The NPD and 2K have shared some additional news following yesterday’s report. NBA 2K14 is the fourth best selling game on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and it has bested Madden NFL 25 and FIFA 14 here in the United States.

This is the first time that an NBA title has been atop the NPD chart at the beginning of a console cycle. It’s also the first instance of an NBA title trumping a NFL game both in terms of sales and critical response.

"Earlier this year we promised that NBA 2K14 would be our biggest and best NBA 2K experience yet, and today we’re thrilled to see fans agree, as NBA 2K14 is now the #1 selling sports game on next-gen consoles,” said Jason Argent, senior vice president of basketball operations for 2K.

2K attributes part of the success to its decision to build a different experience for the new hardware than it did for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The team recaptured player faces, and NBA 2K14 on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 includes a significant amount of player audio for on-court interviews.

You can read our review of NBA 2K14 here. You can see the rest of the November 2013 NPD report in our coverage from yesterday.

Our Take

My first experience with NBA 2K14 was at the PlayStation 4 launch event, and I was instantly hooked. I don’t watch basketball, but the experience feels like what I’m looking for out of the new hardware.

I’ve likened NBA 2K14 to Fight Night Round 3 on the Xbox 360. Because of its timing and features, it has the potential to hook players like me who aren’t typically in the target audience.