Microsoft has issued their response to The NPD Group’s December analysis of videogame sales in the US.

Microsoft, who are happy with their “strong holiday sales,” were quick to point out that the Xbox 360 was the best-selling current-generation console in the US for 2011. According to the publisher the Xbox 360 outsold the second place console by over 2.7 million units.

Must-have gift

“The strong December capped an impressive year during which Xbox 360 was the fastest-growing console. It also captured 49 percent of consumer retail spending, with an industry-leading $6.7 billion in sales in the U.S. for the calendar year—more than $2.1 billion on consoles and $4.6 billion on games and accessories.”

Microsoft then went on to say that “Xbox 360 was the “must-have gift this holiday season with about half of December’s retail spend on games, consoles and accessories going toward Xbox 360 products, totaling more than $1.5 billion.”

We also learnt that Microsoft has now sold over 66 million Xbox 360 consoles and more than 18 million Kinect sensors worldwide, while Xbox LIVE member tally now stands at nearly 40 million.

New audiences, new experiences

Microsoft also highlighted Kinect for Windows and rounded off their press release with this statement: “Looking forward to an exciting 2012, we expect new audiences for Kinect, new experience for Xbox LIVE and a new installment in the world-class Halo and Fable franchises to help Xbox 360 have yet another stellar year.”

Here’s a list of the December 2011 NPD highlights that Microsoft put together:

• Holding a 46 percent share of the overall current-generation console market, Xbox 360 sold more than 1.7 million units in December, solidifying the number-one console spot in the U.S. for 2011. This marks the tenth consecutive month Xbox 360 has held more than 40 percent of the current-generation console market share, and twelfth straight month Xbox 360 was the top-selling console in the U.S.

• Total retail spend on the Xbox 360 platform in December (hardware, software and accessories) reached $1.5 billion, the most for any console in the U.S.

• During the month of December, Xbox 360 had seven of the top 10 console game titles including: “Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3,” Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” “Battlefield 3,” “Assassin’s Creed: Revelations,” “Just Dance 3,” “Kinect Sports Season Two” and “Dance Central 2.”

• For 2011, Xbox 360 had six of the top 10 console game titles including “Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3,” “Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” “Gears of War 3,” “Battlefield 3,” “Madden NFL 12,” and “Call of Duty: Black Ops.”