Xbox 360 best-selling console in July

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 13 August, 2010

For the first time since Halo 3 launch.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 outsold Nintendo and Sony hardware in the US in July, according to sales data from NPD.

It was the first time the Xbox 360 was the best-selling console in the US since the launch of Bungie's Halo 3 in September 2007.

Sales of the Xbox 360, which more than doubled to 443,500 units, were driven by the release of the new Xbox 360 slim model and price cuts on older models.

The DS was second with 398,400 units and the Wii third with 253,900 units.

The PS3 followed with 214,500 units sold – an increase of 76 percent - and the PSP brought up the rear with just 84,000 units sold. Time for that PSP2, Sony?

Overall hardware sales in the US increased 12 per cent last month.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (74) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Vice.Destroyer #1 2 years ago

    After having been able to try out the PS3 Move doodah, I don't doubt that the PS3 will be on top of the sales tree, come November NPD sales. It really is everything that Kinect is, minus nearly £100, and something to hold. And crucially, games I'd actually like to play. And able to be used whilst sitting down.

  • Dizzy #2 2 years ago

    I guess the 360 will be cruising on high sales until XMas. Looks like that "slim" was well timed.

  • iwantmynameuk #3 2 years ago

    urrr.move isn`t £100 cheaper than kinect. you can buy it that much cheaper in seperate pieces but each piece is pretty useless on its on.
    Edited by iwantmynameuk at 13/08/10 @ 08:23

  • 52pickup #4 2 years ago

    @paddy29

    Can't see MS winning that month with a Eyetoy rip-off.

    See we can all make petty child like comments.

  • woodnotes #5 2 years ago

    I don't think Kinect will be the flop everyone is expecting, nor will it be the success that MS is expecting.

  • woodnotes #6 2 years ago

    "Come November Halo Reach will have been released, cant see Sony winning that month with a Wii rip-off."

    Sony will have GT5 that month.

  • Charlie_Miso #7 2 years ago

    Can't see Nintendo winning Christmas with a Wii rip-off

  • Vice.Destroyer #8 2 years ago

    @paddy29
    SDF, I am not. Check my profile and see what console I have. Personally speaking, I think that Halo-fatigue has caught up to the gaming world..

    @iwantmynameuk
    I should really prep my posts for pedants. Okay, how about "Move is significantly cheaper than Kinect, if you are a gamer that will primarily use it as a single player expeience or play it over PSN". Better?

  • Widge #9 2 years ago

    I would probably get Reach :(

  • Ryze #10 2 years ago

    I'd buy Halo Reach... if it supported PlayStation Move.

  • BAM! #11 2 years ago

    Never thought I'd see Vice.Destroyer labelled SDF. Seems anybody who doesn't like the look of Kinect is SDF these days :D

  • Vice.Destroyer #12 2 years ago

    Ain't that the truth, BAM! I mean, I would actually enjoy trying out stuff like SOCOM 4, Heavy Rain Move Edition, Time Crisis Razing Storm (which I have actually seen being played, and it is very good), rather than Kinect Sports, Kinectimals, Kinect Joy Ride, Dance Central and Kinect Adventures.

  • iwantmynameuk #13 2 years ago

    much better vice.destroyer :) can someone tell me what SDF is or stands for please?

    thanks goodfella :) right i`ll try put it into use to understand. to quote the poster a few posts above:

    "Never thought I'd see Vice.Destroyer labelled Slightly Disturbing Ferret. Seems anybody who doesn't like the look of Kinect is Slightly Disturbing Ferret these days :D"

    Edited by iwantmynameuk at 13/08/10 @ 09:14

  • Goodfella #14 2 years ago

    Slightly Disturbing Ferret.

  • SaberEdge #15 2 years ago

    Well yes the 360 was the best selling home console in July by a long shot. It sold almost as much as the Wii and the PS3 combined.
    But in general all the consoles are doing well this generation and we should all be happy about that.

  • NotSoSlim #16 2 years ago

    Revision came at right time as did the price cut of older models. Sony have had year on year increase ever since price cut last year so they will be happy and the Wii is the Wii just never ending.

    Will Reach sell consoles or will it be existing owners buying it?

