Strong PS4 and Xbox One sales up 50% versus PS3 and Xbox 360 - NPD report

Sony's PlayStation 4 was once again the best-selling console in the US in July 2015, according to the latest data from The NPD Group. Microsoft and the Xbox One were no slouches in second place, selling an estimated 188,000 units, up 44% over sales from the same period last year.

The latest sales figures also reveal that the combined US sales of PS4 and Xbox One are currently far stronger than their predecessors during the same period. NPD analyst Liam Callahan said (via GamesBeat): "After 21 months, combined Xbox One and PS4 hardware unit sales are close to 50% higher than the combined sales of Xbox 360 and PS3 after 21 months on the market."

The strong position of both consoles makes the gap between the two competitors less of an issue than some would like to believe. It's why Xbox boss Phil Spencer is right to focus inward rather than spur his team to try and top Sony.

"We are truly humbled by the success of the PS4 and we would like to thank gamers for making it the top-selling console and no.1 in software sales," said a Sony spokesperson about its July success.

Xbox marketing boss Mike Nichols said in a statement: "Xbox One and Xbox Live continued to see strong sales and engagement in July. Xbox One sales in the US [were] up 44% over July 2014 and active global Xbox Live users - Xbox One and Xbox 360 - up 2%."

Game sales

On the software side of things Warner Bros reigned supreme, taking the top two spots with Lego Jurassic World and Batman: Arkham Knight. The numbers are slightly off however, as it doesn't include games sold bundled with consoles – which made up a fair portion of Arkham Knight's sales.

The only game in the list released during the month of July - which has always been a barren for gamers - was Rory McIlroy PGA Tour. "Sales within the first data month for this new title exceeded the prior iteration, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14, by close to 70%," said Callahan, who went on to talk about the failings of other new releases.

"Sales of new launches were down 3% in July 2015, but May and June launches are comparing favourably to the performance of launches of last year, up a combined 20%. Though May/June launches are performing well this month, this was not enough to offset decreased sales from July releases and older games released outside of the May through July time-frame, which were down 6%."

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