The yearlywarfare juggernaut just can’t be stopped.
What you need to know
- December 2020 NPD results are in.
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was the best-selling game of December 2020, followed by Cyberpunk 2077.
- The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console of December 2020 and the year overall.
Every month, NPD Group releases information on the best-selling games, game consoles and accessories across all video game platforms in the United States. While it doesn’t account for total worldwide sales, it does provide a nice look at one of the largest video game markets. Mat Piscatella, a fantastic analyst for NPD, has shared the results for December 2020.
December 2020 saw a total of $7.7 billion in sales, with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War retaining its spot at #1. Cyberpunk 2077, despite its launch woes and lack of digital tracking, debuted at the #2 spot, while Assassin’s Creed Valhalla falls into third place.
Here are the December 2020 results:
- Total sales: $7.7 billion, up 25% year-over-year.
- Video game accessories: $546 million, up 15% year-over-year.
- Video game hardware: $1.35 billion, up 38% year-over-year.
December 2020 NPD Here are the top 20 games sold in the U.S.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Cyberpunk 2077*
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Madden NFL 21
Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
NBA 2K21
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Super Mario 3D All-Stars*
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
Just Dance 2021
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity*
FIFA 21
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe*
Super Mario Odyssey*
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*
Super Mario Party*
Ring Fit Adventure
Mortal Kombat 11
- *Digital sales not included
December 2020 NPD Here are the best-selling games of August 2020 by platform:
December 2020 NPD PlayStation platforms
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Cyberpunk 2077
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Madden NFL 21
NBA 2K21
Ghost of Tsushima
FIFA 21
Immortals Fenyx Immortals
Demon’s Souls
December 2020 NPD Xbox platforms
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Cyberpunk 2077
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Madden NFL 21
NBA 2K21
Immortals Fenyx Rising
FIFA 21
Watch Dogs Legion
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Forza Horizon 4
December 2020 NPD Nintendo Switch
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Super Mario 3D All-Stars
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
Just Dance 2021
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
Super Mario Odyssey
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Super Mario Party
Here are the top 20 best-selling games of 2020 in the U.S:
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
Madden NFL 21
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
The Last of Us Part 2
Ghost of Tsushima
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
Super Mario 3D All-Stars*
Final Fantasy 7 Remake
Marvel’s Avengers
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
NBA 2K21
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
FIFA 21
Mortal Kombat 11
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
MLB: The Show 20
Cyberpunk 2077*
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2
That’s all we’ve got for this month’s report. For more information, be sure to check Piscatella’s thread here. You can also check out last month’s NPD report.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
- $70 at Best Buy
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War shakes things up with a campaign that delivers solid mechanical improvements. The multiplayer leaves a lot to be desired but things are improving with patches and now the big Season One content update.
PlayStation 5
- PlayStation 5: Everything we know so far
- PS5 vs. Xbox Series X: How they compare
- PS5 Specs: What’s in the next-gen PlayStation
- Will PS4 games work on the PlayStation 5?
