LectureMaster
Or is it just one of Adam's balls in my throat?
It is easy to point the finger at Xbox lately, and sometimes for good reason. Online discourse often centres on the brand. November 2025, however, tells a slightly different story, with data pointing to a market-wide downturn affecting every major console platform, not just Xbox.
Circana, which regularly tracks and reports on industry sales, recently published figures showing total U.S. game spending fell 4% year over year to $5.9 billion. That decline spans hardware, software, and accessories, rather than being isolated to one segment.
While this data only reflects the U.S. market, the historical context is striking. November 2025 marked the worst November for U.S. hardware unit sales since 1995, an era dominated by systems like the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and SNES, long before the modern console landscape took shape.
The data behind the downturn
Circana November 2025 chart (Image credit: Circana)
According to Circana, hardware spending dropped 27% year over year to $695 million, with unit sales falling to 1.6 million. That makes November 2025 the weakest November for U.S. hardware unit sales since 1995.
Xbox Series hardware sales declined by 70% year over year, while PlayStation 5 sales fell by more than 40%. Combined Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 unit sales were down by around 10%, which stands out as relatively resilient by comparison.
Pricing appears to be a major factor. The average price of video game hardware reached $439 per unit in November, up 11% year over year, making consoles more expensive than ever during what is usually a peak buying period.
Xbox saw average price increases of over 30%, highlighting how higher entry costs can quickly suppress demand. The Switch 2, despite being the fastest-selling console in U.S. history, still saw its November unit sales trail the original Switch's first November, likely due to its higher price point and fewer meaningful discounts.
Software trends offer little comfort. Physical game sales fell 14% year over year, making November 2025 the worst November for physical software sales since 1995, even as subscription spending rose by 16%.
Call of Duty provides a clear example of the wider slowdown. Black Ops 7 topped the monthly charts, but full game dollar sales declined by a double-digit percentage compared to the prior year, showing that even the industry's biggest franchises are not immune.
Accessories followed the same downward trend. Spending in that category fell 13% year over year, reinforcing that consumers are pulling back across the entire ecosystem, not just on consoles themselves.
What's next for the gaming industry?
November may not be a one-off either. Circana notes that December and full-year data will be critical, but current trends already point to warning signs rather than a short-term blip.It is no secret that hardware prices continue to rise, and the era of consoles becoming cheaper as a generation matures appears to be over. These pressures show little sign of easing, and rising RAM and storage costs could create further strain across the console industry. Alumni from PlayStation, Xbox, and others have cited everything from TikTok to evolving user habits for the decline in console sales, but PC gaming continues to dominate the conversation as well. The versatility of PC is why Microsoft is increasingly investing in its Xbox PC platform with devices like the Xbox Ally. But even PC isn't safe from these issues.
DRAM prices and NVME storage ballooning in price will hit PC builders too. Valve's own gaming PC could be holding out on revealing the price of the Steam Machine due to rising costs for memory. Recent reports suggest DDR5 RAM prices are set to increase further, with Samsung already reportedly doubling the price of their DDR5 RAM for suppliers. There are new rumors that NVIDIA is going to scale back its gaming products too.
If price continue to spike for these components, it's very likely that Xbox won't be the only high-end "premium" priced console next generation as Sony's stock of supplies can only last so long and as for how this will impact the Nintendo Switch 2, only time will tell.
It's hard to imagine the prices of these components not continue to increase, and therefore console prices paying the price. Especially as AI continues to consume every sector it even slightly touches as billion dollar companies, Microsoft included continue to throw money at what appears to be an infinitely deep hole with no end in sight.
