It has been two years since the video 
game industry has seen positive growth — and from the looks of things, it may not see it in 2011, either.
Game software sales were down 5 percent last month as compared to the same period in 2010, according to figures released today by the NPD Group. Hardware sales were even worse, slumping 8 percent.
2011 isn’t looking much better 
than 2010 or 2009 for retail sales of video games.
Despite comparing with weak numbers from a year ago, game software sales were down 5 percent last month versus 12 months earlier, coming in at $576 million, according to NPD Group, which tracks the industry. Overall, the industry was down 6 percent, dragged lower by continued weakness in the hardware category.
The bad news is video game sales 
continued on their downward trajectory in January. The good news is it was nowhere near as bad as analysts were expecting.
Game sales fell 5 percent last month as compared to the same period in 2010, according to the NPD Group. That’s considerably better than the 11 percent some industry observers had predicted.
After two consistent years of negative 
growth, investors in the video game industry are hoping for things to start turning around in 2011, but they may have to wait a little longer for that to happen.
Analysts expect software sales in January, which will be announced after the market closes Thursday, to be well off of last year’s pace, as a lack of big titles and the traditional post-holiday slump drag down the retail sector.
Activision’s “Call of Duty” franchise continues to 
set new bars in the entertainment industry. The latest installment in the series — subtitled “Black Ops” — has hit $1 billion in sales in just six weeks. The only other entertainment property to reach that milestone so quickly, according to the publisher, was James Cameron’s “Avatar.”
Like its predecessor, “Black Ops” came out of the gate strong. In its first five days on shelves, the game had sales of $650 million. It hit the $1 billion mark nearly a month quicker than “Modern Warfare 2,” and now stands poised to assume the crown of the top-grossing videogame of all time.
Any lingering fears about “Call of Duty: Black Ops” being overshadowed by its predecessor can now be dismissed—Activision-Blizzard announced Tuesday that the latest installment in the series has topped $1 billion in worldwide sales.
That’s nearly a month faster than “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” hit the milestone, and it indicates the publisher could be on track to once again set entertainment and video game industry records.
Activision’s “Call of Duty” machine is showing no signs of weakness.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops” has hit $1 billion in sales in just six weeks, the company announced today. And the user engagement numbers are somehow even more impressive.
Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog
“Black Ops” brought some black ink for the video game industry in November.
Retail software sales posted impressive growth over 2009 numbers, marking the first time the industry has posted back-to-back gains this year.
Last November, Activision’s annual “Call of Duty” release ruled the sales charts in a dominant fashion. This year, the story is set to repeat itself.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops” could lead the video game industry to its second consecutive month of year-over-year retail sales gains. If so, that will be the first time this year the sector has managed to pull off that feat.
Chris Morris: Journalist 