PS4 overtakes Switch in monthly US sales race

After two successive months as the best selling console hardware in the US, Nintendo Switch has slipped back behind the PS4.

NPD hasn’t released any numbers, so we don’t know by how much Switch sales fell or PS4 grew. By the same token, the Switch stock situation seemingly remains a little strained.

The overall hardware market was up, however, climbing seven per cent year-on-year – a rise that was attributed to Switch. Year-to-date US hardware spend is up 18 per cent, with home consoles offsetting a decline in the portable sector.

The total market was down 11 per cent at $542m, however, with software declining by 20 per cent year-on-year. Comparisons with last year’s May launches of Overwatch, Uncharted 4 and Doom are likely to blame.

Warner Bros’ Injustice 2 was the month’s best-selling game, with April’s top seller Mario Kart 8 Deluxe slipping to second place. Zelda: Breath of the Wild continues to sell despite limited Switch availability.

So far in 2017, Ubisoft’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands and For Honor remain the star performers in first and second, ahead of platform exclusives Zelda and Horizon Zero Dawn. As we’re seeing in the UK, the Grand Theft Auto V juggernaut continues to roll on, with Rockstar’s title currently the fifth best-selling game of the year. The remainder of the 2017 Top 10 is rounded off with Mass Effect: Andromeda, Resident Evil 7, NBA 2K17, Injustice 2 and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

For the 12 months ending May 2017, COD: Infinite Warfare tops the listings followed by Battlefield 1, NBA 2K17, Madden 17 and GTA V.

Here’s NPD’s May 2017 All Platforms Top 10. Titles marked with an asterisk exclude digital sales.

1. Injustice 2
2. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
3. Grand Theft Auto V
4. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*
5. Prey*
6. Ghost Recon: Wildlands
7. Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadow of Valentia*
8. NBA 2K17
9. MLB 17: The Show
10. Overwatch*