August 2020 NPD: Madden NFL 21 takes the top spot, Ghost of Tsushima stays in the top five

What you need to know

• The NPD group has released the details for August 2020 NPD.
• For August, Madden NFL 21 was the best-selling game per NPD.
• The Nintendo Switch was, yet again, the best-selling console of the month.

Every month, the NPD Group releases information on the best-selling games, game consoles and accessories across all video game platforms in the United States. While it doesn't account for total worldwide sales, it does provide a nice look at one of the largest video game markets. Mat Piscatella, a fantastic analyst for NPD, has shared the results for August 2020.

For August, Madden NFL 21 was the best-selling game overall and is now the sixth best-selling game of the year so far. PS4 exclusive Ghost of Tsushima fell to the #4 spot, while Nintendo has 10 exclusive games in the top 20 for the month, which is truly impressive. The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console of the month and helped set a record for the highest August hardware sales in U.S. history. The DualShock 4 was the best-selling accessory of the month, while the Xbox Elite Series 2 Wireless Controller is the best-selling accessory of the year overall.

Remember that Video Game Software has been reclassified as Video Game Content, which includes game sales, DLC and microtransactions. It's also important to remember that NPD is based on dollar sales, not units sold. Additionally, Take-Two is not sharing digital sales for some games, which is why Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 are not listed.

Here are the August 2020 results:

• Total sales: $3.33 billion, up 37% year-over-year.
• Video game content: $2.94 billion, up 37% year-over-year.
• Video game hardware: $229 million, up 37% year-over-year.
• Video game accessories: $166 million, up 42% year-over-year.

August 2020 NPD: Here are the top 20 games sold in the U.S.

1. Madden NFL 21
2. UFC 4
3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
4. Ghost of Tsushima
5. Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
6. Ring Fit Adventure
7. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
8. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
9. Paper Mario: The Origami King*
10. Mortal Kombat 11
11. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*
12. The Last of Us Part 2
13. Minecraft: PlayStation 4 Edition
14. PGA Tour 2K21
15. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe*
16. Super Mario Party*
17. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
18. Super Mario Odyssey*
19. Final Fantasy 7 Remake
20. Luigi's Mansion 3

*Digital sales are not included

August 2020 NPD Here are the best-selling games of August 2020 by platform:

August 2020 NPD PlayStation 4

1. Madden NFL 21
2. Ghost of Tsushima
3. UFC 4
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
5. The Last of Us Part 2
6. Minecraft: PlayStation 4 Edition
7. Final Fantasy 7 Remake
8. MLB: The Show 20
9. Marvel's Spider-Man
10. PGA Tour 2K21

August 2020 NPD Xbox One

1. Madden NFL 21
2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
3. UFC 4
4. Forza Horizon 4
5. Minecraft: Xbox One Edition
6. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
7. Grounded
8. PGA Tour 2K21
9. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
10. Mortal Kombat 11

August 2020 NPD Nintendo Switch

1. Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
2. Ring Fit Adventure
3. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe*
4. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate*
5. Paper Mario: The Origami King*
6. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild*
7. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
8. Super Mario Party*
9. Super Mario Odyssey
10. Luigi's Mansion 3

Here are the top 10 best-selling games of 2020 in the U.S. so far:

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
2. Animal Crossing: New Horizons*
3. The Last of Us Part 2
4. Final Fantasy 7 Remake
5. Ghost of Tsushima
6. Madden NFL 21
7. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
8. MLB: The Show 20
9. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
10. Mortal Kombat 11

That's all for this month's report. As always, you can check Mat Piscatella's thread for more information, or compare these results with the previous month's sales. It'll be interesting to see what happens in the buildup to the next generation, as the PS5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S arrive this holiday.