Best-Selling Games And Consoles Of October 2020 Revealed, And No. 1 Game Is A Surprise (US)

The NPD Group has published its latest monthly sales report, revealing which games and consoles sold the best in the United States during October 2020.

Starting with games, FIFA 21 was the top-seller of the month. This is a big event, as it marked the first time in NPD's history that a FIFA game was No. 1 in the US in October. Last year, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare was October's best-seller due to its earlier-than-usual release date.

Madden NFL 21, Watch Dogs: Legion, NHL 21, and Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit rounded out the top five best-selling games in the US during October 2020.

Watch Dogs: Legion might have finished higher if not for the fact that it launched with just three days to go during the October tracking period. Another notable fact is that NHL 21's launch-month dollar sales were the best for the NHL series since 2015's NHL 16.

Also of note is that Nintendo dominated again, with nine of the top 20 games of the month having been published by Nintendo.

Moving to hardware, the Nintendo Switch was yet again the top-seller during October 2019. Its dollar sales during the month set a new October hardware sales record for the US, surpassing the previous record from the Nintendo Wii in October 2008.

The Switch is dominating, as it's now been the best-selling console in the US for 23 straight months.

Hardware spending overall in October 2020 reached $259 million, which is up 41 percent thanks to growth in the Nintendo Switch. The Xbox One and PS4 experienced declines, which was expected given the age of those consoles and the arrival of next-gen platforms.

Across games, consoles, and accessories, total spending on video games in the US amounted to $3.8 billion for October 2020, which is up 14 percent.

October 2020 US Video Game Sales

*Digital sales not included

1. FIFA 21
2. Madden NFL 21
3. Watch Dogs: Legion
4. NHL 21
5. Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
6. Super Mario 3D All-Stars*
7. Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
8. Star Wars: Squadrons
9. Call of Duty: ModernWarfare
10. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
11. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
12. Ghost of Tsushima
13. NBA 2K21*
14. Marvel's Avengers
15. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
16. Ring Fit Adventure
17. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*
18. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2
19. Super Mario Party*
20. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe*