Sony has had its biggest sales week in Japan since the launch of the PS5 back in November 2020. During its launch week, the company sold 118k PS5 consoles. However, due to major stock constraints and supply issues, Sony has struggled to hit even close to that number. Last week, the company hit 93,000 units sold which is a stark difference compared to previous weeks.
The jump in sales comes after Sony announced that the PS5 would now be readily available in stores worldwide. The company has improved its stock supply chain and instead of using a reservation list, which it relied on for over two years, gamers can now find PlayStation 5 consoles in stores.
READ MORE – Microsoft Admits Xbox Game Pass “Cannibalises” Game Sales
Sony has also increased its PS5 sales forecast for the year ahead. The company says it aims to now sell 19 million units this year. This is up from the original 13 million units forecasted at the end of 2022.
Reports claim that PS5 sales are increasing across the board and have been for five weeks now. The spike in Japan isn’t signalled by any specific. Sony didn’t have any major game releases this month or in January. This spike is attributed to gamers simply wanting the console.
Microsoft also saw a spike in sales across its Xbox Series S. The console sold 14,000 units last week compared to 830 in the previous week. However, this is mainly due to the price hike which is set to be implemented on 17 February. Gamers are buying the console before Microsoft increases its pricing across the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
While the PS5 has sold a bucket load last week, game sales are basically non-existent for the console in Japan. The top 10 of the week included Switch and Xbox games. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet still sit at No.1. Splatoon 3 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sit at No.2 and No.3 respectively. Other games include Fire Emblem Engage and Minecraft.
- Pokémon Scarlet & Pokémon Violet (Pokémon Company): 31,191 (4,807,491)
- Splatoon 3 (Nintendo): 14,298 units (3,862,841)
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo): 13,858 (5,142,172)
- Fire Emblem Engage (Nintendo): 12,920 (185,920)
- Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life (Marvelous): 9,522 (50,281)
- Minecraft (Microsoft): 7,723 (3,032,742)
- Nintendo Switch Sports (Nintendo): 7,461 (994,203)
- Mario Party Superstars (Nintendo): 6,346 (1,169,936)
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Nintendo): 6,128 (5,116,872)
- Momotaro Electric Railway ~ Showa Heisei Reiwa (Konami): 4,480 (2,840,736)
Source: Famitsu