  • SaberEdge #17 2 years ago

    Oh I also wanted to point out that the whole "for the first time since Halo 3 launch" isn't as negative as some might assume. With the Wii and the DS selling as good as they did for so long neither the 360 nor the PS3 were the best selling console very often. In fact, I'm not sure if the PS3 was ever the best selling console, but I do think it might have been the top selling console one time after the launch of the redesigned PS3 slim. Can anybody confirm that?

  • BAM! #18 2 years ago

    Scholarly Discerning Folk

  • Negotiator #19 2 years ago

    Not good news for Sony, since the new Xbox released Xbox has been selling by the truck load. With Halo releasing next month its gonna be hard times for Sony. Sony hasn't got the big blockbuster game releasing this year to drive sales, and GT5 is not it, Halo is bigger than Star Wars now and Sony has no franchise to match it.

  • darkmorgado #20 2 years ago

    After having been able to try out the PS3 Move doodah, I don't doubt that the PS3 will be on top of the sales tree, come November NPD sales. It really is everything that Kinect is, minus nearly £100

    Well MOVE will cost me around £100 if I want it for just single-player games. If I want to play it with some mates, then it sails past the price of Kinect easily. Just because Sony have done a good job of hiding the true price of it by breaking it down into component parts, doesn't make it cheap.

  • drumbaby #21 2 years ago

    "Seems anybody who doesn't like the look of Kinect is SDF these days "

    Sensibly Dismissive of Flops?

  • NotSoSlim #22 2 years ago

    Someone please tell me when Gran Turismo was not a console seller? I guess the nearly 5million sales for a glorified demo mean nothing? I guess the fact the game sells better in Japan and the UK means nothing? Point still stands, will new customers buy a 360 for Reach?

    Also single player move is £75 rrp and i have not seen Sony hide anything as they clarified the pricing a couple of weeks back.
    Edited by NotSoSlim at 13/08/10 @ 09:31

  • RodHull #23 2 years ago

    I'm quite looking forward to Kinect, the video showing that you can hoduken bowling balls in Kinect Sports sold it for me.

  • presh #24 2 years ago

    Will Halo Reach actually sell consoles though? Same with GT5 - these games really are only meaningful if you've played the others... Halo 3 was a system seller as it was early in the cycle. These games may prompt an upgrade, but I would have thought that something new and unique is what Joe Public will buy a console for these days.

    Anyone know if MW2 created big swings in console sales?

  • NotSoSlim #25 2 years ago

    @paddy

    I know that but to say Gran Turismo wont drive sales is delusional regardless of which machine you prefer.

  • hypoBla5t #26 2 years ago

    Halol Reacharound

  • NotSoSlim #27 2 years ago

    @Paddy

    I know you didnt :o) and of course Halo is bigger than Move. September will see Move v Halo but Novemeber will see GT5 v Kinect. Funny how it all worked out
    Edited by NotSoSlim at 13/08/10 @ 09:34

  • Vice.Destroyer #28 2 years ago

    @NotSoSlim
    £75 for the single player Move experience? Is that including a game? Or just the camera and controller as sold by GAME for £49.99?

    I am sure that I have misunderstood something fundamental. Camera, controller, what else is needed for the single player experience?

  • muscleblade #29 2 years ago

    @Vice.Destroyer

    LOL! You made my day.

  • NotSoSlim #30 2 years ago

    @Vice Destroyer

    Sub-controller which i know is optional but to get the supposed complete experience. However someone stating £100 for the single player experience is either misinformed or just plain lying

  • swissorc #31 2 years ago

    I would buy a new 360 if it wasn't for two reasons.

    1) To date I have spent £700 on two xbox's with bundles, one Pro with two games in 2006 and one elite with two games in 2008.

    2) the new xbox wasn't so tacky.

    In conclusion I refuse to spend any more on microsoft hardware this gen if anything I would buy a PS3 but I barely have the time for a 360 and a wii. Therefore, I just don't have time to do a third console justice.

