UK CHARTS: May 2010

The value of the UK games market rose 12 per cent year-on-year in May, boosted by a number of hugely popular multiformat releases.

Take-Two’s Red Dead Redemption and EA’s 2010 FIFA World Cup drove sales last month, taking first and second places in the All Formats Top 50 respectively.

It was also a great month for Xbox 360 and PS3 – both saw an increase in market share for both units and value. This was due to a large number of new titles hitting retail on both consoles, including the aforementioned FIFA and Red Dead, along with Lost Planet 2, Skate 3, UFC 2010: Undisputed, Split/Second: Velocity and Super Street Fighter IV. Older releases also remained popular in light of price promotions, with Modern Warfare 2 and Bad Company 2 still in the Top Ten.

Meanwhile, market share for other consoles dropped slightly – including the Wii and PC – due to a lack of new releases, although titles such as Iron Man 2 and New Super Mario Bros Wii remained reasonably strong in 17th and 18th place in the month’s All Formats Top 50.

Microsoft also saw an increase in software market share with exclusive Alan Wake, while EA and Activision Blizzard held firm.

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE by company – UNITS
(last month in brackets)

1. (5) TAKE-TWO – 17.2%
2. (2) EA – 15.1%
3. (1) UBISOFT – 10.7%
4. (3) NINTENDO – 9.4%
5. (4) SEGA – 5.9%
6. (6) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD – 5.6%
7. (10) MICROSOFT – 4.5%
8. (9) SONY – 4.4%
9. (8) THQ – 4.2%
10. (11) CAPCOM – 4.0%

Take-Two shot to the top of May’s publisher charts on the back of strong sales of Rockstar’s PS3 and Xbox 360 Wild West adventure Red Dead Redemption. EA held firm in second with a range of titles led by 2010 FIFA World Cup. Microsoft also jumped three places to seventh, thanks to consumer interest in Alan Wake.

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE by company – VALUE
(last month in brackets)

1. (6) TAKE-TWO – 25.1%
2. (2) EA – 16.9%
3. (1) UBISOFT – 8.9%
4. (3) NINTENDO – 8.5%
5. (5) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD – 5.2%
6. (7) SEGA – 4.7%
7. (11) MICROSOFT – 4.7%
8. (9) CAPCOM – 4.5%
9. (10) THQ – 4.1%
10. (8) SONY – 4.0%

Steady full price RRPs from new Take-Two and Microsoft games caused swift growth, while EA’s 2010 FIFA World Cup helped the publisher hold second. Last year FIFA 10 retailed for 24.99 in Tescos on release day, but the 39.99 price point for World Cup has held firm – even in supermarkets – keeping value high.

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE by format – UNITS
(last month in brackets)

1. (1) XBOX 360 – 32.2%
2. (3) PS3 – 25.0%
3. (2) NINTENDO WII – 16.9%
4. (4) NINTENDO DS – 13.3%
5. (5) PC – 9.3%
6. (6) PSP – 2.8%
7. (7) PS2 – 0.5%

There were more Xbox 360 titles sold in May than on any other platform, giving Microsoft the leading position for two consecutive months. Just two games in the May Top 20 weren’t available for Xbox 360, making the console last month’s dominant platform. PS3 moved up to second place with a three per cent rise, pushing Wii down to third position. A string of new releases available on Xbox 360 and PS3 helped both increases including Skate 3, UFC Undisputed 2010, Lost Planet 2 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE by format – VALUE
(last month in brackets)

1. (1) XBOX 360 – 39.9%
2. (2) PS3 – 30.9%
3. (3) NINTENDO WII – 13.3%
4. (4) NINTENDO DS – 9.7%
5. (5) PC – 4.3%
6. (6) PSP – 1.7%
7. (7) PS2 – 0.2%

The Wii’s software market share dropped 11 per cent year-on-year due to a lack of new releases. Just one new Wii title made it into the Top Ten – 2010 FIFA World Cup, while the gap between Xbox 360 and PS3 grew nine per cent month-on-month. This was due in part to 360 exclusive Alan Wake and 360/PC title Splinter Cell: Conviction. However PS3’s share of software market value rose one per cent, bolstered by multiformat titles Red Dead Redemption and World Cup. There were also continued sales from exclusives Heavy Rain and God of War III – which have held their full RRP despite being released earlier in the year.

ALL FORMATS TOP 50 – May 2nd to May 29th

1. Red Dead Redemption (Take Two)
2. 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (EA)
3. Lost Planet 2 (Capcom)
4. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (EA)
5. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
6. Alan Wake (Microsoft)
7. UFC 2010: Undisputed (THQ)
8. Skate 3 (EA)
9. Super Street Fighter IV (Capcom)
10. Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City (Take Two)
11. Final Fantasy Xiii (Square Enix)
12. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction (Ubisoft)
13. Split/Second (Disney Interactive)
14. Just Cause 2 (Square Enix)
15. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (Ubisoft)
16. Modnation Racers (Sony)
17. Iron Man 2 (Sega)
18. New Super Mario Bros Wii (Nintendo)
19. Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (Sega)
20. FIFA 10 (EA)
21. Pokmon Soulsilver (Nintendo)
22. Pokmon Heartgold (Nintendo)
23. Aliens vs Predator (Sega)
24. God of War III (Sony)
25. Forza Motorsport 3 (Microsoft)
26. Assassin’s Creed II (Ubisoft)
27. Halo 3: ODST (Microsoft)
28. New Super Mario Bros (Nintendo)
29. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo)
30. Warioware DIY (Nintendo)
31. Mario & Sonic at Olympic Winter Games (Sega)
32. Alpha Protocol (Sega)
33. BioShock 2 (Take Two)
34. Monster Hunter Tri (Capcom)
35. Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
36. Blur (Activision)
37. Professor Layton and Pandora’s Box (Nintendo)
38. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision)
39. Jewel Quest Mysteries: Emerald Tear (GSP/Avanquest)
40. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo)
41. Nier (Square Enix)
42. WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2010 (THQ)
43. The Sims 3 (EA)
44. Heavy Rain (Sony)
45. Peppa Pig: Fun and Games (Ubisoft)
46. Dante’s Inferno (EA)
47. Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training (Nintendo)
48. Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (Nintendo)
49. Mass Effect 2 (EA)
50. Ben 10 Alien Force: Vilgax Attacks (Namco Bandai)