Microsoft has issued some incredible statements and facts regarding the company’s Xbox 360 and its sales performance in the US during the month of January 2012. What’s the occasion? Why would Microsoft choose to boast so?

The statement was in response to NPD’s monthly sales report for the region, and Microsoft had a lot to state.

Let’s dig into it:

“Last week it was revealed that Xbox 360 became the number-one selling console worldwide in 2011, closing out the biggest year in Xbox history and delivering on the bold prediction made by IEB President Don Mattrick at E3 in 2011,” wrote Microsoft. “Kicking off 2012, Xbox 360 continues to lead the console market, turning in another month as the best-selling console in the U.S.”

“Historically, after several years in the console lifecycle there is a softening of demand, but Xbox 360 continues to defy that convention. Xbox 360 has found new ways to extend the lifecycle of the console by re-imagining entertainment and delivering new technologies like Kinect for Xbox 360, a new Xbox dashboard, and new entertainment content partners in 2011.”

If claims of convention defying sales performance by Xbox 360 weren’t enough, here are some of the console’s highlights from January 2012:

January 2012 US NPD Highlights:

• Xbox 360 sold more than 270,000 units in January, maintaining the number-one console spot in the U.S. This marks the thirteenth straight month Xbox 360 was the top-selling console in the U.S. (Source: NPD Group, January 2012)

• Holding 49 percent share of current-generation console sales, total retail spend on the Xbox 360 platform in January (hardware, software and accessories) reached $301 million, the most for any console in the U.S. This marks the eleventh consecutive month Xbox 360 has held more than 40 percent of the current-generation console market share. (Source: NPD Group, January 2012)

• During the month of January, Xbox 360 held five of the top 10 U.S. console game titles including: “Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3,” “Battlefield 3,” “NBA 2K12” and “Just Dance 3.” (Source: NPD Group, January 2012)

Microsoft went on to remind us that new additions to its franchises are on the way in 2012, including new entries to the Halo and Fable franchises, while new online and interactive experiences are due for launch this year, too.

2011 may have been the year of Xbox 360 in the US, but will this continue into 2012? Will Sony and the PlayStation 3 get a move on in the region and slowly overtake Microsoft’s console?