Single-Player Comeback: August’s Game Charts Show Solo Adventures Are Still Thriving

Written by

McLain

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August 2025 turned out to be a big month for fans of classic, story-driven gaming. Two major single-player releases — Mafia: The Old Country and Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater — made impressive debuts, securing the third and fourth spots respectively on the U.S. all-formats sales chart.

While neither could outpace the annual sports juggernauts NBA 2K26 and Madden NFL 26, their strong performance signals that the appetite for rich, narrative-focused experiences remains very much alive in a market often dominated by live-service and multiplayer titles.

Over on PlayStation, Gears of War Reloaded made a notable impact as the long-running Xbox franchise arrived on Sony’s platform for the first time. The game landed at sixth place on both the all-formats and PlayStation-specific charts. Interestingly, despite its success on PS5, Gears didn’t appear in the Xbox rankings — largely because it’s included as a free upgrade for Game Pass subscribers.

Meanwhile, Sony’s own Helldivers 2 didn’t manage to break into the Xbox top ten, leaving some to question whether the company’s recent multiplatform strategy is paying off. Analyst Mat Piscatella noted that Circana’s data might not yet reflect digital sales, which could account for its absence from the chart.

Another standout this month was Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Hinokami Chronicles 2, which surged from 24th to 10th place thanks to the massive success of The Infinity Castle film. The movie’s global box office has now surpassed $600 million, clearly boosting the game’s popularity.

On the hardware side, however, it wasn’t such a strong month for PlayStation. The PS5 experienced a “double-digit percentage decline” year-over-year and was comfortably outperformed by Nintendo’s Switch 2. Nintendo’s latest console continues to build momentum, now pacing ahead of the PS4’s launch trajectory — and maintaining solid availability through what’s usually a quiet season for hardware sales.

Top 20 Best-Selling Games in the U.S. — August 2025

  1. NBA 2K26
  2. Madden NFL 26
  3. Mafia: The Old Country
  4. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
  5. EA Sports College Football 26
  6. Gears of War Reloaded
  7. Donkey Kong Bananza^
  8. EA Sports MVP Bundle
  9. EA Sports Kickoff Bundle
  10. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Hinokami Chronicles 2
  11. Minecraft^
  12. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  13. Grand Theft Auto V
  14. Helldivers 2
  15. Forza Horizon 5
  16. Grounded 2
  17. WWE 2K25
  18. Hogwarts Legacy
  19. Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar
  20. Red Dead Redemption 2

PlayStation Software Top 10 — August 2025

  1. NBA 2K26
  2. Madden NFL 26
  3. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
  4. Mafia: The Old Country
  5. EA Sports College Football 26
  6. Gears of War Reloaded
  7. EA Sports MVP Bundle
  8. EA Sports Kickoff Bundle
  9. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
  10. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Hinokami Chronicles 2

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