U.S. video game sales down 26 percent

According to market researcher the NPD Group, the Great Recession -- or something -- is killing video game sales.

NPD reports that U.S. retail sales of videogames fell 26 percent in April, compared to April 2009. Videogames accounted for $766.2 million in sales last month, partially due to a lack of new games launching.

Hardware sales dropped 37 percent to $249.3 million. The best selling system, the Nintendo DS dropped by more than half to 440,800. Nintendo is expected to release a new handheld this summer, the 3DS.

I think sales of Apple's iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, which allow consumers to download games, at much cheaper costs, is also affecting sales. But experts say April is always a slow month because most videogame companies fiscal years end in March, leaving April as a dry month for new product releases.