U.S. video game content sales up 2% in May as non-mobile subscription spending surges

Total U.S. video game sales rose 1% year-over-year for the month of May, while sales figures so far this year were down 6%, according to a research report from Circana on Wednesday.

May sales came in at $4.05B compared with $4.03B for the same period last year.

The bulk of sales, as usual, was generated by game content, which rose 2% to $3.73B for the month. The growth was led by a 29% gain in non-mobile subscription spending when compared to May 2024.

Hardware sales were down 13% at $172M for the month, while accessory sales saw a 6% decline from the prior year to $154M.

So far this year, overall U.S. sales were $21.84B vs. $23.32B in 2024. Game content sales fell 5% to $19.76B, hardware sales declined 26% to $1.11B, while accessories sales fell 12% to $972M.

When looking closely at hardware numbers for the period from May 4 through May 31, Circana analyst Mat Piscatella noted that PlayStation 5 (NYSE:SONY) sales rose 3%, Xbox Series (NASDAQ:MSFT) spending declined by 30%, and Nintendo Switch (OTCPK:NTDOY) spending fell 44% year-on-year.

“PlayStation 5 was once again the best-selling hardware platform in both units and dollars, while the PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller in Midnight Black led all accessories in both measures,” Piscatella said.

Elden Ring: Nightrein (OTCPK:NCBDF) (OTCPK:NCBDY) was the best-selling game of the month and the 11th best-selling game of 2025 year-to-date. It was also the best-selling title across each of the PlayStation, Xbox, and aggregated PC storefront platforms.

The month’s top 10 mobile games by U.S. consumer spending: MONOPOLY GO!, Royal Match, Last War: Survival, Candy Crush Saga (NASDAQ:MSFT), Whiteout Survival, Township, Coin Master, Pokémon TCG Pocket, Evony, and Gossip Harbor: Merge & Story.

“Gossip Harbor: Merge & Story cracked the top 10 games by US mobile revenue last month at #9 and managed to stay in the top 10 this month. The game’s revenue has been steadily increasing since launch,” said Sam Aune, the gaming insight analyst at Sensor Tower.