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UK 2021 hardware and software sales | 35.8m games, 3.36m consoles and 10.6m accessories sold

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Hardware
There was growth in the console space, driven by the first full year of the new PlayStation and Xbox machines. Combined Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox sales were up 14% compared to the year before, GfK data shows (note, the 2020 data covers 53 weeks, while the 2021 figures cover 52 weeks).
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Xbox Series consoles were the third biggest platform group. The Series X variety accounted for 43% of all the Xbox Series consoles sold over the year, a figure that varied wildly over the weeks of 2021. For example, during the third quarter of the year (July - September) Series X was just 24% of the total sales, while in the final quarter (October - December), the X variety outsold the S (GfK figures).
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2021: ~3,360,000 units (up 14% YoY)
Switch #1 >1,200,000 units (down 19% YoY)
Ps5 #2 <1,200,000 units
Xbox Series #3 >800,000 units

2020: ~3,160,000 units (up 29.4% YoY)
Switch #1 >1,500,000 units (up 52.4% YoY)
Ps5 #2 >450,000 units
Ps4 #3 ~450,000 units (down 35.3% YoY)
Xbox Series #4 >310,000 units
Xbox One #5 <300,000 units (down 42.3% YoY)
PS5 and Xbox Series sold 800,000 consoles in the UK last year | GamesIndustry.biz
GI21_Whitepaper.pdf | DocDroid



Software
Although consoles grew, software declined. According to GSD, 35.8 million games were sold in 2021 (note: not all games publishers share digital sales, see full list below), which is down 16% over 2020.
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20.5 million games were downloaded last year (down 18% over 2020, up 43% on 2019), while 15.3 million games were bought physically (down 12.6% over 2020, and down 7% over 2019).
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GSD 2021 Top 25 Games (Digital + Physical)
PositionTitle
1FIFA 22 (EA) up 10.3% YoY
2Call of Duty: Vanguard (Activision Blizzard) down 36.1% YoY
3Grand Theft Auto 5 (Rockstar) down 23% YoY
4FIFA 21 (EA)
5Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Activision Blizzard)
6Red Dead Redemption 2 (Rockstar) down 5% YoY
7Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Sony)
8F1 2021 (EA/Codemasters)
9Far Cry 6 (Ubisoft)
10Assassin's Creed Valhalla (Ubisoft)
11Mario Kart 8: Deluxe (Nintendo)* down 20% YoY
12Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo)*
13Resident Evil Village (Capcom)
14Battlefield 2042 (EA)
15Minecraft: Switch Edition (Nintendo/Mojang)*
16Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (Nintendo)*
17Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege (Ubisoft)
18Mortal Kombat 11 (Warner Bros)
19LEGO Harry Potter Collection (Warner Bros)
20Pokémon Brilliant Diamond (Nintendo)*
21Minecraft (Mojang)
22Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (Square Enix)
23Just Dance 2022 (Ubisoft)
24NBA 2K21 (2K Games)
25The Crew 2 (Ubisoft)
* Digital data unavailable

GSD 2021 Top 10 Games (Physical)
PositionTitle
1FIFA 22 (EA)
2Call of Duty: Vanguard (Activision Blizzard)
3Mario Kart 8: Deluxe (Nintendo)
4Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo)
5Minecraft: Switch Edition (Nintendo/Mojang)
6Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (Nintendo)
7Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Sony)
8FIFA 21
9Pokémon Brilliant Diamond (Nintendo)
10Grand Theft Auto 5 (Rockstar)


GSD 2021 Top 10 Games (Digital)
PositionTitle
1FIFA 22 (EA)
2Grand Theft Auto 5 (Rockstar)
3Call of Duty: Vanguard (Activision Blizzard)
4Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Activision Blizzard)
5FIFA 21 (EA)
6Red Dead Redemption 2 (Rockstar)
7F1 2021 (EA/Codemasters)
8Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege (Ubisoft)
9Resident Evil Village (Capcom)
10Battlefield 2042 (EA)



Accessories
PositionTitle
1PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller - White (Sony)
2Xbox Wireless Controller - Carbon Black (Microsoft)
3Pulse 3D Wireless Headset for PS4/PS5 - White (Sony)
4PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller - Midnight Black (Sony)
5PS4 DualShock 4 Controller - Black (Sony)
6Xbox Wireless Controller - Robot White (Microsoft)
7Ear Force Recon 50X Headset Black (Turtle Beach)
8Ear Force Recon 50P Headset Black (Turtle Beach)
9DualSense Charging Station for PS5 (Sony))
10Ear Force Recon 70X Headset Black (Turtle Beach)



