Among gaming titles, only two new releases made the top ten and the rest were games that had been out since before the beginning of the year. That, added to the healthy sales of hardware, shows how many new gamers are coming into the market at present, said NPD.

"This broadening of the audience for gaming will help buoy the industry through these tough economic times, provided they have enough compelling content to keep them interested," the company said.

Top Ten best-selling games in the U.S. in January were, according to NPD Group:

1) Wii Fit, Wii, 777,000 units

2) Wii Play with remote, Wii, 415,000 units