NPD February 2004

[Qroach]

February Hardware Sales

PS2: 363,000 [+7% over January sales]
Xbox: 204,000 [+6%]
GCN: 137,000 [+5%]
GBA: 353,000 [+18%]

Cumulative Installed Base

PS2: 22,958,000
Xbox: 8,187,000
GCN: 7,133,000
GBA: 20,601,000

Tie Ratios

PS2: 8.10
Xbox: 6.58
GCN: 6.09
GBA: 3.42

US Top 20 Videogame Titles

(Ranked in $$$, not units)

1 GCN FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLE Nintendo $11,912,520 243,380
2 PS2 NFL STREET Electronic Arts $8,360,043 167,935
3 PS2 NEED FOR SPEED: UNDERGROUND Electronic Arts $5,813,065 120,155
4 PS2 BOND 007: EVERYTHING OR NOTHING Electronic Arts $5,747,493 115,944
5 PS2 CHAMPS OF NORRATH:REALMS Sony $5,048,062 101,684
6 PS2 MAFIA Take 2 Interactive $4,407,365 88,473
7 XBX BOND 007: EVERYTHING OR NOTHING Electronic Arts $4,373,694 88,038
8 GBA M ETROID ZERO MISSION Nintendo $4,364,623 151,807
9 PS2 SONIC HEROES Sega $4,185,546 84,098
10 PS2 JET LI: RISE TO HONOR Sony $4,151,180 104,084
11 GCN MARIO KART : DOUBLE Nintendo $3,973,327 81,233
12 GCN SONIC HEROES Sega $3,752,389 76,506
13 PS2 MADDEN NFL 2004 Electronic Arts $3,355,022 69,684
14 PS2 BALDURS GATE:ALLIANCE II Vivendi $3,158,646 65,234
15 PS2 TRUE CRIME: STREETS OF LA Activision $3,112,333 65,472

Source: CSFB/Wedbush Morgan estimates based on NPD Funworld data.

February Videogame Sales Results

• Overall videogame software sales were up 5.4% year over year for the month of February. 128-bit software sales were up 5.6% year over year, and GBA software sales were up 50% y/y. 128-bit hardware sales were down 6% y/y in February as the $179 price point is stretched further, bringing the install base of 128-bit consoles to 38.3 million in the U.S. GBA hardware sales grew 25% y/y, bringing the install base to 20.6M in the U.S.

• Electronic Arts (ERTS, $47.25, OUTPERFORM, TP $60.00, OW) U.S. videogame sales were stronger than expected for the month of February, up 35% versus last year due to the strength of NFL Street, Bond: Everything or Nothing and Need for Speed: Underground. For the quarter to date, U.S. sales are up 28%, versus overall revenue growth of 22.5% for the March quarter.

• Activision, Inc. (ATVI, $20.12, OUTPERFORM [V], TP $22.00, OW) U.S. sales increased 26% year over year for the month of February, due to the continued strength of True Crime: Streets of LA and THUG. For the quarter to date, U.S. sales are up 31%, versus overall flat revenue growth for the March quarter.

• THQ, Inc. (THQI, $17.77, OUTPERFORM [V], TP $22.00, OW) U.S. sales increased 19% year over year in February driven by WWE Here Comes The Pain, Tak & the Power of JuJu and Spongebob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom. For the quarter to date, U.S. sales are up 17%, versus overall revenue growth of 39% for the March quarter.

• For Take Two Interactive (TTWO, $32.00, OUTPERFORM [V], TP $50.00, OW) sales in February were up 29% y/y. The company’s Grand Theft Auto Double Pack continues to sell well with over 260,000 units sold in the quarter between the PS2 and Xbox versions. Midway Games, Inc. (MWY, $6.50, UNDERPERFORM [V], TP $1.50, OW) U.S. sales in the month of February were down 50% year over year.


