February is big for games

Who said consumer spending is in the toilet? Somehow, some way, Activision sales in February were up 172 percent from a year earlier, thanks largely to the Santa Monica-based company's "Guitar Hero 3" and "Call of Duty 4." Sales at THQ, based in Agoura Hills, were up 58 percent. Electronic Arts was up 109 percent (excluding "Rock Band," sales were up 25 percent). All told, U.S. video game sales — including hardware and software — jumped 34 percent. February is normally a slow month for video game publishers, which are still coming off holiday highs, but the hit titles obviously make a difference. With "several marquee titles still to come in the front half of the year, the industry is poised to achieve another year of record-breaking sales despite difficult economic conditions," NPD analyst Anita Frazier told the AP (NPD supplied the sales numbers).