Source:
www.gamesindustry.biz

36 million games and 3.4 million consoles sold in the UK in 2021 | UK Annual Report

35.8 million digital and physical games, 3.36 million consoles and 10.6 million accessories were sold in the UK during …
www.gamesindustry.biz www.gamesindustry.biz
 
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Thanks for creating the thread and great OP. Quoting myself from the other thread:

My estimate based on this + monthly info we got:

Switch ~1.21M
PS5 ~1.19M
XBS ~0.90M
Others ~ 60k

Will be very close to actual given we know Switch rounds to 19% down YoY, that gives a ~1207k-1230k range for Switch this year.

LTD totals are now approximately: Switch 5.30M, PS5 1.64M, XBS 1.21M.

Last gen comparison:

XBS is now at ~1.21M after selling 0.90M in 2021. XB1 was at 1.47M after selling 1.07M in 2014. So XBS sold ~170k less than XB1 2014 and is now a total of ~260k behind.
PS5 is now at ~1.64M after selling ~1.19M in 2021. PS4 was at 1.84M after selling 1.26M in 2014. So PS5 sold ~70k less than PS4 2014 and is now a total of ~200k behind.

This is a pretty similar story to the US (up to December at least). They're both behind but PS5 is behind PS4 at bit less than XBS is behind XB1. Ratio last gen was 1.25:1 and this gen is 1.36:1. PS5 is relatively stronger in the UK.

Its pretty clear that Sony are shipping PS5 in pretty much the same proportions as they did PS4, sell through is about 11% behind PS4 in the UK now and worldwide will probably be similar.

XBS we know is ahead worldwide but is way behind in the UK (~18%), so Microsoft clearly don't mind at the moment to be losing ground in their stronger markets so they can get an early foot in the door in places where they had a disaster last gen, which is basically everywhere else.
 
Xevross said:
Thanks for creating the thread and great OP. Quoting myself from the other thread:

My estimate based on this + monthly info we got:

Switch ~1.21M
PS5 ~1.19M
XBS ~0.90M
Others ~ 60k

Will be very close to actual given we know Switch rounds to 19% down YoY, that gives a ~1207k-1230k range for Switch this year.

LTD totals are now approximately: Switch 5.30M, PS5 1.64M, XBS 1.21M.

Last gen comparison:

XBS is now at ~1.21M after selling 0.90M in 2021. XB1 was at 1.47M after selling 1.07M in 2014. So XBS sold ~170k less than XB1 2014 and is now a total of ~260k behind.
PS5 is now at ~1.64M after selling ~1.19M in 2021. PS4 was at 1.84M after selling 1.26M in 2014. So PS5 sold ~70k less than PS4 2014 and is now a total of ~200k behind.

This is a pretty similar story to the US (up to December at least). They're both behind but PS5 is behind PS4 at bit less than XBS is behind XB1. Ratio last gen was 1.25:1 and this gen is 1.36:1. PS5 is relatively stronger in the UK.

Its pretty clear that Sony are shipping PS5 in pretty much the same proportions as they did PS4, sell through is about 11% behind PS4 in the UK now and worldwide will probably be similar.

XBS we know is ahead worldwide but is way behind in the UK (~18%), so Microsoft clearly don't mind at the moment to be losing ground in their stronger markets so they can get an early foot in the door in places where they had a disaster last gen, which is basically everywhere else.
Click to expand...

I've got:
  • 1250k SW (-19%) ,
  • 800k XS, 310k 2020, Dec update 1 million so 700k+ a few weeks in Dec/Jan = 100k or so
  • 1200k PS5 (close to SW)
  • Other = 110k
 
Great OP!
Wow amazing sales all round, though with more stock i expect both ps5 and xbox would be ahead of their last gen counterparts.
Switch still selling great in its 5th year and as per Twitter , the second best year for the switch in UK and it managed to overcome a huge deficit during Christmas to take no. 1

F1 2021 is a big surprise, though given the championship battle in the real world this year and the Netflix show, it might not be.

Does anyone know where Pokemon would rank with both skus combined?
 
RedSerperior said:
Great OP!
Wow amazing sales all round, though with more stock i expect both ps5 and xbox would be ahead of their last gen counterparts.
Switch still selling great in its 5th year and as per Twitter , the second best year for the switch in UK and it managed to overcome a huge deficit during Christmas to take no. 1

F1 2021 is a big surprise, though given the championship battle in the real world this year and the Netflix show, it might not be.