  • Emmit_Assassin #32 2 years ago

    Nice to see the 360 back where it belongs.
    I think this xmas will be a good time for MS and Sony. I reckon Kinect will do alright, not stellar, but make an imapct. Move wil prove popular with existing PS3 owners, but I don't think it will entice new buyers. Nintendo haven't got anything lined up, so I think both Xbox360 and the PS3 will go back to number one and two where they belong. I think the 360 will stay top though, with PS3 at 2.
    If Nintendo had pushed out the next Wii at xmas, it would have wiped the floor with both and both Move and Kinect would be massive flops. Lets hope they can both get a decent customer base and decent games out by the time Nintendo releases its next behemoth.
    We all ridiculed Nintendo and Wii before launch and look where that got us.

  • Monkey_Puncher #33 2 years ago

    Neither of the motion controller are going to drive sales because they're post last minute trash to try and cash in on the Wii success story, which is already waning.

    Games is what sell consoles, not stupid over priced motion tech.

  • schnide #34 2 years ago

    Sony Defense Force, perchance?

  • miiiguel #35 2 years ago

    And crucially, games I'd actually like to play

    I also used to believe I was the center of world. Good times. Enjoy.

  • Petulant_Radish #36 2 years ago

    Maybe using ‘SDF’ and ‘XBOT’ means you’re a pathetic loser who sits in their pants drinking milk all day masturbating sporadically over a limited edition of Takeshi’s Challenge.

  • Yossarian #37 2 years ago

    "Come November Halo Reach will have been released, cant see Sony winning that month with a Wii rip-off."

    Sony will have GT5 that month.

    Well, Reach is actually releasing in September, so I think it'll be okay.

  • Old_Books #38 2 years ago

    "Halo is bigger than Star Wars now..."

    I'm a big fan of the Halo games and find Star Wars a bit meh but, man, you are on crack.

  • Vice.Destroyer #39 2 years ago

    @miiiguel
    All my comments are written with the caveat of being only my opinion. I don't presume to speak for the entire games buying public. I accept that I may be spectacularly wrong in calling Kinect out as a failure before it has been released.

    But tell me, as a gamer of (presumably) my age group, 30+, given the choice of the announced Kinect games and Move games, which would you prefer to play?

  • TopKatt #40 2 years ago

    "Maybe using ‘SDF’ and ‘XBOT’ means you’re a pathetic loser who sits in their pants drinking milk all day masturbating sporadically over a limited edition of Takeshi’s Challenge."

    And saying "Aaaaaaah Bisto" at the moment of climax.

  • ignatiusjreilly #41 2 years ago

    What's wrong with drinking milk? :(

  • abcd #42 2 years ago

    Nintendo need to release a new hat for the wii. It's the only way to win Christmas.

  • TAPNGO #43 2 years ago

    looks like the casual gamers of the wii are starting to upgrade to HD. the ps3 numbers are not as bad as they look, it is hard to find a ps3 on shelves in the US. the 360 has the normal spike when you release new hardware.

  • Gromit #44 2 years ago

    @Ryze
    "I'd buy Halo Reach... if it supported PlayStation Move. "

    Don't worry - Bungies now multi-format releases probably will.
    (maybe the person who disagreed with this would care to say why?)

    Edited by Gromit at 13/08/10 @ 11:12

  • Dizzy #45 2 years ago

    "But tell me, as a gamer of (presumably) my age group, 30+, given the choice of the announced Kinect games and Move games, which would you prefer to play? "

    Well Kinect obviously if you have young kids and if not, stick to a controller.
    Edited by Dizzy at 13/08/10 @ 11:13

  • telboy007 #46 2 years ago

    Takeshi's Challenge? Think you'll find it is Takeshi's Castle, or they done a sequel now?

    Oh 360 4tw whoo yeah, whoo!

    Edit: ahem, yeah well...
    Edited by telboy007 at 13/08/10 @ 14:10

  • M_of_the_sys #47 2 years ago

    "Takeshi's Challenge? Think you'll find it is Takehi's Castle, or they done a sequel now?"

    Correction FAIL. :p

  • Britesparc Verified Creative, ITV #48 2 years ago

    @Vice.Destroyer: out of the party games released (eg Kinect Sports vs World of Sports) I'd rather play Kinect, as it's a new experience instead of "just" a more precise Wii. Having said that, obviously Sony have announced more "conventional" games (eg Sorcery) that do look really good.

