Transparency Crisis in Video Game Sales Data
Earlier today I reported on the latest U.S. video game market data released by Circana, a firm that publishes monthly reports on sales trends, console performance, and overall industry health.
These reports are valuable for industry insiders and the public alike, helping to reveal why games are made, how they sell, and what drives market changes.
Unfortunately, two major data sources—Xbox and EA—have recently left Circana’s digital data sharing panel. As of July 2026, Xbox is no longer a participating publisher, and EA withdrew its membership as it went private.
Circana relies on publishers to provide digital sales figures from platforms such as the Xbox Store, PlayStation Store, and Nintendo eShop. Without that direct input, the data for digital titles becomes speculative, especially for first‑party games like Call of Duty.
The loss of Xbox data creates a blind spot for Xbox first‑party titles and also hampers visibility for other publishers that do not share data, making the current software charts largely guesswork.
While analysts at Circana do excellent work, they can only guess when key publishers opt out. In the past, dropping out of the panel meant less insight into a company’s digital sales, but Xbox’s exit is particularly damaging.
The situation may worsen as physical media decline; PlayStation will stop disc production in 2028, and Xbox may follow. Without disc sales data and with limited digital transparency, a full market picture becomes harder to obtain.
Currently, the panel includes Bandai Namco, Capcom, Crystal Dynamics, Disney Interactive Studios, Eidos, Konami, Plaion, Sega, Sony, Square Enix, Take‑Two, and Warner Bros.
Rumors also suggest Xbox might have left the European Game Sales Data (GSD) program, which would further reduce transparency.
For most gamers, sales numbers are not a primary concern, but the erosion of open data lets companies shape narratives, justify layoffs, or hide anti‑consumer practices.
I want accurate, independent information for myself, journalists, and analysts, not a diet filtered by multi‑billion‑dollar corporations.
The industry’s decreasing transparency is worrying; without clear data, we risk losing the ability to see anything clearly at all.
