The latest NPD numbers are out for video game sales in the U.S. during March 2016. While Sony's PlayStation 4 was once again the number one best selling console in terms of both hardware and software for the month, that didn't stop Microsoft from hyping up some of its Xbox One highlights in March.
GamesIndustry.biz reports that, according to Mike Nichols, corporate vice president, Xbox Marketing at Microsoft, the total number of hours worldwide that Xbox One owners spent on gaming went up 89% in March 2016 compared to a year ago. He added:
"''Killer Instinct: Season 3' has seen record engagement across Xbox One and Windows 10 since it launched on March 29, making March the best month ever for the franchise with more than 6 million unique players. Last week, on April 5, we launched 'Quantum Break' to critical acclaim and it became the best-selling Xbox game around the world, and is now the biggest-selling new Microsoft Studios published IP this generation. We can't thank our fans enough for their continued support and we're looking forward to bringing more unprecedented experiences on Xbox One, Windows 10 and Xbox Live later this year."
Microsoft lowered the price of the Xbox One by $50 late in March, with the lowest price for the console currently set at $299. This limited promotion is scheduled to end on April 30.
For the overall U.S. video game sales results in March, NPD stated that combined hardware, software and accessories sales were $968.4 million. Those numbers are nearly the same compared to March 2015, which had $968.1 million in video game sales in the U.S. Ubisoft's MMO shooter The Division was the number one selling game in the U.S. in March 2016, followed by another Ubisoft game, Far Cry Primal. Nintendo's Wii U game The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD was the third best selling game for March, followed by Grand Theft Auto V and UFC 2.
