December NPD: PS3 sells 726k, 2008 sales up 40%

PS3 sold 726,000 units in December, according to the latest NPD results. That brings the total of PS3s sold in 2008 (in the US) at a respectable 3.6 million units. While these figures are quite good, they do pale in comparison to Nintendo and Microsoft's consoles.

The price of PS3 has been discussed repeatedly over the past few months. Is it strange to see such a direct correlation between price and units sold between PS3 and Xbox 360? PS3 costs twice as much and has sold almost exactly half as many systems as the 360. Here are the numbers:

Hardware Sales for December 2008:

• DS - 3.04 million
• Wii - 2.15 million
• Xbox 360 - 1.44 million
• PSP - 1.02 million
• PS3 - 726K
• PS2 - 410K

If Sony were able to afford a lower price for PS3, we believe the NPD charts would look quite different. It's clear that consumers want the PS3; it's done exceptionally well considering the competition and the weakened economy. Should Sony offer a lower-priced alternative in 2009, the install base should increase dramatically.

Top 10 Games of December 2008:

1. Wii Play w/ remote - Wii – Nintendo – 1.46 million
2. Call of Duty: World at War - Xbox 360 – Activision – 1.33 million*
3. Wii Fit w/ balance board – Wii – Nintendo – 999K
4. Mario Kart Wii w/ wheel – Wii – Nintendo – 979K
5. Guitar Hero: World Tour - Wii – Activision – 850K*
6. Gears of War 2 - Xbox 360 – Microsoft – 745K*
7. Left 4 Dead - Xbox 360 – Electronic Arts – 629K
8. Mario Kart - DS – Nintendo – 540K
9. Call of Duty: World at War - PS3 – Activision – 533K
10. Animal Crossing: City Folk - Wii – Nintendo – 497K*

Top 10 Games of Calendar Year 2008

1. Wii Play w/ remote - Wii – Nintendo – 5.28 million
2. Mario Kart Wii w/ wheel – Wii – Nintendo – 5.00 million
3. Wii Fit w/ balance board – Wii – Nintendo – 4.53 million
4. Super Smash Bros. Brawl - Wii – Nintendo – 4.17 million
5. Grand Theft Auto IV - Xbox 360 – Take-Two – 3.29 million*
6. Call of Duty: World at War - Xbox 360 – Activision – 2.75 million*
7. Gears of War 2 - Xbox 360 – Microsoft – 2.31 million*
8. Grand Theft Auto IV - PS3 – Take-Two – 1.89 million*
9. Madden NFL '09 - Xbox 360 – Electronic Arts – 1.87 million*
10. Mario Kart - DS – Nintendo – 1.65 million

* Includes any special editions.

Top three downloaded games in December:

• Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
• Soldner-X: Himmelssturmer
• Linger in Shadows.

Top three most downloaded movies in December:

• The Dark Knight
• Step Brothers
• Get Smart

Official SCEA statement:
"The PlayStation brand has had a solid calendar year with total PS3 hardware sales up 40% and total PS3 software sales up 115%. We remain confident in our momentum into 2009 as we continue to deliver to our consumers the best entertainment content and technology out there. And we delivered on that promise this past year with one of the best software line-ups in the industry, a dramatically expanded PlayStation Network with the launch of the video delivery service and the beta of PlayStation Home, as well as extended hardware offerings with the PSP 3000 and Uncharted 160GB PS3 bundle. We also hit a remarkable milestone for the PlayStation 2 platform in North America with 50 million units sold. It's truly an amazing testament to the power and legacy of our brand."
-- Peter Dille, Senior Vice President of Marketing and PlayStation® Network, Sony Computer Entertainment America