U.S. video game spending rose 10% y/y in September, says Circana

Circana analyst Mat Piscatella said that September 2025 projected U.S. total spending on video game hardware, content and accessories grew 10% vs a year ago, to $4.8B. Several hit new releases, Nintendo Switch 2 (NTDOY) hardware and non-mobile subscriptions, fueled the gains. September spending on video game hardware increased by 24% when compared to a year ago, reaching $324M. Nintendo Switch 2 sales were again able to offset the double-digit year-on-year percentage declines seen across PlayStation 5 (SONY), Xbox Series (MSFT) and Switch. Nintendo Switch 2 was the best-selling video game hardware in both units and dollars across September and the 2025 year-to-date period, with PlayStation 5 ranking 2nd across these measures and time periods. Year-to-date video game hardware spending grew by 20% when compared to a year ago to $3.2Bbut trailed the $3.7B achieved in the year-to-date period ending September 2023. September video game content spending increased by 11% when compared to a year ago, reaching $4.3B. The growth was driven by a 32% gain in non-mobile subscription spending, 12% growth in Console content, and a 4% increase in mobile. Take-Two’s (TTWO) “Borderlands 4” was the best-selling premium video game of September, debuting as the #3 best-selling game of 2025 year-to-date. It was September’s best-seller on both the Xbox and aggregated PC storefront charts. “Borderlands 4” generated the highest launch month dollar sales of any title in franchise history, nearly 30% higher than the previous best, “Borderlands 3.” Borderlands 4 was the first Borderlands title to launch as the best-selling game of its release month. Electronic Arts’ (EA) “EA Sports FC 26” debuted as the 3rd best-selling game in September full game dollar sales, and the 15th best-seller of 2025 year-to-date. It ranked among the top 7 best-selling games across each of the PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo and aggregated PC storefront charts. Take-Two’s “NBA 2K26” became 2025’s best-selling game year-to-date during the September tracking month, supplanting Monster Hunter: Wilds. “NBA 2K26” was September’s 2nd best-selling title overall while leading on PlayStation platforms and ranking 2nd on Xbox. Other top-selling premium games for the month in the U.S. were Sony’s (SONY) “Ghost of Yotei,” EA’s “Madden NFL 26,” Konami’s (KONMY) “Silent Hill f,” Sega’s (SGAMY) “Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds,” and Square Enix’s (SQNXF) “Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles.”