Does anyone know where Pokemon would rank with both skus combined?
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#3 in the physical chart.
 
Switch did really good in the end huh. Still holding like crazy. I can see it maintain this or just have little decline when the software onslaught of 2022 happen there.
 
Xevross said:
Thanks for creating the thread and great OP. Quoting myself from the other thread:

My estimate based on this + monthly info we got:

Switch ~1.21M
PS5 ~1.19M
XBS ~0.90M
Others ~ 60k

Will be very close to actual given we know Switch rounds to 19% down YoY, that gives a ~1207k-1230k range for Switch this year.

LTD totals are now approximately: Switch 5.30M, PS5 1.64M, XBS 1.21M.

Last gen comparison:

XBS is now at ~1.21M after selling 0.90M in 2021. XB1 was at 1.47M after selling 1.07M in 2014. So XBS sold ~170k less than XB1 2014 and is now a total of ~260k behind.
PS5 is now at ~1.64M after selling ~1.19M in 2021. PS4 was at 1.84M after selling 1.26M in 2014. So PS5 sold ~70k less than PS4 2014 and is now a total of ~200k behind.

This is a pretty similar story to the US (up to December at least). They're both behind but PS5 is behind PS4 at bit less than XBS is behind XB1. Ratio last gen was 1.25:1 and this gen is 1.36:1. PS5 is relatively stronger in the UK.

Its pretty clear that Sony are shipping PS5 in pretty much the same proportions as they did PS4, sell through is about 11% behind PS4 in the UK now and worldwide will probably be similar.

XBS we know is ahead worldwide but is way behind in the UK (~18%), so Microsoft clearly don't mind at the moment to be losing ground in their stronger markets so they can get an early foot in the door in places where they had a disaster last gen, which is basically everywhere else.
Click to expand...

You are breathtaking
 
Awesome OP..also @Xevross ..thx for the numbers:)

Still incredible how good the Switch is selling...i wish, we would not have seen a lack on chips, to see the full selling potential of all three of the consoles!
 
ItsOKAY said:
Awesome OP..also @Xevross ..thx for the numbers:)

Still incredible how good the Switch is selling...i wish, we would not have seen a lack on chips, to see the full selling potential of all three of the consoles!
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Considering even Furukawa sends that warning. I think 2022 all the consoles is also going to suffer hard kek.
 
AruanaRiva said:
Considering even Furukawa sends that warning. I think 2022 all the consoles is also going to suffer hard kek.
Click to expand...
Absolutely. From a sales perspective it´s also ...interesting...sounds awkward..but it´s a crazy situation, where we cannot estimate anything really good.
 
Comfortably the Switch's 2nd biggest year is good news. The platform was definitely a slow burner here but 2020 and 2021 were excellent and make up for that I think. 2022 will probably continue the decline from 2020 but hopefully not by much.
 
Luminoth 4545 said:
From the data that we have from Famitsu and NPD i don't think Switch is hitting 11m for Q3, even 10.5m might be a stretch and i'm thinking around 10.25m. There is no way they are hitting 24m for the FY, wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo revised down again to 22.5m.
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I think its going to have a tough time getting above the 2018 figure of 9.4M, let alone 10/11M.
 
m051293 said:
I think its going to have a tough time getting above the 2018 figure of 9.4M, let alone 10/11M.
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I posted in the wrong thread ( thought this was NPD) but i think The Switch did better than 2018, October 2021 was so huge compared to 2018 and would easily offset the decline in Dec compared to 2018.
 
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Kresnik said:
Brilliant OP, thank you.

Small question: how can CoD Vanguard be down 36% YoY when it released last year? Is that just referring to down YoY compared to the previous year's CoD game?
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Yes, yearly installments are compared to the previous entry.
Games that were released before 2021 are compared to the prior year performance.
 
awng782 said:
Global holiday quarter shipments for Switch looks to be in the 10.0-10.5 millions unit range IMO.
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Holiday as usual is still nintendo biggest time. They can have more than half their yearly happening in just that 2 month time kek.
 
