ChartSpot: May 2010

Yesterday, the NPD Group released its US retail sales recap for May, revealing a software sales column that contained bittersweet news. On the one hand, game sales grew 4 percent from a year prior to $466.3 million. On the other hand, that 4 percent climb was substantially below analysts' expectations of double-digit gains.

The top performer for the month was Take-Two's Red Dead Redemption, which combined to sell more than 1.5 million units on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Other games fared worse than expected, as Super Mario Galaxy 2 shifted just 563,900 units during the month and UFC 2010 lived up to downplayed expectations, selling just over 400,000 units on Microsoft's and Sony's consoles.

Today, NPD offered an expanded look at May's software sales charts, revealing the fate of two of the more high-profile releases during the month that failed to crack the top 10. Capcom's Lost Planet 2, which received a critical drubbing following its May 11 launch, managed an 11th-place finish on the Xbox 360, though the PS3 version failed to make the top 20. United Front Games' PS3-exclusive ModNation Racers also turned in a lackadaisical performance, moving into the top 20 at 18th.

Notably, April's chart-topping Xbox 360-exclusive Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction failed to surface in the top 20. However, a handful of other top performers from last month did, including Pokemon HeartGold (13th), God of War III (14th), Just Dance (15th), Super Street Fighter IV (17th), and Wii Sports Resort (20th).

TOP 20 US NON-PC GAMES - MAY 2010
RANK / LAST MONTH / TITLE / PLATFORM / PUBLISHER / RELEASE DATE / SALES*
** / 1 / Red Dead Redemption / X360 / Take-Two / May-10 / 945,900
** / 2 / Red Dead Redemption / PS3 / Take-Two / May-10 / 567,100
** / 3 / Super Mario Galaxy 2 / Wii / Nintendo / May-10 / 563,900
** / 4 / UFC 2010: Undisputed 2010 / X360 / THQ / May-10 / 221,100
** / 5 / UFC 2010: Undisputed 2010 / PS3 / THQ / May-10 / 192,300
8 / 6 / Wii Fit Plus w/ Balance Board / Wii / Nintendo / Oct-09
3 / 7 / New Super Mario Bros. Wii / Wii / Nintendo / Nov-09
** / 8 / Alan Wake / X360 / Microsoft / May-10
2 / 9 / Pokemon SoulSilver / DS / Nintendo / Mar-10
** / 10 / Skate 3 / X360 / EA / May-10
** / 11 / Lost Planet 2 / X360 / Capcom / May-10
13 / 12 / New Super Mario Bros. / DS / Nintendo / May-06
4 / 13 / Pokemon HeartGold / DS / Nintendo / Mar-10
5 / 14 / God of War III / PS3 / Sony / Mar-10
9 / 15 / Just Dance / Wii / Ubisoft / Nov-09
18 / 16 / Mario Kart Wii w/ Wheel / Wii / Nintendo / Apr-08
10 / 17 / Super Street Fighter IV / PS3 / Capcom / Apr-10
** / 18 / ModNation Racers / PS3 / Sony / May-10
16 / 19 / Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 / X360 / Activision Blizzard / Nov-09
6 / 20 / Wii Sports Resort / Wii / Nintendo / Jul-09

* = Sales only available for top 10 SKUs