A new NPD report suggests that FromSoftware's Elden Ring will finish the year as the world's best-selling video game, marking just the third time since 2009 in which that title will go to a game outside the Call of Duty franchise.
Other highlights from the report indicate that, as with last year, video game sales across the board will decline. One of the reasons given is the industry's inability to meet the demand of its player base in supplying both new consoles and games as a result of COVID-19-related supply chain issues.
A handful of games that are still to come out are projected to finish the year inside the top 10 best-selling games, including God of War: Ragnarok, Pokémon Scarlet/Violet, Madden NFL 23, and NBA 2K23. These games should still provide the industry with plenty of cash, especially come the holiday season, when many of these games will either see release or receive their first sale markdown.
Additionally, despite Elden Ring's projected rise to the top of the solo charts, Call of Duty is still projected to maintain its spot as the top of the best-selling series of games throughout the year, maintaining its dominance in the industry.
Additionally, one form of video game content will show growth from last year during 2022: subscriptions. From services like PlayStation Network, Xbox GamePass, the battle pass reward system, and other subscription-based games, it is clear to both consumers and developers that this is the most popular and effective way to make money right now, and that success will likely keep the subscriptions coming in 2023.
This article was originally published on dbltap as Elden Ring Projected Outperform Call of Duty as Top Seller of 2022.