Rank
1 PS2 PS2 NFL STREET 167,935
2 PS2 PS2 NEED SPEED: UNDERGRND 120,155
3 PS2 PS2 BOND 007: EVERYTHING 115,944
4 PS2 PS2 JET LI: RISE TO HONOR 104,084
5 PS2 PS2 CHAMPS NORRATH:REALMS 101,684
6 PS2 PS2 MAFIA 88,473
7 PS2 PS2 SONIC HEROES 84,098
8 PS2 PS2 ONLINE PACK 80,512
9 PS2 PS2 MADDEN NFL 2004 69,684
10 PS2 PS2 MX UNLEASHED 65,683
11 PS2 PS2 TRUE CRIME:STREETS LA 65,472
12 PS2 PS2 BALDURS GATE:ALLNC II 65,234
13 PS2 PS2 SOCOM II: NAVY SEALS 60,121
14 PS2 PS2 NBA LIVE 2004 57,497
15 PS2 PS2 DRAGONBALL Z:BUDOKAI2 47,841


Rank GCN GCN FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL 243,380
1 GCN GCN MARIO KART: DOUBLE 81,233
2 GCN GCN SONIC HEROES 76,506
3 GCN GCN BOND 007: EVERYTHING 42,264
4 GCN GCN SUPER SMASH BRO MELEE 40,174
5 GCN GCN MARIO PARTY 5 35,399
6 GCN GCN NFL STREET 32,618
7 GCN GCN LUIGI'S MANSION 31,057
8 GCN GCN SUPER MONKEY BALL 30,954
9 GCN GCN SUPER MARIO SUNSHINE 27,317
10 GCN GCN PAC-MAN PLAYER'S BND 20,612
11 GCN GCN NEED SPEED: UNDERGRND 19,760
12 GCN GCN YU-GI-OH! FALSEBOUND 18,310
13 GCN GCN DRAGONBALL Z: BUDOKAI 17,480
14 GCN GCN NAMCO MUSEUM 15,992
15 GCN GCN SW:ROGUE SQUADRON III 15,266


Rank GBA GBA METROID ZERO MISSION 151,807
1 GBA GBA MARIO BROS 3: MARIO 4 71,991
2 GBA GBA YU-GI-OH! TRNMNT 2004 61,061
3 GBA GBA POKEMON RUBY 54,016
4 GBA GBA POKEMON SAPPHIRE 50,472
5 GBA GBA TEENAGE MUTANT TURTLE 40,489
6 GBA GBA SONIC BATTLE 38,275
7 GBA GBA DONKEY KONG COUNTRY 33,866
8 GBA GBA YU-GI-OH! SACRED CARD 30,665
9 GBA GBA SUPER MARIO ADVANCE 2 29,658
10 GBA GBA SONIC ADVANCE 2 28,183
11 GBA GBA CRASH BAND2:N-TRANCED 28,045
12 GBA GBA NAMCO MUSEUM 27,592
13 GBA GBA QUAD DESERT FURY 27,473
14 GBA GBA SPONGEBOB: BATTLE 27,366
15 GBA GBA CRASH BANDICOOT: HUGE 27,304


Rank
1 XBX XBX HALO 88,979
2 XBX XBX BOND 007: EVERYTHING 88,038
3 XBX XBX NFL STREET 61,618
4 XBX XBX GRAND THEFT AUTO PACK 60,143
5 XBX XBX UNREAL II: AWAKENING 43,790
6 XBX XBX NEED SPEED: UNDERGRND 43,089
7 XBX XBX T. CLANCY'S RAINBOW 3 38,004
8 XBX XBX SONIC HEROES 36,544
9 XBX XBX BALDURS GATE:ALLNC II 36,500
10 XBX XBX MX UNLEASHED 30,360
11 XBX XBX BRUTE FORCE 28,007
12 XBX XBX TRUE CRIME:STREETS LA 26,721
13 XBX XBX MECH ASSAULT 25,365
14 XBX XBX MEDAL HONOR FRONTLINE 24,773
15 XBX XBX T.CLANCY'S SPLINTER 24,303

 

[zurich]

Ouch, Sonic Heros sure took a beating :?