    But unlike 99% of EG-ers, I really enjoy "casual" games and mini-games and the like, as well as shorter, more family-oriented experiences.

  • Fab4 #49 2 years ago

    If they are anything like me, they are sales of 360s as replacements for the ones that packed in during the hot summer. That would have been my 2nd one to have died outside of the warranty.

  • Petulant_Radish #50 2 years ago

    Beat Takeshi has had his sadistic fingers in many more entertainment pies than Takeshi’s Castle. A simple search on the internet would have helped you not look like a buffoon covered in jam at a wasps birthday party Mr Tellboy.

  • BritishBlue1 #51 2 years ago

    Hehe, one of the UK 360 sales were mine. :)

    I bought the new slim with Mass Effect 2 and Halo: ODST. I was also keen to buy one because Halo: Reach is due out soon, Bungie's swan song as far as Halo is concerned.

  • Machiavellian #52 2 years ago

    I should really prep my posts for pedants. Okay, how about "Move is significantly cheaper than Kinect, if you are a gamer that will primarily use it as a single player expeience or play it over PSN". Better?

    Thinking this way, then Move probably will sell more than Kinect but moving more consoles is something different. It appeals to the current customer base but does it capture new audience to the PS3 would be the big question.

  • beastmaster #53 2 years ago

    You all forgetting 3DS? If Ninty knock £40 off the Wii then Ninty will have things sown up.

  • Machiavellian #54 2 years ago

    All my comments are written with the caveat of being only my opinion. I don't presume to speak for the entire games buying public. I accept that I may be spectacularly wrong in calling Kinect out as a failure before it has been released.

    But tell me, as a gamer of (presumably) my age group, 30+, given the choice of the announced Kinect games and Move games, which would you prefer to play?

    I will ask you Vice are you single. Single men (assuming) do not make up the new gaming public. Kinect release games do not hit your spot and it doesn't hit mine as well but I can say it hits the spot for my wife and kids. KinectAnimals hit the perfect spot for my 2 and 4 year old. Kinect Adventure and sports actually hit the spot for my 12 year old including Dace Central which is making him crazy in anticipation. The Fitness game has sparked my wife eye and she is really interested in seeing how that game develop.

    None of those games interest me in the least but since I have a family Kinect hits the spot for them and will be the reason I purchase it. If the games all turn out to be fun, I can see other families getting it because I have friends who have families and just like the Wii could spark sells on word of mouth and gameplay.

    I will also be getting Move because I have a PS3 eye so I only need one controller so no big deal for me. None of the games mention so far interest me with move but buying another controller isn't going to kill my pockets
    Edited by Machiavellian at 13/08/10 @ 12:36

  • ignatiusjreilly #55 2 years ago

    None of the games mention so far interest me with move but buying another controller isn't going to kill my pockets

    None of the Move games interest you but you'll buy it anyway? And each of member of your family is eagerly anticipating a different Kinect game?

    Vice might not make up the "new gaming public", but it sounds like you are pretty much the industry's dream customer ;)

  • JBlokeUK #56 2 years ago

    Someone earlier in the comments said that Sony has nothing to match Halo? That actually made me laugh out loud.

  • Vice.Destroyer #57 2 years ago

    @macchiavellian
    I am not a family man like you. Just got a live-in girlfriend. And you have given me a viewpoint I haven't considered before. I haven't had a chance to ask pre-teens what they thought of Kinect. And I guess that is where the sales will come from. Nintendo always aimed their stuff at that market and it always paid off. Let's see if it happens again.

  • spudsbuckley #58 2 years ago

    I love GT and all but it is going to get it's ass handed to it by Halol 4. Driving games don't sell for shit any more.

    Also, both Kinect and Move will absolutely fly off the shelves.

  • mrStones #59 2 years ago

    "i have a fat wife and children who sag the floorboards"

    only reason i could see someone shelling out for kinect ;)

  • Machiavellian #60 2 years ago

    None of the Move games interest you but you'll buy it anyway? And each of member of your family is eagerly anticipating a different Kinect game?

