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[thelastword]

Software:

These charts are sorted by dollar sales — not number of units sold.

1. NBA 2K20
2. Borderlands 3
3. FIFA 20
4. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening*
5. Madden NFL 20
6. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Breakpoint
7. Gears 5^
8. Code Vein
9. NHL 20
10. Mario Kart 8*
11. Minecraft#
12. Grand Theft Auto V
13. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
14. Spyro Reignited Trilogy
15. Red Dead Redemption II
16. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
17. Plants vs Zombies: Battle For Neighborville
18. Marvel’s Spider-Man
19. Catherine
20. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*

*Does not include digital sales
^Does not include Steam digital sales
#Only includes digital sales for PlayStation 4 and Xbox one

Hardware ; Switch was the best selling console


More Info over here for overall data, including...…..
https://venturebeat.com/2019/10/17/september-2019-npd-nba-2k20-and-borderlands-3-top-the-charts/

NBA 2K20

2K Games’s NBA 2K20 debuted in September, and it has already shot to the top of the sales charts.


“NBA 2K20 debuts as the best-selling game of September 2019, and instantly becomes the best-selling game of 2019 year-to-date,” said Piscatella. “NBA 2K20 launch-month sales were the highest for any sports game in history, exceeding sales of the previous record holder, NBA 2K19.”

Borderlands 3

Gearbox Software’s Borderlands 3 also had an impressive debut.


“Borderlands 3 set a new franchise launch month sales record, debuting as the second best-selling game of September,” said Piscatella. “Borderlands 3 currently ranks as the third best-selling game of the year.”

Gears 5

Gears 5’s debut at No. 7 may seem disappointing at first, but it’s important to remember that it is part of Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass subscription program. Anyone can get the game as part of that membership for just $10 per month — and Microsoft has had a number of promotions that charged much less than that.

 

[mejin]

Catherine is there holy shit

Gears 5

Gears 5’s debut at No. 7 may seem disappointing at first, but it’s important to remember that it is part of Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass subscription program. Anyone can get the game as part of that membership for just $10 per month — and Microsoft has had a number of promotions that charged much less than that.

There are no buts, it was MS choice to do this. Their strategy failed hard.

 

[Heinrich]

Growth in Switch and Xbox One software sales could not offset declines on PlayStation 4

ouch.

There are no buts, it was MS choice to do this. Their strategy failed hard.

not really, PS4 software sales declined, whereas MS grew. dont see the issue here, also recurring revenue is much much much more worth nowadays

 

[mejin]

ouch.



not really, PS4 software sales declined, whereas MS grew. dont see the issue here, also recurring revenue is much much much more worth nowadays

It was expected since Sept 2018 PS4 got Spider and even after a year it is still on the chart. Even though MS grew, it doesn't matter the metric, PS4 softwares sales (revenue or units) are way better than Xbox in their most important market.

 

[Three]

ouch.



not really, PS4 software sales declined, whereas MS grew. dont see the issue here, also recurring revenue is much much much more worth nowadays

Only if you fail to see the reason. There was a 4% decrease this year in all platforms videogame software sales compared to last year. Last year in September Spiderman released.

Gears 5 in September this year did nothing to meet that overall.

 

[Heinrich]

Only if you fail to see the reason. There was a 4% decrease this year in all platforms videogame software sales compared to last year. Last year in September Spiderman released.

Gears 5 in September this year did nothing to meet that overall.

 

[ethomaz]

ouch.



not really, PS4 software sales declined, whereas MS grew. dont see the issue here, also recurring revenue is much much much more worth nowadays

You know Niche-man released last year lol

 

[Afro Republican]

Xbox second best selling console, Xbox wins again.

 

[tkscz]

How do we get GTA V off that damn list?

 

[ethomaz]

Xbox second best selling console, Xbox wins again.

Source or I will call a lie.