I thought Champions of Norrath would have sold better personally.. I'm interested in the Ninja Gaiden numbers for March too.

 

[London Geezer]

:? Halo is still the best selling game on Xbox.... :?

 

[Qroach]

Halo is just a consistent seller, so what? It's not unlike the way GTA kept selling 2 years later.

 

[London Geezer]

Halo is just a consistent seller, so what? It's not unlike the way GTA kept selling 2 years later.

GTA kept selling well, yeah and keeps selling well, but come on, a launch game still being the platform's best seller after 2 years? Tells you all about how many other good games are available for the thing...

I'm buying it for PC anyway, cheaper and i can run it at much higher res... Oh and i can play it without breaking my wrist...

 

[notAFanB]

GTA kept selling well, yeah and keeps selling well, but come on, a launch game still being the platform's best seller after 2 years? Tells you all about how many other good games are available for the thing...

aren't you being a bit unfair here? what about the bundles and the llikelyhood that of those whom own/bought an xbox was really bound to pick up this title in some form or other? (read Mario64 for n64)

 

[Qroach]

but come on, a launch game still being the platform's best seller after 2 years?

Once again so what? A few of the launch games on the N64 were the platforms best sellers.

Tells you all about how many other good games are available for the thing...

That's a pure troll comment. What it tells you is what genre has a potential mass market appeal on the system. The fact it's still selling doesn't have anything to do with the quality of other titles on the platform, Halo just appeals to more xbox users then say an RPG or sports title.

You clearly wouldn't say the same thing about the PS2 and GTA games, so why say it about xbox? Or do you want to come out and say since nothing has sold as many units as GTA on PS2, that means the rest of the titles on the platform aren't any good?

 

[London Geezer]

Sorry if i sounded troll-y (i did actually now that i read my post again), didn't mean to. It's just WEIRD that a launch game would keep outselling any other game on the same console, whether it's a bundle or not...

 

[Qroach]

It's just WEIRD that a launch game would keep outselling any other game on the same console, whether it's a bundle or not...

So, what's weird about it and what difference does it make if it's a launch title? I don't follow what you're saying...

 

[jvd]

up till mario kart , super smash bros was the number 1 seller on the system and that came out what 3 or 4 months after the launch.


A good game is a good game and it will sell well.

 

[hey69]

HALO is bundled since months and months.. but then again, it sold well on his own already

 

[zurich]

SSBM came out like 3 weeks after the Cube launched, no?

 

[cthellis42]

December 3rd, I believe--all of two weeks. Still sells well, too, eh? ^_^ There are just some "must own" titles for each of the consoles, and there are plenty of people still buying new consoles, so...

 

[Magnum PI]

it's just that halo was the best xbox game when it came out, and it is still the best xbox game.

 

[Jabjabs]

Good to see True crime still doing well, I was certin that it would become a sleeper hit and yet I was proven wrong in a good way.

Good one Luxoflux, you hit the big time.

 

[Goldni]

Not too bad for Feb numbers. I would like to see how much better the GCN would have done if they'd had enuf in stock. I still hold to my predict that GBA will eventually surpass the PS2 user base.

 

[Geeforcer]

I don't want to offend anyone, but I have developed this uncanny ability to predict the sales results before I open the thread, bases solely on the author’s name.

 

[Qroach]

Come on... that has nothing to do with who posts the thread. Someone else just beat me to it the last few times.

Btw, Goldeni, how could there be a gamecube shortage if GC system sales increased by 5 % over January? If there's a shortage Nintendo should be running out, or at least have lower sales than january's numbers.

btw, hasn't the shortage been claimed since early/mid december? 3 months is a awful long time to be claiming there's a shortage.

 

[Goldni]

Well that's what we dont know. Sites were saying stores were claiming GCN shortages in late Jan early Feb. And they stated that they would'nt be replenished till sometime in April. Maybe they (NOA) got on the stick earlier than thought.