Phantom Thief said:
Do we know the breakdown for software sales by system?
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Rvq0avH.png
 
m051293 said:
I think its going to have a tough time getting above the 2018 figure of 9.4M, let alone 10/11M.
Click to expand...
I know its just estimates and not data but with todays NPD results Vgchartz adjusted their estimates for December and they have Switch selling 10.65m for Q3. in comparison to previous Q3's, 2017: VGC 6.79m - Shipped 7.23m, 2018: VGC 8.86m - Shipped 9.41m, 2019: VGC 10.03m - Shipped 10.81m, 2020 VGC 12.13m - Shipped 11.57m, 2021 VGC 10.65m - Shipped ???? So the most they've been under is 0.78m in 2019 and the most they've been over is 0.56m in 2020 so take from that what you will but i'm still thinking around 10.5m is probable.
 
Luminoth 4545 said:
I know its just estimates and not data but with todays NPD results Vgchartz adjusted their estimates for December and they have Switch selling 10.65m for Q3. in comparison to previous Q3's, 2017: VGC 6.79m - Shipped 7.23m, 2018: VGC 8.86m - Shipped 9.41m, 2019: VGC 10.03m - Shipped 10.81m, 2020 VGC 12.13m - Shipped 11.57m, 2021 VGC 10.65m - Shipped ???? So the most they've been under is 0.78m in 2019 and the most they've been over is 0.56m in 2020 so take from that what you will but i'm still thinking around 10.5m is probable.
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Yes but prior VGC figures are adjusted post-Nintendo Q3 release for their respective years, while the current year numbers are from before that point for 2021. But yeah, I think Oct + non-US Nov results were strong enough to keep it above the 10M threshold. My 9.4M dooming was weighting US Nov/Dec to greatly (and US is still unknown - our pre-leak estimates here often assume ASPs that are much higher than leaks end up confirming).
 
Switch sales in Europe during holiday 2021 look a good deal higher than during holiday 2018. That may make all the difference.

For example, in the UK, Switch sold ~600,000 units during the 2021 holiday quarter. By comparison, Switch sold ~850,000 units during the entirety of 2018.
 
Chris doesn't want to share PS5, Xbox Series and last gen YoY changes :/

To bad. Otherwise we would've actual numbers for pretty much anything
 
enpleinjour said:
Rvq0avH.png
Click to expand...

The fact that Switch is increasing despite the lack of ACNH is insane. And this year? It is also going to beat that 13.5m easily as well man.

Pokemon Arceus, BoTW 2, Splatoon 3 alone is already huge title release. And evergreen keep selling as well.
 
Phantom Thief said:
Thank you very much!

God damn PS4 was an utter beast
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That's what you get for having games unavailable on Switch in 2020 such as Valhalla, MLB 20, Persona 5 Royal, Spiderman, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Cyberpunk 2077, Resident Evil 3, Sakura Wars, Project Cars 3, Avengers, Kakarot, Granblue Fantasy Versus, Nioh2, Call of Duty Cold War, NHL 21, Trails of Cold Steel IV, Watch Dogs Legion.
You don't have competition with Xbox One in UK: it is Playstation 4 monopoly, you don't have where to run if you don't want PC. You can't buy those for Switch

Playstation without those is losing millions and millions in UK(worldwide actually), selling potentially less than Switch.
 
m051293 said:
Yes but prior VGC figures are adjusted post-Nintendo Q3 release for their respective years, while the current year numbers are from before that point for 2021. But yeah, I think Oct + non-US Nov results were strong enough to keep it above the 10M threshold. My 9.4M dooming was weighting US Nov/Dec to greatly (and US is still unknown - our pre-leak estimates here often assume ASPs that are much higher than leaks end up confirming).
Click to expand...
True, sometimes they are adjusted and sometimes they aren't, for example they estimated 3.87m for Q2 and Nintendo shipped 3.83m and they didn't adjust their numbers because it was so close and sell through versus shipped is always going to differ slightly. Their estimates have been far more accurate in recent years, and although they shouldn't be taken too seriously they give us a good guide for what we should expect.
 
Software sales
  • Index
    • Saving it here before it gets lost on discord
    Software Sales
    [2013] PlayStation 4 - 1,332,000 units
    [2014] PlayStation 4 - 6,754,000 units
    [2015] PlayStation 4 - 10,164,000 units
    [2016] PlayStation 4 - 10,665,000 units
    [2017] PlayStation 4 - 11,700,000 units
    [2018] PlayStation 4 - 10,600,000 units
    [2019] PlayStation 4 - 7,600,000 units
    [2020] PlayStation 4 - 7,300,000 units + 10,045,000 (digital)
     
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