BTW Xbox was always third all these months... when it was the previous win? lol

Edit - It is a lie lol

 

[Jigsaah]

Catherine is there holy shit



There are no buts, it was MS choice to do this. Their strategy failed hard.

Help me understand this. If Microsoft's goal from the outset of development was to place this game in GamePass and they got the traction they desired out of GamePass should we be gauging their success based on something that was not the primary focus of the game? What would be a true measure of their success is how well are they able to maintain membership, month over month.

 

[ethomaz]

After 31 months.

PS4: 13.76m
Switch: ~13m
XB1: 12.01m

Edit - Fixed Switch sales that were NA and not US.

 

[it_wasn't_me]

Gears 5 sales flopped. It flopped hard everywhere. All that just for 1/2$

But don't worry. Gamepass push game sales. We all know this.

 

[Dane]

Considering that Gears 5 was considered by some to be the Gamepass biggest marketing and had early launch on Ultimate, it sold damn well, considering that Gears 4 was at #3 at launch in a smaller console base, its not entirely impossible to think that GeOW5 sold roughly the same.

Heck, I recall that Forza Horizon 4 was also launched on Gamepass simultaneously and still had a #7 spot too, and was in top 10 xbox games chart on NPD for many months this year.

 

[The Alien]

There are no buts, it was MS choice to do this. Their strategy failed hard.

Gears placed 7th and , as indicated, was impacted by Game Pass.

So the the metric of success for Gears 5 is NOT sales.....but how many new subscribers it brought in.

I doubt MS will release that info.....but they did say 3 million unique users played Gears 5 at launch. So there's that , I suppose.

 

[joe_zazen]

Help me understand this. If Microsoft's goal from the outset of development was to place this game in GamePass and they got the traction they desired out of GamePass should we be gauging their success based on something that was not the primary focus of the game? What would be a true measure of their success is how well are they able to maintain membership, month over month.

i am interested in GP churn. A lot of subscription services rely in people not canceling them when they stop using them, sort of sign up and forget. I mean, we can go two or three months without watching Netflix without canceling, will gamers be the same or are they super cheap/conscientious?

 

[mejin]

Help me understand this. If Microsoft's goal from the outset of development was to place this game in GamePass and they got the traction they desired out of GamePass should we be gauging their success based on something that was not the primary focus of the game? What would be a true measure of their success is how well are they able to maintain membership, month over month.

We can speculate on this subject. How can we measure its sucess when MS say basically nothing?

Every big first party game from now on will go to gamepass day one and it is clear they are sacrificing revenue from everywhere to expand the engagement on this service. We know they have the money and I'm actually interested to see how far they will go to sustain the aggressive promo offers to sign gamepass + big productions that are coming.

 

[iconmaster]

Kind of a dull month.

they did say 3 million unique users played Gears 5 at launch

I read that as "3 million unique users booted up Gears 5 at least once."

 

[it_wasn't_me]

Considering that Gears 5 was considered by some to be the Gamepass biggest marketing and had early launch on Ultimate, it sold damn well, considering that Gears 4 was at #3 at launch in a smaller console base, its not entirely impossible to think that GeOW5 sold roughly the same.

Heck, I recall that Forza Horizon 4 was also launched on Gamepass simultaneously and still had a #7 spot too, and was in top 10 xbox games chart on NPD for many months this year.

Gears 5 sold like crap compared to Gears 4. In October 2016, Gears 4 was No. 3 WITHOUT DIGITAL. Now with digital included, Gears 5 is at 7th place, almost Code Vein, the anime game outsold it.

Software

1. Battlefield 1**
2. Mafia III
3. Gears of War 4*
4. FIFA 17
5. NBA 2K17
6. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim*
7. WWE 2K17
8. Civilization VI
9. Titanfall 2**
10. Madden NFL 17

* Does not include digital sales.
**Does not include EA Origin sales on PC.

