May 17th 2024.
Recently, there has been a noticeable decrease in PS5 sales as Sony has revealed that only half of their PlayStation userbase has upgraded to the current generation hardware. This is not entirely surprising, as the current generation of consoles has not quite lived up to its promise. Despite the initial hype, there have been very few exclusive games released that truly showcase the full potential of the new hardware.
There are a few factors that may have contributed to this. The pandemic has caused production shortages and increased costs for AAA games. Additionally, the hardware itself may have reached a technological plateau where the differences between previous and current generation consoles are not as significant.
Another key issue, as highlighted in a recent report, is that many people are content playing games like Fortnite and Minecraft and have not felt the need to upgrade. This could explain the decline in PS5 sales. According to new data from Sony, a significant portion of their userbase has yet to make the switch to the PS5, which was first released in 2020.
As reported earlier this week, Sony has sold 59.2 million PS5 consoles worldwide. While this is an impressive number, it is a 29% decrease from last year's sales, and Sony has acknowledged that the console has already reached its peak. In the same financial report, Sony revealed that there are 118 million monthly active users on PlayStation, indicating that at least half of them are still playing on the PS4. It is possible that some of these users are also on older consoles such as the PS3 or PS Vita, but the number is likely much smaller.
This week, Sony made headlines with the news of 59 million PS5 units sold. This is a great achievement, but it also means that the console is now in the second half of its lifecycle. Sony also revealed that 118 million monthly active users are still on the PS4, which is a significant portion of their playerbase.
While it is not uncommon for a previous generation console to still have a substantial userbase after a new console's release, the number of players still on old hardware after four years is higher than usual. This partly explains why there are fewer PS5 exclusive games being released.
Another reason for the lack of exclusives is that both Sony and Microsoft are focusing on launching games across multiple platforms to maximize profits. This strategy has proven successful with games like Helldivers 2 and Sea of Thieves.
In order to counter the declining PS5 sales, Sony may need to find a way to entice PS4 players to upgrade. This could potentially involve a price drop before the expected launch of the PS5 Pro later this year. There are also rumors of a new handheld device that will focus on playing PS4 games and could act as a bridge between the two systems.
We may hear more about Sony's plans at the upcoming PlayStation Showcase, which is rumored to take place this month, although no official date has been announced yet. One of the few PS5 exclusives, Returnal, has also recently been released on PC.
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In other gaming news, hackers have found a way to play Insomniac's upcoming Wolverine game online, and Sony has sold 50 million PS5 consoles and outsold Xbox 3-to-1. On the other hand, Xbox sales have dropped 27% in Europe compared to last year, while PS5 sales have risen by 376%. And, unfortunately for PC gamers, GTA 6 will not be available at launch as it does not typically sell as well on PC as it does on consoles.
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