Sales of consoles and physical games fall to lows not seen since 1995 in the US

The market for hardware and physical format is experiencing its worst moment in three decades.

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For years, there has been talk of a gradual transition to digital, but the latest US market data confirms that the blow to physical formats and traditional consoles is much deeper than it seemed. Sales have fallen to figures not seen since the mid-1990s, a situation that marks a turning point for the industry.

Analyst Mat Piscatella, from Circana, has shared his monthly report for November 2025, and the picture is clear: the US console and physical game market is experiencing its worst moment since 1995, both in terms of units sold and overall volume.

Console and Physical Game Sales Plummet in the US

According to the published data, only 1.6 million consoles have been sold in the United States as of November 2025. To put this into context, in November 2019 (the last full year before the generational leap) 3.9 million units were sold, more than double. You have to go back to 1995, with 1.4 million consoles sold, to find similar figures.

• The decline has affected all manufacturers without exception. Xbox Series is the most affected, with a 70% year-over-year decline, while PS5 falls by 50% compared to the same period last year. Even Nintendo is feeling the impact: combined sales of Switch and Switch 2 are 10% lower than Switch sales just a year ago.

One of the factors with the most weight in this decline is price. Piscatella points out that in 2019, the average price of new hardware in the US was $235, while in 2025 it has risen to $439, almost double. This price increase has drastically reduced the entry of new players into the console ecosystem.

Physical Games Struggle

Physical formats are not immune either. Physical game sales have fallen by 14% compared to November 2024, also reaching their lowest level since 1995. In contrast, subscriptions have grown by 16% year-over-year and the mobile market has increased by 2%, confirming that consumption is clearly shifting towards digital services and recurring models.