 

[demigod]

Boasting 3 million players as soon as they possibly could but when it bombed hard at retail, they sure kept quiet as usual. Typical of MS. Facts are there, Game Pass ate into Gears 5 sales. I'm *shocked* its at #7 in sales, even Gears of War 4 placed 3rd during launch month. Good thing that *other person* didn't take a ban bet with me, they would've had a year ban . So much for Phil Spencer and xbox fans "Game Pass increases sales", what a lie.

 

[ethomaz]

Gears 5 with that place there is no way to have anywhere close to Gears 4 sales that were already in fall for the franchise.
The numbers are just not good like it used to be.

 

[mejin]

Gears placed 7th and , as indicated, was impacted by Game Pass.

So the the metric of success for Gears 5 is NOT sales.....but how many new subscribers it brought in.

I doubt MS will release that info.....but they did say 3 million unique users played Gears 5 at launch. So there's that , I suppose.

Yeah, right now I doubt we'll get the complete info, numbers and context. That's cause the PR team speaking for now.

 

[it_wasn't_me]

Gears placed 7th and , as indicated, was impacted by Game Pass.

So the the metric of success for Gears 5 is NOT sales.....but how many new subscribers it brought in.

I doubt MS will release that info.....but they did say 3 million unique users played Gears 5 at launch. So there's that , I suppose.

Some people bought the game, some are already GP subscribers and surely the vast majority bought GPU sub for 1/2$

 

[Jigsaah]

i am interested in GP churn. A lot of subscription services rely in people not canceling them when they stop using them, sort of sign up and forget. I mean, we can go two or three months without watching Netflix without canceling, will gamers be the same or are they super cheap/conscientious?

It is interesting, thank you for saying that. Here's the thing...I think many of conscientious gamers went for that Game Pass ultimate upgrade and I really believe Microsoft is playing the long game hoping to lull it's customers to sleep so they can just fit a subtle IV in. I think my ultimate doesn't end until next July. I'll be mindful for sure but I can't speak for everyone.

 

[Jigsaah]

We can speculate on this subject. How can we measure its sucess when MS say basically nothing?

Every big first party game from now on will go to gamepass day one and it is clear they are sacrificing revenue from everywhere to expand the engagement on this service. We know they have the money and I'm actually interested to see how far they will go to sustain the aggressive promo offers to sign gamepass + big productions that are coming.

Absolutely, fair point. It's an investment for sure...but knowing that fact means you can't really call it a failure yet. The investment hasn't had it's time to mature yet.

 

[Dane]

Gears 5 sold like crap compared to Gears 4. In October 2016, Gears 4 was No. 3 WITHOUT DIGITAL. Now with digital included, Gears 5 is at 7th place, almost Code Vein, the anime game outsold it.

Software

1. Battlefield 1**
2. Mafia III
3. Gears of War 4*
4. FIFA 17
5. NBA 2K17
6. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim*
7. WWE 2K17
8. Civilization VI
9. Titanfall 2**
10. Madden NFL 17

* Does not include digital sales.
**Does not include EA Origin sales on PC.

But the base installed was like half compared to now, and people are switching more and more to digital, i've heard that Xbox One users actually buy more digital compared to other platforms. So what if there was a significant change on format type with Gears 5?

 

[ethomaz]

Switch sales are really great... since 2014 it is only lower than PS4 with Destiny launch... of course for September.

I believe that put Switch at:

PS4 Destiny Sep: 538k
Switch Sep: ???
PS4 Niche-man Sep: 425k

I think these are the two best September this gen before this one.

PS. And no... XB1 did not sold more than PS4 * don't fall by the usual lies *

 

[prinz_valium]

Only if you fail to see the reason. There was a 4% decrease this year in all platforms videogame software sales compared to last year. Last year in September Spiderman released.

Gears 5 in September this year did nothing to meet that overall.

You know that Spiderman made over $150 million in September 2018?
Without Spiderman total software would be up over 20%

Of course this does not take into account, if people would've spend their money on something else in 2018.
So to just reduce 100% is not accurate to have a look at the total market, but it shows how other games did offset A LOT of $ spend.

