US physical game sales drop to lowest monthly total since 1995

US physical software sales fell to $85 million in July, the lowest monthly total since Circana began tracking in 1995.

Although Sony will stop producing physical software for new games starting January 2028, PlayStation represented 32% of consumer spending on new physical games. Nintendo platforms accounted for 63% of physical game spending.

Circana’s Mat Piscatella previously reported that seven PlayStation games have each sold over 100,000 physical units in the US to date, but only two games exceeded 10,000 units sold during the week ending July 11.

Hardware spending declined 29% year-over-year to $282 million, the lowest July total since 2020, when it reached $163 million.

Total hardware unit sales fell 39% year-over-year, while the average selling price rose 16% to $542 due to price increases for PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch consoles.

The record-breaking Switch 2 launch last June continues to influence hardware sales, along with ongoing RAM and component shortages.

“[This] has significantly impacted the selling rates of both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series, with a price hike for Nintendo Switch 2 hardware coming on September 1,” said Piscatella.

Hardware unit sales declined across all platforms: PS5 dropped 6%, Xbox Series 18%, and Switch 2 51%. Despite the sharp decline, Switch 2 led July in units sold, while PS5 led in revenue.

Circana noted that after 14 months in the market, the Switch is 11% ahead “of the time-aligned sales pace of the original Nintendo Switch.”

Total video game spending on content, hardware, and accessories fell 10% year-over-year to $4.5 billion in July, despite six new releases in the Top 10.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 led the July charts, driven by the launch of the PS4 and PS5 port. The first Black Ops also received a port and ranked 5th.

EA Sports College Football 27 ranked second in full-dollar sales. Circana noted that combining its sales with the EA Sports MVP Bundle (2026) would have placed it ahead of Black Ops 2.

Other new releases in July included Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag Resynced, Halo: Campaign Evolved, Splatoon Raiders, and Echoes of Aincrad: Sword Art Online.

Content spending declined 9% to $4.1 billion, mainly due to lower mobile spending. However, Pokémon Go rose to third place, with revenue up 230% month-over-month after its 10th anniversary celebrations.

AppMagic estimated that Pokémon Go generated over $48.5 million in in-app purchase revenue during its 10th anniversary week, which coincided with the Road to Legends event from July 6 to July 12.

The event featured rotating raids of legendary Pokémon, Ultra Beasts, Mega-Evolved Pokémon, and additional unlocks leading up to Pokémon Go Fest: Global.

Here are the projected top 10 best-selling games from the period of July 5 to August 8, 2026, data courtesy of Circana:

* Includes Digital Sales Projections