Microsoft trumpets 1.9m Xbox 360s in NPD results

Microsoft backed up earlier guesses tonight and said it blew away expectations with 1.9 million Xbox 360s sold in December. The NPD-sourced data made it the best-ever month for the game console. Its total sales were also up a sharp 42 percent from year to year and made it the only console to see its numbers grow over 2009.

The company said its demand was high enough that it diverted production intended for January and February meet its goals for December, which still resulted in stockouts by the end of December. Shortages weren't expected to clear until March.

At least some of the surge was credited to Kinect. While traditional games like Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and Call of Duty: Black Ops still led the way for the NPD's top ten games, Kinect Sports was also in the group. Microsoft at CES said it sold eight million Kinects in 60 days, most of which would have been add-ons but could also have included some Xbox 360 bundles.

As NPD researchers stopped providing reports to the general public last year, the data is incomplete and doesn't include numbers for Nintendo and Sony consoles. The Wii briefly retook its lead in October, while Sony has usually stayed in third place owing both to higher console prices and its game mix.

By Electronista Staff

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