 

[demigod]

But the base installed was like half compared to now, and people are switching more and more to digital, i've heard that Xbox One users actually buy more digital compared to other platforms. So what if there was a significant change on format type with Gears 5?

What kind of spin is this? The fact that the installed base is more now and WITH DIGITAL ACCOUNTED FOR, it should be doing more than Gears 4, but its not.

 

[it_wasn't_me]

But the base installed was like half compared to now, and people are switching more and more to digital, i've heard that Xbox One users actually buy more digital compared to other platforms. So what if there was a significant change on format type with Gears 5?

Install base was almost half less, yeah, but digital sale wasn't counted. Also Gears 4 sales were around 500k without digital in launch month. You don't buy games on Gamepass, you rent it. And of course, it can't count as sales. Like i said in other thread, Gears 5 is 21th most played game on MS's roundup. There surely are a lot of GP subscribers, but most are not interested in Gears at this point.

A small dedicated community is all it is going to have.

In just 4 weeks, game fall significantly on that chart.

 

[ethomaz]

Ohhhh DQXI Switch didn't charted... that means it did really low numbers.

PS4 debuted at #11 being the biggest launch in the story of the franchise with more than double of previous best, DQIX.

SE again did wonders to the franchise waiting more than a year to release on Switch lol
They will never learn... they should have released last year for 3DS together with PS4/PC.

 

[Dane]

What kind of spin is this? The fact that the installed base is more now and WITH DIGITAL ACCOUNTED FOR, it should be doing more than Gears 4, but its not.

Sorry, i've kinda brainleted on that part, the Physical sales could have been actually the same as physical for Gears 4 but with an overall bigger sales thank to digital sales. Or both games have the same sale figures at launch in the two fronts.

 

[Afro Republican]

Every big first party game from now on will go to gamepass day one and it is clear they are sacrificing revenue from everywhere

You actually have no idea if they are losing money, in fact, their earnings show that their non-hardware gaming sector is making money. Remember people are paying for Gamepass and Xbox live, and MS and third-parties are both cutting form the service, and you can actually buy full digital games instead of just "renting them" if you want.

MS Gamepass is compared to Netflix but unlike netflix Microsoft has actually made money on Gamepass.

Now, is it a bad idea to make EVERY first party title a day one Gamepass game?

Yes, if say, Halo Infinite is released day one on gamepass they would lose a ton of additional cash by not releasing it retail only for the first several months.

I suspect that when the next Xbox releases the rules will change and only B to C tier games like Crackdown 3 will be day 1 on gamepass and every other major First-party game (or third-party) will be included a few months after release.

 

[it_wasn't_me]

You actually have no idea if they are losing money, in fact, their earnings show that their non-hardware gaming sector is making money. Remember people are paying for Gamepass and Xbox live, and MS and third-parties are both cutting form the service, and you can actually buy full digital games instead of just "renting them" if you want.

MS Gamepass is compared to Netflix but unlike netflix Microsoft has actually made money on Gamepass.

Now, is it a bad idea to make EVERY first party title a day one Gamepass game?

Yes, if say, Halo Infinite is released day one on gamepass they would lose a ton of additional cash by not releasing it retail only for the first several months.

I suspect that when the next Xbox releases the rules will change and only B to C tier games like Crackdown 3 will be day 1 on gamepass and every other major First-party game (or third-party) will be included a few months after release.

Is it?

MS is paying a ton of money for third party stuff to show on Gamepass. And since Gears 5 flopped in sales because of Gamepass. Yeah, GamePass Ultimate is 1$.....it's making money. All money in the world.

 

[ethomaz]

I believe MS is eating a lot of money to build Gamepass success to try to recover it in the future.

 

[joe_zazen]

[

Now, is it a bad idea to make EVERY first party title a day one Gamepass game?

