Despite the rocky economy of both Xbox and PlayStation, PlayStation consistently comes out on top. Even since the PlayStation 2 came out, it has always been ahead of the curve. However, the gap closed between the PS3 and Xbox 360, with the PS3 coming out by 7.5 million units. Skipping to the present day, the PlayStation 5 has sold a significantly higher amount of units, with a number of 61.7 million units being sold compared to the Xbox Series X|S, which has only sold 28.3 million units as of June 2024.
In a video released by WSJ on YouTube, they did a deep dive into why the Xbox has failed in the market, specifically the Xbox Series X|S. To some, it may come as a surprise, as Microsoft constantly reminded people in their advertising that the Xbox Series X was the most powerful console they’d ever made. Yet, it still just didn’t have enough benefits to warrant buying. At least with PlayStation, there are exclusives, with some making their way to PC. Xbox hasn’t had any exclusive games in a while. Xbox was needed to play games like Halo and Gears of War. However, the launch of their subscription service meant that you no longer needed a console for that.
Multiple reports and data have suggested that they have definitively lost the console war to PlayStation and even the Nintendo Switch. Therefore, they are now shifting their focus onto the Xbox Game Pass subscription service to try and funnel money back into Microsoft and their gaming sector.
As stated in the video, when consoles were first introduced to the gaming industry and players, they were often sold as cheaply as possible. This means the companies were selling them at a loss to try to entice people into gaming and become frequent customers. For Xbox, they lose $200 per console. Even though Xbox is the main focus of this video, it can’t be forgotten that PlayStation has also been struggling financially as of late. So much so that the original PlayStation 5 has seen price increases in multiple parts of the world. Japan saw a $90 increase in both console versions, and the US saw a $5 increase in the Dualshock controllers.
Then, Sony announced the PlayStation 5 Pro. Immediately, fans were unhappy. Not only was the price extortionate for what it is, but the features it came with didn’t make the console feel worthwhile. On top of that, those who want a physical game collection will have to fork out an extra sum of money to purchase a disk drive and the console’s stand.
PlayStation may be on top, with 61.7 million units sold worldwide as of June 2024. Still, with their recent decisions regarding the PlayStation 5 Pro, it’s becoming increasingly likely that they won’t see as many sales as previous consoles they’ve made. It’s already affected the market, as people in Japan are suddenly flocking to buy an Xbox Series console rather than fork out for the PlayStation 5 pro. It may be possible that Nintendo will come out on top when they announce the successor of the Nintendo Switch.
