No Consoles on Santa's Sleigh: Video Game Hardware Sales Sink to Historic Low in November

Video game hardware sales in the United States experienced a significant decline in November, reaching the lowest point for the month since 2005. Apparently, Sony’s PlayStation, Microsoft’s Xbox, and Nintendo’s Switch are not on Santa’s list this year.

The Verge reports that the video game industry in the United States faced a challenging November as hardware sales plummeted to historic lows. According to market analyst company Circana, spending on video game hardware during the month totaled $695 million, a staggering 27 percent drop compared to the same period last year. This marks the lowest video game hardware spending for a November month since 2005, when sales reached just $455 million.

In terms of units sold, the situation was equally bleak. Circana reported that only 1.6 million units of hardware were sold in the US in November, the lowest total for the month since 1995, when 1.4 million units were purchased.

Several factors contributed to this decline, with the rising costs of consoles being a significant issue. Both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles celebrated their fifth anniversaries in November, but consumers looking to purchase these systems brand new were faced with higher prices due to price hikes implemented earlier in the year. These increases led to an “all-time November high” for the average price paid for a new unit of video game hardware, reaching $439 — an 11 percent increase from 2024. In comparison, the average price in November 2019 was just $235.

Another issue is the lack of blockbuster games that drive console sales, a similar problem to Hollywood. As Breitbart News previously reported, the gaming industry has struggled for years with woke games and LGBT characters that no one asked for shoehorned into games of all types. True blockbuster titled like Grand Theft Auto 6 continue to face massive delays, giving consumers a reason to hold off on purchases.

Despite the overall decline, the PlayStation 5 emerged as the month’s best-selling hardware in both units and dollars, a feat it achieved for the first time since the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2. The Switch 2 claimed the second spot in both units and dollars, while the Nex Playground ranked third in terms of units sold. However, the Xbox Series consoles managed to secure the third position in dollars.