Yes, if say, Halo Infinite is released day one on gamepass they would lose a ton of additional cash by not releasing it retail only for the first several months.

I suspect that when the next Xbox releases the rules will change and only B to C tier games like Crackdown 3 will be day 1 on gamepass and every other major First-party game (or third-party) will be included a few months after release.

i really hope so because training customers to expect to NOT pay for premium games is a very bad idea if mobile is anything to go by. But, from ms pov, it is a huge selling point for the ecosystem “all those expensive games you buy? Well, just get the nextbox and say goodby to that! A nice easy $10 breeze is all you’ll feel going through your bank account every month. Muhahahahahaha”

 

[Sub_Level]

Mortal Kombat has been dethroned. No more Days Gone in top 10.

 

[MiyazakiHatesKojima]

Boasting 3 million players as soon as they possibly could but when it bombed hard at retail, they sure kept quiet as usual. Typical of MS. Facts are there, Game Pass ate into Gears 5 sales. I'm *shocked* its at #7 in sales, even Gears of War 4 placed 3rd during launch month. Good thing that *other person* didn't take a ban bet with me, they would've had a year ban . So much for Phil Spencer and xbox fans "Game Pass increases sales", what a lie.

In the words of the immortal GamerNYC78:

" "

 

[MiyazakiHatesKojima]

[


i really hope so because training customers to expect to NOT pay for premium games is a very bad idea if mobile is anything to go by. But, from ms pov, it is a huge selling point for the ecosystem “all those expensive games you buy? Well, just get the nextbox and say goodby to that! A nice easy $10 breeze is all you’ll feel going through your bank account every month. Muhahahahahaha”

EXACTLY! Devaluation of AAA single player games is a big problem that M$ is pushing.

 

[AgentP]

Kind of a dull month.

I read that as "3 million unique users booted up Gears 5 at least once."

I did, once.. maybe twice.

 

[Jigsaah]

What kind of spin is this? The fact that the installed base is more now and WITH DIGITAL ACCOUNTED FOR, it should be doing more than Gears 4, but its not.

As mindshare of GamePass grows people will gravitate more towards the service for these big games. This is BY DESIGN. Outer Worlds will be the same way. On xbox sales will be low, because everybody and their mama are going to download it on GamePass. Why pay $60 unless you're buying a physical copy?

 

[mejin]

You actually have no idea if they are losing money, in fact, their earnings show that their non-hardware gaming sector is making money. Remember people are paying for Gamepass and Xbox live, and MS and third-parties are both cutting form the service, and you can actually buy full digital games instead of just "renting them" if you want.

MS Gamepass is compared to Netflix but unlike netflix Microsoft has actually made money on Gamepass.

Now, is it a bad idea to make EVERY first party title a day one Gamepass game?

Yes, if say, Halo Infinite is released day one on gamepass they would lose a ton of additional cash by not releasing it retail only for the first several months.

I suspect that when the next Xbox releases the rules will change and only B to C tier games like Crackdown 3 will be day 1 on gamepass and every other major First-party game (or third-party) will be included a few months after release.

That's the problem for the lack of context. The info is never complete. I really doubt they are making enough with gamepass alone and doubt the money they get till now with Gears 5 is enough to make it rentable. Hardware aside where they can't spin bollocks, software is different. It's a mix from several segments, is it not?

Absolutely, fair point. It's an investment for sure...but knowing that fact means you can't really call it a failure yet. The investment hasn't had it's time to mature yet.

What I meant was for their strategy with Gears 5. A big AAA production which means several millions involved in costs with development outside marketing to be played at a single dollar. That's why I'm so curious about their future game launches. When it is a multi platform title, it seems there is no problem to sustain this kind of model, but when it is locked for xbox and steam like Gears 5 it seems to expose the flaw of gamepass model.

I'm 100% with you about gamepass. MS is making a huge investment to reap sucess later, but this is not guaranteed. Like Afro said it is the same thing Netflix did, they need to expand their user base and they really succeeded, but at what cost?

