NPD: Darksiders II Leads U.S. Sales, Big Month for 3DS

The NPD Group has revealed the top ten best-selling games in the United States for the month of August.

The best-selling titles for the period between July 29th and August 25th, in order, are:

1. Darksiders II (360, PS3, PC)**
2. New Super Mario Bros 2 (3DS)
3. Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (3DS)**
4. NCAA Football 13 (360, PS3)
5. Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes (Wii, 360, NDS, PS3, 3DS, PSV, PC)
6. Sleeping Dogs (360, PS3)
7. Transformers: Fall of Cybertron (360, PS3)
8. Batman: Arkham City (360, PS3, PC)**
9. Call of Duty: Black Ops (360, PS3, NDS, Wii, PC)**
10. The Amazing Spider-Man (360, PS3, NDS, 3DS, Wii)

**(includes CE, GOTY editions, bundles, etc. but not those bundled with hardware)

According to NPD analyst Anita Frazier, no hardware platforms experienced a sales increase compared to last year, but 3DS and PlayStation 3 did sell more units than last month. 3DS XL is said to have represented 44% of total 3DS sales in August despite not launching until the 19th. “The current hardware systems are showing their age, so it goes without saying that it would be great to have new systems breathe life into traditional retail industry sales,” Frazier said. “I am anxious to learn more about the Wii U launch later this month. And with any luck we will hear news about other systems on the horizon.”

Software declined only 1% compared to August 2011, “pointing to a stabilization in that portion of the retail market” for games. “One factor contributing to the softness we have seen in retail content sales so far in 2012 has been the decline in the sheer number of new titles,” Frazier added. “This, however, was not the case in August because there were more new titles when compared to last year; titles with sales that were significantly better than last year’s launches. So, what we’re seeing impact August results is the domino effect of the light release schedule from earlier in the year. That lack of new releases has had a significant impact on subsequent month’s sales.”

Frazier also noted that accessory sales continue to be dominated by points cards and character packs for Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure. Frazier also noted that “You can’t talk about the gaming market without taking into consideration the growth in the number of mobile gamers on smartphones and tablets. Our recently released gamer segmentation research indicates that the mobile gamer segment of the market is now slightly larger than the core gamer segment, although their monetary value to the industry varies significantly. The industry foundation will always be the core gamer who spends 35 percent more on physical games than does the average gamer.”

Microsoft notes that 193,000 Xbox 360 consoles were sold in August, “marking the 20th consecutive month as the top-selling current-generation console in the United States.” Xbox 360 held a 48% share of current-generation console sales in the United States in August, with consumers spending $196 million on hardware, software and accessories.

This story will be updated when IGN receives statements from Nintendo and Sony.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

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Steam Updates Groups, Enhances Content Management

Valve has announced more new updates to the Steam Community, making changes to group pages as well as how users manager their uploaded content. Valve says that over 2.5 million groups have been created, and their pages will now receive an entirely new layout, adding a group overview, friend showcase and new group discussions.

Discussions can be public or private and users will have “complete moderator control” over their own groups, including the ability to create sub-forums, add moderators and delete posts. Groups can also list their favorite games and a default language can be set.

Valve has also added a new way to keep track of screenshots, replays, videos linked from YouTube, workshop Items and Workshops on your profile page. All content will be available for users to display or manage, with an image wall that will offer multiple ways to view your uploaded screenshots. Players will also be able to favorite screenshots in order to find them later or share them with friends.

Today is the third day of a week’s worth of Community updates that Valve is rolling out this week. The first update came on Monday with the introduction of Game Hubs. For more details about all of the new features, check out the Steam Community’s official site.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

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