The State of Gaming December 2023: Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, Dragon Quest Monsters, Granblue Fantasy Versus, RIP E3, DOOM at 30, and Circana The guys talk P

It’s The State of Gaming Podcast, Popzara’s in-depth look at what’s shaking up the gaming landscape delivered on a monthly basis. Our hosts Cory Galliher and Nate Evans guide you through the best, worst, and everything else making headlines and headway in the world of interactive entertainment.

The biggest games of the month include: Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, and Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising.

Other notables include: Batman: Arkham Trilogy (Switch), Kingpin Reloaded, Born of Bread, Pokemon Scarlet And Violet: The Hidden Treasure Of Area Zero – The Indigo Disk, Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties: Definitive Edition, Outer Wilds (Switch), Resident Evil 4 Remake (iOS), and Sonic Dream Team (Apple Arcade).

Circana remains the gaming industry’s best snapshot of what’s moving and shaking up both physical and digital retail shelves across the country. All estimates are for entertainment purposes only. Total sales of new gaming hardware and software topped $5.8 billion, a 7 perfect drop from last year, largely due to a perilous 24 percent drop in sales of new gaming  hardware.

On the final Top Twenty software charts before the holidays there’s few surprises as Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 debuts in first, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 back in second, EA’s Hogwarts Legacy rises to third, Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder in fifth (with the plumber’s Super Mario RPG Remake debuting in sixth), Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, Bandai Namco’s Naruto x Boruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections debuts in twelfth, Square Enix’s Star Ocean: The Second Story R debuts in seventeenth, and Ubisoft’s Just Dance 2024 in twentieth.

But there’s more! It’s a sad RIP to actor James McCaffrey (voice actor for both Max Payne and Alan Wake), who passed away this month at age 65. Also RIP (finally) to the tradeshow turned spectacle E3 (1995 – 2023). Id Software’s iconic DOOM turns 30 this month, and to celebrate John Romero released the free expansion Sigil 2, proving once again that the OG DOOM will never, ever die.

Elsewhere Rockstar Games’ massively anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 gets its first trailer, and it’s already broken records. Sony’s PlayStation 5, once impossible to get, continues to sell like gangbusters after topping 50 million consoles sold in three years. Plus, stay tuned for a special treat as Cory shares his picks for the best outrageously priced (yet outrageously good) “pro” controllers for your enthusiastic fingers. Did your favorite make the cut? Happy Holidays!