June 2020 NPD: The Last of Us Part II has best U.S. launch month of the year

The video game business was up once again in the United States last month, but some segments are starting to cool off. June software sales kept their momentum as people still have few other options for their entertainment dollars, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group. Hardware was down for the first time since the pandemic started. But this was still the best June in more than a decade for video games. Sony’s blockbuster The Last of Us Part II was a major contributor to these results.

“June 2020 tracked spending across video game hardware, software, accessories, and game cards totaled $1.2 billion, gaining 26% when compared to a year ago,” NPD analyst Mat Piscatella said. “This is the highest tracked spend for a June month since $1.3 billion was reached in June 2009.”