Gaming | May 9, 2023
It was November 15, 2013, when the PS4 arrived in stores to compete with Microsoft, which had done great with the Xbox 360. Unfortunately for Microsoft, the battle quickly tilted in Sony’s favor. Now, with the new generation, it seems that the same thing is going to happen, but which of the two latest PlayStation models has sold more within the same timeframe?
The fact is that seven years later, in November 2020, Sony changed generations and introduced the PS5. Choosing the same month of the year and being on the verge of reaching 30 months of the machine’s life has allowed us to make a comparison with the PS4, one of the machines that has worked best for Sony and that now approaches the figure of 120 million units sold in just over nine years.
However, what happens if we look at such a specific timeframe as the first 30 months? It should be noted that, unlike the PS4, the PS5 has had a tortuous path to establish itself in stores and have sufficient stock for unit sales to stabilize at normal levels. But it turns out that, despite the anomaly experienced between November 2020 and January-February 2023, the sales curve makes it clear that the two consoles have gone practically hand in hand.
As you can see in the image above, in the first year of their respective lifetimes, both PS4 and PS5 sold 15 million units in the same period of time. However, from that point on, the stock shortage wreaked havoc on the next-gen console, leaving its numbers slightly below those of the previous generation. Only in the last two months counted (March 2023), has there been a resurgence in PS5 sales, bringing both generations closer together.
As we mentioned, the lack of stock in stores has been the main obstacle for PS5 to achieve truly remarkable sales figures. Therefore, we must understand that what has happened from January 2021 until now has been a reflection of an anomalous situation due to the component crisis, chips, or whatever it was that was triggered by the pandemic.
As of today, with almost 30 months having passed since the release of PS5, Sony can boast of having sold nearly 40 million consoles worldwide, almost on par with PS4, which is currently the fifth best-selling console of all time behind PS2, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Switch, and Game Boy. This puts us in the highest possible range of sales figures.
Therefore, despite the stock shortages, Sony is likely confident that it can surpass the sales numbers of the previous generation. At least on paper, their expectations are supported by data that corroborates such a milestone. Or do you think otherwise?