    Yeah, each person is looking forward to a kinect game because they watched those awful family commercials with me. I downloaded the commercial and I was watching them on my TV. My 2 and 4 year old went crazy looking at the kinectAnimals. My older son saw the dance central and was very interested because he felt that it will teach him some good dance moves for the girls and it looked fun. He also thought Adventure looked like a lot of fun.

    I have a Wii so no one was really all that sparked about the Move because nothing really separated itself from the same experience they have with the Wii. Higher graphics really did not make my son long for the move and nothing shone made my younger kids even stay around to watch those trailers. There was no equivalent to the exercise game for move so no interest for my wife. I actually was going to get the Wii Fitness for my wife this Christmas but after seeing the kinect equivalent, she is interested in seeing how that compares.

    As for me buying the move controller, well I do not have to purchase an Eye. I consider it like my purchase of the DS3 controller. I only purchased it for rumble. I am getting the move controller because of true motion. I did not state when i will be getting the move controller, it will not be on release since i will not have a game that uses it but I probably will get it when LittleBigPlanet2 is released. I did not enjoy the first game that much but my older son did, maybe using the move controller will make the game more enjoyable for me.

  • barkertron #61 2 years ago

    Worth bearing in mind that these numbers are from NPD, so US only, which is the 360's strongest market. A shame that we can't have similarly reliable figures for the rest of the world (there's apparently a hell of a lot wrong with the methods used by Vgchartz, so they're not a decent substitute).

    Also, it's incredibly sad that you can't express an opinion one way or another on a story like this without being branded an Xbot, SDF, fanboy or whatever term does it for you. It's seriously boring.

  • Machiavellian #62 2 years ago

    When I see comments about Kinect and move on this site, I really get an understanding of the demographics. If I was single, Move is definitely the only choice. It appeals to the already existing games on the PS3 which is great.

    The fact that I have a family now changes the way I think when I buy games or even hardware. The games that appeal to my family is totally different from what I like.

    I believe this is the reason that most core gamers cannot predict the casual environment because it is alien to their way of thinking. Take my son, who is 12. As most have no interest in kinect adventure on this site, I showed him that family happy video that makes you cringed and his eyes got all big about what he saw as more fun then his wii. The Wii allowed you to get into a game with the motion controller but Kinect lets you get your whole body into a game and this appealed alot to him. The raft game and the cart where Kinect maps your movement with your avatar was the bomb in his eyes. Even funnier when his friend came over, he asked me to show that video to her and she was all gun ho. It so happens that her dad was over and he was watching the video. They do not have a 360 but after that video he actually mentioned that he might pick one up with kinect. He asked me where to find the video so he can show his wife.

    This is just the limited experience I have with people I know who do not game and suddenly their interest is piqued. I do not know how well kinect will sell or even if it will not be a flop, but what I do know is that its fun from my experience with the Macy demo and that those cringe worthy commercials work. If my really put their marketing muscle behind Kinect like I believe they will. It probably will bring new consumers to the 360.

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #63 2 years ago

    I agree with Machiavellian. Whereas my wife and son wanted a Wii purely based on the fact that everyone else had one (??) they've seen footage of Kinect and decided themselves that they want it. My 4yo daughter wants kinectimals, my 6yo son pretty much likes the look of all of it and my wife wants the fitness games that actually look usefull for a change. Add to that that I wouldn't mind a game of Eden or Dance Central and it looks like I'll be getting one of these now. :(

    Pretty sure none of them give a fuck about how many milliseconds lag there is and if they can sit down or not.




  • ronuds #64 2 years ago

    360 selling well really drives you lot crazy, innit? How in tarnations does a story about NPDs for July turn into a Kinect vs. Move battle?

    Can't we just agree that Kinect isn't for most of the people on this forum? To judge it based on that is ridiculous and it's probably becoming one of the most annoying things about the EG comments section.
    Edited by ronuds at 13/08/10 @ 13:42

  • ignatiusjreilly #65 2 years ago

    There are many people that understand the target audience and still think it won't be a big success. Could be wrong, could be right, but nothing wrong with speculating :)

  • MilkYMoO #66 2 years ago

    The new 4 gig 360 arcade, will more than likely boost sales even further after it launches.