 

[ethomaz]

After 31 months.

PS4: 13.76m
Switch: ~13m
XB1: 12.01m

Edit - Fixed Switch sales that were NA and not US.

Sorry guys... fixed for accuracy.

PS4 continue being the King in US.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Gears 5 sales flopped. It flopped hard everywhere. All that just for 1/2$

But don't worry. Gamepass push game sales. We all know this.

 

[Danjin44]

19. Catherine

I’m pleasantly surprised to see Catherine on this list.

Also sad not seeing DQXIS on this list, that game deserves to sell really well.

 

[demigod]

As mindshare of GamePass grows people will gravitate more towards the service for these big games. This is BY DESIGN. Outer Worlds will be the same way. On xbox sales will be low, because everybody and their mama are going to download it on GamePass. Why pay $60 unless you're buying a physical copy?

When free subs and $1 subs run out, people are going to realize its cheaper to pay $60 for that one game rather than $120.

 

[sublimit]

Software:

These charts are sorted by dollar sales — not number of units sold.

1. NBA 2K20
2. Borderlands 3
3. FIFA 20
4. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening*
5. Madden NFL 20
6. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Breakpoint
7. Gears 5^
8. Code Vein
9. NHL 20
10. Mario Kart 8*
11. Minecraft#
12. Grand Theft Auto V
13. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
14. Spyro Reignited Trilogy
15. Red Dead Redemption II
16. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
17. Plants vs Zombies: Battle For Neighborville
18. Marvel’s Spider-Man
19. Catherine
20. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*

Holy crap!! Congrats to Namco and Shift! The game definitely deserves it!

 

[Jigsaah]

That's the problem for the lack of context. The info is never complete. I really doubt they are making enough with gamepass alone and doubt the money they get till now with Gears 5 is enough to make it rentable. Hardware aside where they can't spin bollocks, software is different. It's a mix from several segments, is it not?



What I meant was for their strategy with Gears 5. A big AAA production which means several millions involved in costs with development outside marketing to be played at a single dollar. That's why I'm so curious about their future game launches. When it is a multi platform title, it seems there is no problem to sustain this kind of model, but when it is locked for xbox and steam like Gears 5 it seems to expose the flaw of gamepass model.

I'm 100% with you about gamepass. MS is making a huge investment to reap sucess later, but this is not guaranteed. Like Afro said it is the same thing Netflix did, they need to expand their user base and they really succeeded, but at what cost?

I mean you have to try it to find out. This hasn't been done on this scale ever in gaming history. They are taking a huge risk. If I'm playing the long game, I'm expecting to take a hit upfront. Could you imagine if they launched gamepass and only put mediocre games and trash in it? Gamepass would never have a real chance to take off. It may seem like they are cannibalizing themselves but if they want GamePass to be successful...this is part of the process. I think only Microsoft knows the cost. From our perspective we can only assume its a cost they are willing to pay for the chance at greater growth down the line.

Intuition tells me there's something there. It's where the industry is headed in almost all leading companies. Sony is even beefing up their PSNow offerings. It's because they've done the math and they see where this is going. Its the same with streaming. It's why they partnered with Microsoft on Azure.

As much as I don't even wanna acknowledge it, this seems to be the path they want to take. There are some good sides to it, but streaming overall...feels like a step too far.

 

[RealGassy]

Ohhhh DQXI Switch didn't charted... that means it did really low numbers.

That is great news. Faith in humanity restored.

 

[Jigsaah]

When free subs and $1 subs run out, people are going to realize its cheaper to pay $60 for that one game rather than $120.

But, what if they want more than 1 game on GamePass in a year's time? Are you being serious right now?

If you get 2 games out of gamepass in an entire year that you would normally pay $60 for, you break even. 2 games...and then you can sample 100s of others at no additional cost.

Dude, come on bro. I know it hard for you, but you can't deny the value in that. The math is right in front of you. How can you be so blind?