May 2014 NPD: PS4 is #1 for a 5th Straight Month, PS Vita Gets a Boost

It was a great month for the video game industry in May 2014, with total industry sales up a whopping 52% (compared to May 2013) to $586 million. The breakdown for May 2014 shows hardware was up 95% to $187 million and software was up 57% to $274 million ($284 million when you add in PC software).

For a 5th month in a row, the PlayStation 4 was the #1 selling system, while the Nintendo 3DS finished in 2nd. NPD analyst Liam Callahan pointed towards the Xbox One and PS4 contributing to most of the growth in terms of hardware last month, but he did add, “There was also year-over-year growth for the Wii U and PS Vita,” with the new Borderlands 2 PS Vita bundle highlighted as doing well, but no official sales numbers were given.

Callahan then said, “Collectively, May 2014 launches sold 800% more in dollar sales than May 2013 launches did their respective launch months. New launches represented 50% of dollar sales this month, which compared to only 9 percent for new launches in May 2013.” This big growth can be attributed to the releases of Watch Dogs, Mario Kart 8, Wolfenstein: The New Order, and more.

Here’s the top 10 selling games in May 2014, which totals retail sales across all systems and includes Collectors Editions, GOTY Editions, and bundles, but not those bundled with hardware: