Console Sales Decline in '05; Portable Sales Nearly Double

Good news for Sony and Nintendo, but lousy news for console gaming.

Today, the NPD Group released its annual video game retail sales report.

The good news: The overall sales for 2005 weighed in at a record $10.5 billion, up 6 percent from 2004's sales of $9.9.

The bad news: Home console sales took a hit overall. Game sales dipped by a whopping 12 percent, likely due to the lack of earth-shattering titles such as Halo 2 and GTA: San Andreas. Console hardware sales, meanwhile, dipped by 3 percent. NPD placed the blame on next-gen console shortages and delays of high-profile games.

Surging sales for portable platforms like Nintendo's DS and Sony's PSP offset the plunging console sales. Portable hardware sales spiked by 96 percent, while portable software jumped by 42 percent.

The NPD Group also released the top-ten selling titles for 2005. Aside from Madden on the Xbox and Pokemon on the GBA, the list is dominated by PlayStation 2 titles:

1. Madden NFL 06 (PS2)
2. Pokemon Emerald (GBA)
3. Gran Turismo 4 (PS2)
4. Madden NFL 06 (Xbox)
5. NCAA Football 06 (PS2)
6. Star Wars: Battlefront II (PS2)
7. MVP Baseball 2005 (PS2)
8. Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (PS2)
9. NBA Live 06 (PS2)
10. Lego Star Wars (PS2)

The biggest surprise on the list is Eidos's Lego Star Wars, which proved to be a much-needed hit for the beleagured publisher. In general, LucasArts and EA enjoyed a stellar sales year, with multiple titles scoring huge sales.

But the absence of mega-hit franchises like Halo and Grand Theft Auto was still felt. It's possible that console sales will continue to deteriorate going into 2006, as gamers continue to transition to next-gen consoles.

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