There 
aren’t a lot of sure bets in the video game industry, but for the past few years the “Call of Duty” franchise was a pretty safe place to put your money.
The past three installments of the game have set consecutive entertainment-industry sales records at their launch. And even after the holiday season ended, they’ve led the sales pack for at least the first few months of the following year — but not this year.
E3 is 
usually the video game industry’s big party of the year — a chance to celebrate its strengths and showcase the titles it expects to drive sales forward for the rest of the year.
But as the game makers gather for this year’s event, a cloud hangs over the soiree. Retail sales are down 27 percent compared to this time in 2011. Mobile devices are stealing the spotlight from traditional consoles. And naysayers are openly questioning the long-term viability of the console industry.
Four 
months of 2012 are over. And not one of them has held good news for video game publishers.
Total video game sales came to $630.4 million in April, down 32 percent from $930.9 million a year ago. Video game software sales were especially lousy, down an astonishing 42 percent, coming in at just $292 million. Hardware sales were down 32 percent, according to The NPD Group, which tracks the numbers. The numbers are significantly worse than analysts were expecting, more than double the 19 percent drop Wedbush Securities’ Michael Pachter had warned of.
2012’s 
losing streak for video game sales unfortunately kept right on going in March.
Sales of video game software were down 25 percent compared to last year. Hardware sales were down 35 percent, according to The NPD Group, which tracks the numbers. The totals, while disappointing, were within the range expected by Wall St. analysts.
2012 
continues to be a real stinker for the video game industry.
Video game software sales were down 23 percent in February compared to 2011 figures, according to the NPD Group.
To say 
the video game industry stumbled out of the gate in 2012 would be exceedingly kind.
January software sales, which are the most closely watched figure by investors, were down 34 percent – the biggest percentage drop in more than 2 years — to $750.6 million. That’s more than $389 million less than a year ago.
Last month saw 
the biggest launch ever in the video game industry, but flat sales of hardware kept things about on par with last year saleswise.
All totaled, the gaming industry took in $3 billion in November, roughly $10,000 more than last year, according to the NPD Group. But the overall picture was rosy for the industry — as game sales were much higher than predicted.
After setting five-year 
retail sales lows for the past three months, the video game industry finally showed signs of life in September — although those vitals weren’t as strong as some industry observers were expecting.
Year-over-year sales were down 4 percent overall, but game software sales (the most closely followed statistic) were up 3 percent, the first positive growth in months.
August, traditionally, 
is when game sales start to rev up for the holiday season. This year, though, they sputtered and died.
With the release date of Electronic Arts annual Madden football franchise moved to the end of the month, retail sales plummeted in August, falling 37 percent as compared to last year. Overall, year over year sales were down 23 percent.
Retail video game sales 
nosedived in July, hitting their lowest level since October 2006.
Year over year sales were down 26 percent, with declines across the board in all hardware, software and accessories — and no breakout hits. While July is often a slow month for the industry, the dip in software sales was more than twice as bad as Wall St. analysts were predicting.
Chris Morris: Journalist 