  • Vice.Destroyer #67 2 years ago

    Don't be like that, ronuds. I think this is actually a really civil discussion today. Granted, it has morphed a little from the original article, but speculating what the future NPD's will look like after the release of Kinect and Move is actually quite valid, isn't it?

  • darkmorgado #68 2 years ago

    oh god, mickey's here. Cue another load of incoherent rambling that wouldn't be out of place coming from an Alzheimer's patient.

    By the way, is mickey2010 the same as Android2010? Because they both post similar bollocks and have similar names.

  • darkmorgado #69 2 years ago

    all that sony really have left in the possible hardware shifting games dept is gran torismo

    ...and Killzone 3, LittleBigPlanet2, Resistance 3, Infamous 2, The Last Guardian, FF13 Versus, and whatever that new secret project is that studio Liverpool are working on. While the games might not be to your taste, they are all potential system sellers.

  • Penguinzoot #70 2 years ago

    Cue another load of incoherent rambling that wouldn't be out of place coming from an Alzheimer's patient

    Hey! My dad's got Alzheimer's, and he doesn't ramble incoherently like that! :/ He still talks bollocks though ..... :(

  • Calgon #71 2 years ago

    Hmmm if I'm being fair I'd say although neither Kinect or Move look anywhere near must have for my own tastes as it stands at the moment, once they are both out there I think they will both have moderate success, longterm they will both have to try alot harder to sway the majority of hardcore gamers(or shall I see 16-30 single males) who aren't bandwagon jumping fanboys. Sorry SDF'ers but come on Move doesnt look like the asking price to me either(looking a better deal simply for being cheaper if you already have a PS3 I'll give it that much, Kinect is too expensive even after they downgraded it) certainly not gonna sell many people on buying a PS3 to go with it, if you already have a PS3 that's a little better but still... meh so far of the announced support and actual games.

    Having said all that though I think Move will sell to a portion of the existing PS3 fanbase, perhaps a few new customers but nowhere near Wii levels, Kinect if marketed right will sell to exactly who it looks like MS are aiming for at launch(personally I think they did it the wrong way round *hardcore first imo then casual* but we'll see) but not near Wii levels either at that price, sales will come from existing 360 owners who are married with children ect and new casuals(fitness and dance games could be a winner with the female population but again only those who can justify the high price).

    Im actually most interested in what MS do come up with for the Hardcore after the first year, simply because I give MS credit for taking the biggest risk(those claiming the move is SEGA-like are only complementing MS IMO, it was one of the things I respected SEGA for most) and being the most unique... which could either make or break Kinect on that principle. By that I mean in a year or so's time either Kinect will sway the hardcore with content is unique and compelling(AAA) or we will find devs just couldn't make it work as well for hardcore games(lack of imagination or lack of accuracy after MS downgraded alot of the specs).

    It will be interesting but whether Kinect is a hit or just fizzles out with moderate casual market success, I dont really think its that important as it wouldnt change much for the hardcore, so its win-win really either they like it and it offers something new or they dont and it goes back to business as usual... whats all the fuss about?
    Edited by Calgon at 13/08/10 @ 18:38

  • ronuds #72 2 years ago

    @Vice.Destroyer

    Sorry for "being like that." :p

    I had read through maybe 20 comments or so and it was the same rubbish Kinect bashing I've been seeing constantly for the last couple months. After reading a bit further now, I see that there was a lot of reasonable conversation sprinkled in between. :)

  • fknetwork #73 2 years ago

    People thinking GT5 will be out in November are having a laugh, I will put money on it being delayed until next year just like it has for t he last 4 years, mark my words, "GT5 delayed until 2011"

  • Basoy #74 2 years ago

    Even though Wii saw the release of Wii Sports Resort last year, the Wii has sold more units this July versus July 2009.

    It is also worth comparing July's Xbox 360 hardware sales to July's Xbox 360 software sales. When you do that, it looks like all that has happened is people are buying a second Xbox 360.
    Edited by Basoy at 15/08/10 @ 15:10