The PlayStation 4 sold the most units among video game consoles in February 2018, according to a report by industry tracker firm NPD Group.
However, while the PlayStation 4 topped sales last month, the Nintendo Switch was breaking records. The device now carries the title as the fastest-selling video game console in the United States over its first year.
PlayStation 4 Conquers February, But Nintendo Switch Breaks Record
The PlayStation 4 topped console sales for February 2018, beating the Nintendo Switch and the Xbox One. Sony's console is holding on to the distinction as the best-selling console so far for 2018.
Meanwhile, the Nintendo Switch is breaking records.
"Over the first twelve months in market, Nintendo Switch has achieved the highest installed base for a console platform in history," said NPD analyst Mat Piscatella. This means that the hybrid console has been crowned as the fast-selling console in the United States over its first year.
The "fastest-selling" tag continues to follow the success of the Nintendo Switch. In April last year, a month after it was released, the hybrid console already became the fastest-selling Nintendo console in the company's history. In January, Nintendo announced that the Nintendo Switch is the all-time fastest-selling-console in the United States over its first 10 months. This distinction now holds true for the whole first year of the Nintendo Switch, and it is showing no signs of slowing down.
Video Game Industry Going Strong
Overall, the video game industry generated total sales of $995 million in February, according to the NPD Group. This figure is a 23 percent increase compared to $811 million in the same month last year, showing how strong the industry is going right now.
Hardware spending for February increased by 55 percent compared to year-ago figures to $316 million. According to Piscatella, the gains were driving by growth in sales for both the Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. The PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch may be getting the spotlight, but that doesn't mean that the Xbox is not performing well and contributing to the surge that the video game industry is currently enjoying.
All three major consoles also had a strong January 2018. The Nintendo Switch sold the most units, but gamers spent the most on the PlayStation 4. Meanwhile, the Xbox One posted its best January performance ever, driven by the Xbox One X.
"On a historic level, this is maybe the strongest trio of active consoles ever," wrote VentureBeat's Jeff Grubb, an observation that is very hard to deny.
