PS Vita sold 325,000 in US - Analyst

The PlayStation Vita launch apparently wasn't big enough to breathe new life into the slumping game industry. Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter today released his expectations for the industry-tracking NPD Group's February sales figures (due on Thursday), and he projected another month of falling sales for software and hardware.

Pachter predicted that the PS Vita sold 325,000 systems between the February 15 debut of the First Edition bundle and the end of the NPD reporting period. That tops Pachter's 3DS prediction of 240,000 systems, helping to push handheld hardware sales for the month up an estimated 24 percent. However, Pachter believes overall hardware sales fell 15 percent year-over-year.

As for software sales, Pachter predicted overall sales down 8 percent, with the month's best sellers headlined by Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning with roughly 400,000 units sold. Other strong new releases included Zumba Fitness Rush, Twisted Metal, and UFC Undisputed 3, according to the analyst, while catalog sales were likely led by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Just Dance 3.