ogwarts Legacy, PS5 Deliver Strong Numbers Across Europe

The figures coming out of February for Europe (GSD data) and the UK (GSD and GFK data) paint a slightly mixed picture of the console and PC games business.

Across Europe, PC and console game sales are down 10% compared with February 2022.

That’s despite the eye-watering sales of Hogwarts Legacy. The Warner Bros game had the sixth biggest launch for a video game since the European charts started six years ago. The only games ahead of it are FIFA titles. That means Hogwarts Legacy had a bigger launch than every Call of Duty game released since 2017, plus other breakout hits such as Red Dead Redemption 2 and Elden Ring.

After just three weeks on sale, Hogwarts Legacy is already the fifth best-selling game of the last 12 months, behind FIFA 23, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Grand Theft Auto 5 and Elden Ring.

The decline in overall game sales is due to fewer releases in February than the year before, which saw multiple big new titles, including Elden Ring, Horizon: Forbidden West, Dying Light 2 and Total War: Warhammer 3. There were also strong second-month sales for Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

The Last of Us Part 2 and The Last of Us Remastered both jumped up the charts, boosted by the HBO TV series based on the games. Part 2 sales were up 317 per cent over February last year, while Remastered sales are up 285 per cent.

 Outside of Hogwarts, Atomic Heart was the next biggest game release. However, Octopath Traveler 2, Theatrhythm Final Bar Line and Wild Hearts failed to make the Top 20. 

In terms of consoles, PS5 saw a huge spike in sales across Europe last month, with sales up five times over February last year. 

-Christopher During, Head of games industry.biz