Although video game sales declined in 2019 – as the industry prepares to debut new consoles next year – it still achieved record sales of more games, Business Insider concludes.

Overall, expectations for the new consoles, namely the Sony PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Xbox Series X, have reduced video game sales by about 12 percent, but the most sought-after games of 2019 still set new records.

 

In particular, popular franchise games like Call of Duty shooting video games and Pokémon have performed well.

According to the NPD group, eight of the top ten games of 2019 were sequels, while two more games were related to Star Wars movies and were made by the creators of the critically acclaimed Mass Effect game.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare generated $ 600 million in sales in the opening weekend in October, producing the best initial appearance of the franchise.

The console market was dominated by Nintendo Switch this year: in September, the Japanese company launched the Switch Lite version of the portable game console, which sold for $ 200, bringing sales to 40 million. Plus, the Nintendo Switch has become one of the fastest-selling gaming consoles. In addition, the Japanese multinational recently launched its product in China, causing stock prices to rise for a year and a half.