It seems that in rough times, people spend money on entertainment, and that as entertainment goes, video game software and hardware offer much higher value than other options. As an example, it’s quite remarkable that October sales were through the roof or that the latest World of Warcraft expansion pack broke the all-time record for single-day PC game sales. All of these facts can lead us to the conclusion that the video game industry is recession-proof. Even so, analysts say that the future may not be so bright, although this sector could in fact turn out to be one of the few winners as general economic conditions get darker and darker.

Everyone in the video games industry remains optimistic about the future, and that’s because sales give them the right to act like this. For instance, David Dennis, Microsoft’s corporate Xbox 360 Group PR manager, says that all the signs they see point to continued strength for the industry and for the Xbox. A recent survey conducted by the National Research Center shows that 46 percent of consumers expect to purchase a video game system of some kind on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. NPD reports also show that sales were up 18 percent for October in the video game industry as a whole, from $1.31 billion from $1.12 billion a year earlier.

Other data shows that the software was up 35 percent in October, from $514.5 million in 2007 to $696.8 million in 2008, while hardware had a more modest 5% rise in the same period, from $470.5 million to 494.8$ million. It cannot be denied that this growth will also be encouraged by game launched on November the 13th, Wrath of the Lich King, the second expansion to the mega-hit World of Warcraft. The game broke the all-time record for one-day sales for a PC game, moving 2.8 million units of the $40 upgrade, surpassing the record of 2.4 million units set in 2007 by The Burning Crusade, the first Wow expansion.