Call of Duty may only be a game, but the battle between console manufactures for consumers’ time and money is anything but—especially with the holiday shopping season officially upon us. New research from Nielsen looked into who’s planning to buy these 8th generation consoles and found that 30 percent of active gamers in the U.S. said they definitely plan to purchase PlayStation 4, 22 percent are shopping for the Xbox One and 10 percent have their eyes on the Wii U.
These devices have become popular for their overall connected capabilities, including features like streaming, social and music, but games are still a strong draw. In Q2 2013, 19 million adult Internet users in the U.S. had purchased a video game in the last six months.
When it comes to the specific titles that consumers are interested in buying, Call of Duty: Ghosts was the most-wanted title on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and was also among the top 10 most-wanted for Wii U. Consumers also named Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag as a most-wanted title on all three consoles. Additionally, the latest edition of sports franchise Madden NFL ranked in the top 10 most-wanted titles on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Top 10 Most-Wanted Titles by 8th Generation Console
Ranked on “Definite Purchase Interest” among active U.S. gamers
| PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Wii U |
|---|---|---|
| Call of Duty: Ghosts | Call of Duty: Ghosts | Super Mario 3D World * |
| Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag | Halo (Xbox One) * | Wii Fit U * |
| Uncharted (PS4) * | Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag | Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon… |
| Battlefield 4 | Battlefield 4 | Just Dance 2014 |
| Just Dance 2014 | Madden NFL 25 | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze * |
| Need for Speed: Rivals | Just Dance 2014 | Mario Kart 8 * |
| Watch Dogs | Need for Speed: Rivals | Call of Duty: Ghosts |
| Madden NFL 25 | NBA 2K14 | Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag |
| Kingdom Hearts III | Dead Rising 3 * | Wii Party U * |
| Final Fantasy XV | Star Wars: Battlefront | Angry Birds: Star Wars |
| *Title is a platform exclusive. Source: Nielsen. |
As for exclusive titles, all platforms are bringing along some familiar favorites into the next generation. Gamers are excited for the new offerings from Uncharted, Killzone and infamous on the PS4, while Xbox One gamers are looking forward to purchasing new games from Halo, Forza and Fable. Nintendo has many fan favorites lined up for the Wii U as well, with new titles from Super Mario, Donkey Kong Country, Mario Kart, Wii Fit and Wii Party.
Top 5 Exclusive Titles by 8th Generation Console
Ranked on “Definite Purchase Interest” among active U.S. gamers
| PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Wii U |
|---|---|---|
| Uncharted (PS4) | Halo (Xbox One) | Super Mario 3D World |
| Killzone: Shadow Fall | Dead Rising 3 | Wii Fit U |
| inFamous: Second Son | Sunset Overdrive | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze |
| DriveClub | Forza Motorsport 5 | Mario Kart 8 |
| The Order: 1886 | Fable Legends | Wii Party U |
| Source: Nielsen. |
Methodology
Nielsen’s Video Game Tracking is a weekly online survey of 1,200 male and female active gamers ages 7-54.
