Video game hardware sales were down 25% year-over-year at the end of 2024, according to industry-tracking firm Circana. Video game content spending in general was up compared with the previous year, but hardware sales — along with almost all other sales, save for accessories — were down in December. Only one December game charted on the best-selling games list, that being MachineGames’ Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Most of the losses, both for December and for the year overall appear to be from declining console sales, which have been dwindling steadily all year. Mat Piscatella, Circana’s Circana’s executive producer for games reports said in the report, “Spending on PlayStation 5 hardware fell 18% when compared to December 2023, with Xbox Series and Switch each declining by 38%. Annual spending on video game hardware finished 25% lower than 2023, at $4.9 billion.”
That said, spending on actual game content for 2024 was up 2% YoY, and was “the 2nd highest total for video game content spending in U.S. history, trailing only 2021’s $52.0 billion,” says Piscatella. Spending on console content dropped 11%, but the growth in mobile, PC, cloud, VR and subscription content offset this. Piscatella also added in a post on Bluesky, “But [the decline] was expected with Switch being in market for so long and both PS5/XBS past their selling peaks.”
Accessories spending similarly saw 6% growth in 2024, despite the generally lukewarm hardware market and sales being overall flat in December itself. The PlayStation Portal was the best selling accessory of the year, having launched in the U.S. in late 2023. Circana’s report also notes that the PS5’s DualSense controller in Midnight Black was the accessory with the most units sold.
Circana December 2024: Top 20 best-selling games in the U.S.
As noted above, MachineGames’ Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the only December launch to make it onto Circana’s monthly best-seller charts. It’s also the fourth best-selling game on Xbox platforms and the third most-played games on those same platforms, according to Circana’s sales and engagement trackers. Other December launches that have missed the Circana reports include Marvel Rivals, Path of Exile 2 and Infinity Nikki, though the former two appear in the reports for most daily active users on Steam and consoles.
The rest of the best-seller list for December features several games that were originally in lower rankings jumping into the top 20 — presumably due to holiday sales. God of War Ragnarok, for example, was offered as part of a holiday sale a few short months after its launch on PC. Other titles such as Elden Ring and Helldivers 2 might have received a boost from The Game Awards and a new content launch, respectively.
Circana December 2024: 20 best-selling games of 2024
A Call of Duty game has taken the top spot in the charts, which doesn’t come as a huge surprise. If anything, it’s a return to form, as last year’s Hogwarts Legacy was the first game to dethrone a Call of Duty title from the top spot on a Circana bestsellers chart since 2008. CoD also remains the best-selling franchise in the U.S. for the 16th consecutive year. The rest of the list features a slight remix from November’s positions, with most of the same games having remained.
In addition to the year-end list, Circana also released individual charts for sales for each console (though Nintendo’s entries on its own chart are ranked mostly by physical sales data, as the company doesn’t provide digital sales data to Circana). Red Dead Redemption is on Xbox’s chart, but not PlayStation’s, while the latter counts several of its exclusive titles on its own list, with Helldivers II ranking third. Nintendo’s list contains a large number of new releases alongside mainstays such as Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros Ultimate.
