Tabletop game sales boomed in accounts tracked by NPD Group in 2020, according to its annual report on the toy category, usually released in advance of New York Toy Fair (canceled due to the Covid pandemic this year, see "Toy Association Cancels Toy Fair 2021").  Game sales were up 29% over sales in 2019, NPD reported, using POS data from chain and online retailers.

Sales of games outperformed the toy category as a whole, which grew a whopping 16% for the year.  NPD pointed to two periods when sales spiked:  in May, as government relief payments were distributed; and in October, as Amazon and other retailers began heavy price promotions in an early kick-off of the holiday season.

As consumers hunkered down, online sales (including curbside and in-store pick-ups) grew much faster than brick-and-mortar sales in 2020, with online sales going from 23% to 33% of sales between 2019 and 2020, NPD reported, driving 75% growth in online toy sales for the year.

Top properties in toys overall were Star Wars, Pokemon, Marvel Universe, Barbie, and L.O.L. Surprise!.