PS4 has sold more games than any other console; PS5 hardware sales outpace PS4

PS4 PS5 side by side

Sony reported its earnings this week. Along with it came some interesting nuggets on how well the PS4 and PS5 are doing.

Sony saw its profits for the quarter ending March 31, 2021 double from the previous year, although it expects profits to fall as increased demand for at-home entertainment during the pandemic begins to subside.

The PlayStation division brought in an impressive $25 billion in revenue and banked a $3.2 billion profit during fiscal year 2020. That’s both a company and an industry-wide record. PlayStation Store accounted for $13.7 billion worth of the division’s revenue as digital sales accelerate.

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PS5 console sales record

The PlayStation 5 launched last November. Sony has struggled to keep up with demand ever since. Despite empty store shelves and a semiconductor shortage, Sony has sold through nearly 8 million PS5 consoles since launch. That’s enough for PS5 sales to outpace the PS4 during the same post-launch period. PS4 launched in November 2013.

PS4 game sales record

Meanwhile, the PS4 is not slacking at all, at least on the software front. Sony’s last-gen console has now sold more games than any other console in history. To date, 1.577 billion PS4 games have sold worldwide. That surpasses the previously record-holder – the PS2 – which sold 1.537 billion games during its decade-long run in the 2000s.

My Take

It’s not terribly surprising that the PS5 is doing well. The PS4 has been a smashing success (see above). To a certain extent, that success was expected to carry over. What is surprising is that Sony’s next-gen console is already outpacing the PS4. It’s all the more impressive that Sony is managing these numbers with industry-wide supply shortages.

Does the momentum hold throughout 2021? Most likely, at least if Sony can keep up with demand. But at some point they’re really going to have to start delivering some must-own console exclusives.

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