A recently released report from the NPD Group, a leading marketing information provider, has revealed that 2005 has been a record-breaking year in terms of sales of video games. Rising 6% from 2004, overall sales for 2005 topped $10.5 billion, eclipsing the previous annual record of $10.3 billion in 2002.

Much of the growth comes from the burgeoning portables market, with the sales of portable hardware, including the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS, almost doubling, with portable software sales rising 42% and accessories rising 88%. The home console market, in comparison, did not fare as well, with console game sales falling 12%, and hardware sales slipping 3%. The NPD Group claims that hardware shortages (see the Xbox 360), delays of anticipated games, and gamers simply waiting for the next generation of console hardware to come out are to blame for the console decline. PC games and mobile phone games were not included in the data.