The present day The NPD Group revealed the video game sales data for the month of December 2021, so we already have the information for all of last year. Last month, the Nintendo Switch was the console that sold the most units, although the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 tied for profits. But nevertheless, The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console of all of 2021, as well as the one with the most profits throughout the year.
As for video games, Call of Duty: Vanguard was the best-selling video game of the month, as well as the best-selling video game of the year on PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Thanks to this Call of Duty became the highest-earning video game franchise for the 13th year in a row, setting a new record. Halo: Infinite was the second best-selling game in December, as well as the best-selling video game on Xbox consoles during the same month.
Related: Microsoft is bringing as many Activision Blizzard games to Xbox Game Pass as it can.
The third best-selling game for December was Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl, which is also the best-selling Nintendo Switch game throughout the year. Plus, Pokemon revenue hit its highest point since 2000, so The Pokemon Company must be happy with the success of the franchise on Nintendo Switch. It should be noted that this only takes into account the sale of physical Pokémon video games and not digital sales or other official merchandise.
Other curious facts shared by Mat Piscatella (@MatPiscatella) of The NPD Group are the following: Dollar sales for the Resident Evil franchise reached its highest point in its history within the US; MLB The Show 21 is the best-selling baseball video game in history from United States; Seven video games from the Top 20 of the year were also in the Top 20 of 2020; Three games have been present in the Top 20 of 2019, marking three consecutive years: Mortal Kombat 11, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Read more: Phil Spencer: Xbox will implement an inclusive culture at Activision Blizzard.
The most incredible thing is that 19 video games of the Top 20 of the Nintendo Switch for 2021 were published by Nintendo, and the only third-party game that made the list was Monster Hunter Rise from Capcom. The other 19 are nintendo switch exclusives with the exception of Minecraft, although this game is published by the big N in the Switch version.
The 20 best-selling video games of December 2021 (All platforms):
- Call of Duty: Vanguard
- Halo: Infinity
- Pokémon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl
- Madden NFL 22
- Battlefield 2042
- mario kart 8
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Mario Party: Superstars
- NBA 2K22
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- FIFA 22
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate
- Minecraft
- far cry 6
- Just Dance 2022
- ForzaHorizon 5
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Super Mario 3D World
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
in the list of December’s top 20 best-selling video games in North America we can see 7 Nintendo games, while in the list of best-selling video games of the year there are 5 Nintendo Switch exclusives. These five exclusives are Pokémon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl in fourth place, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in seventh place, Super Mario 3D World in tenth place, Animal Crossing: New Horizons in 14th place, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in 17th place.
The 20 best-selling video games in 2021:
- Call of Duty: Vanguard
- Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War
- Madden NFL 22
- Pokémon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl
- Battlefield 2042
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- mario kart 8
- Resident Evil: Village
- MLB: The Show 21
- Super Mario 3D World
- far cry 6
- FIFA 22
- Minecraft
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- NBA 2K22
- Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate
- Back 4 Blood
- Mortal Kombat 11
- ForzaHorizon 5
What’s more: Activision Blizzard games are coming to mobile thanks to Xbox Cloud Gaming.
However, despite Nintendo’s success it is clear that Call of Duty remains the dominant franchise in North America, as the 2 best-selling games of 2021 are Vanguard and Black Ops: Cold War. This makes the news that Microsoft reached an agreement to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68 billion dollars, since it seems that Xbox wants to monopolize the best exclusives for its platform. However, Phil Spencer says that he has no intention of separating the communities and will continue to develop some games for PlayStation.