January 2025 was a relatively quiet period for the video game industry, with only one new title making it into the top 20 best-selling games in the U.S., according to Circana's charts. However, the month was notable for the resurgence of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, which had a significant impact on the charts after its launch on Steam.
Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, initially released in February 2024, debuted at No.2 but saw a decline to No.7 the following month and ended the year at No.17. Despite these respectable figures, Square Enix had expressed disappointment with the game's sales, citing unmet expectations. The game's initial exclusivity to the PS5 platform posed a challenge, as exclusives often struggle to match the sales of multi-platform releases.
However, the narrative shifted dramatically in January 2025 when Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth became available on Steam, propelling it from No.56 in December to No.3 on the January charts. The Final Fantasy 7: Remake & Rebirth Twin Pack also saw a significant rise, jumping from No.265 to No.16. Analyst Mat Piscatella highlighted the success of the Steam launch, noting that Rebirth was the best-selling game of the week ending January 25th in the U.S. market, with the Twin Pack ranking third.
This success on PC could influence Square Enix's future strategies, potentially encouraging them to opt for cross-platform releases for upcoming Final Fantasy titles. Piscatella emphasized the growing difficulty for third-party publishers to justify platform exclusivity without substantial incentives from the platform holder.
As for the rest of the January 2025 charts, it's no surprise that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 topped the list, followed by Madden NFL 25. The only new release to make the top 20 was Donkey Kong Country: Returns on the Nintendo Switch, which reached No.8 based solely on physical sales data, as Nintendo does not share digital sales figures.
It Takes Two also made a notable return to the top 20 at No.20, driven by promotions in the last week of January on the PlayStation store and eShop. Piscatella noted that It Takes Two had consistent sales throughout January, with a sales and engagement uptick starting in December, possibly fueled by anticipation for Hazelight Studios' upcoming game, Split Fiction, set to release in March.
Overall, January 2025 saw a decline in game spending compared to the previous year, largely due to a shorter tracking period of four weeks compared to five weeks in January 2024. Total spending for the month was down 15% to $4.5 billion, with content spending down 12%, console content down 35%, and hardware spending down a significant 45%. PS5 led hardware sales, despite a 38% year-over-year decline, followed by Xbox Series and Nintendo Switch.
The top 20 best-selling games in the U.S. for January 2025, ranked by dollar sales, were as follows:
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Madden NFL 25
- Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth
- EA Sports FC 25
- Minecraft*
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2
- EA Sports College Football 25
- Donkey Kong Country Returns*
- Hogwarts Legacy
- Sonic Generations
- Helldivers II
- Astro Bot
- Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero
- Super Mario Party Jamboree*
- Elden Ring
- Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth Twin Pack
- Mario Kart 8*
- The Crew: Motorfest
- UFC 5
- It Takes Two*
- Indicates that some or all digital sales are not included in Circana's data. Some publishers, including Nintendo and Take-Two, do not share certain digital data for this report.
