expected, especially because last year, successful titles like Fallout 3 and Fable 2 were launched, making the comparison a tough one for 2009.
The biggest drop will be in the numbers for the PC platform, which will fall by more than a quarter and will probably prompt more commentary on the issue of “PC gaming is dead.” It's worth taking into account that the NPD Group does not take into consideration sales from digital distribution and those generated by social-oriented online games, which are exclusive to the PC at the moment.
The big winners of October will probably be Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, created by Naughty Dog and published by Sony exclusively for the PlayStation 3, and Borderlands, the so-called role playing shooter developed by Gearbox and published by Take Two. Uncharted 2 is expected to be the best selling game of October, breaking through the 1 million barrier in the United States, while Borderlands is set to go over the 500,000 units mark, performing better than expected.
The big disappointment of October might be DJ Hero, the Guitar Hero spinoff published by Activision, which will suffer because of the high retail price and the lack of the social dimension of other titles in the series. The game is expected to sell less than 200,000 units for the month.