After months of losing out to Sony's PlayStation 4, Microsoft's Xbox One finally becomes the top-selling home gaming console in the U.S.
The news is surprising, considering the last time the Xbox One edged out the PS4 in the running toward America's most popular video game system was because of a $50 price drop on the now $350 Xbox One and special edition consoles that included Assassin's Creed Unity or Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare in the bundle.
In a statement sent to GamesBeat, Microsoft announced that monthly sales in the U.S. for its flagship console set a new record, while the number of users for Xbox Live is at an all-time high.
"Xbox One console sales in the U.S. increased 63 percent in April 2015 compared to April 2014 and Xbox Live comparisons showed the number of active global users [Xbox One and Xbox 360] grew 24 percent," Microsoft says.
Microsoft does not reveal specific sales numbers, but estimates have pegged total Xbox sales at 12 million units worldwide, while Sony's PlayStations, which continue to lead in software sales, are believed to have sold 20 million units.
In its latest report, research firm NPD Group says the gaming industry saw a boost in sales last month. Hardware sales saw an increase in terms of the number of physical units sold, but a decrease in average pricing of the Xbox 360, PS3, and Nintendo Wii, on the other hand, saw dollar sales drop by four percent. Sales for the Xbox One, PS4, and Wii U were "stable," according to NPD Group's Liam Callahan, while portable hardware sales shot up by 36 percent.
On the software front, game sales continued to rise, with Mortal Kombat X taking the No. 1 spot on the best-selling games chart for April. This is followed, unsurprisingly, by Grand Theft Auto V and Battlefield: Hardline. Overall, sales of software increased 13 percent from last year's $227.6 million to $256.7 million last month, thanks in large part to the sales on the Xbox One and PS4.
"For new physical console software, eighth-generation consoles sales grew by 200 percent in revenue, which offset declines from seventh-generation consoles of 62 percent, and portable declines of 32 percent," Callahan says. "Overall, console software increased by 20 percent, leading to overall video game software growth of 13 percent."
The remaining top-selling games in the top 10 are the following: MLB 15: The Show, Minecraft, NBA 2K15, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin, Super Smash Bros., and Borderlands: The Handsome Collection.
However, if sales across platforms are not combined, the list would include Bloodborne, Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, and Mario Party 10.
