Yesterday the NPD Group released the sales data for the PS4 and the Xbox One and both manufacturers began announcing the data with loud celebration. Since the launch of the Playstation 4 on November 15, 2013, the console has sold 2.1 million units. On the other side of the coin, the Xbox has sold 2 million units since the launch on November 22, 2013.
As soon as this data was released the Playstation Blog released the following:
It’s now clear that the launch of PS4 is one for the record books. This afternoon we learned from market research firmNPD Group that PS4 was the top-selling console for November and PlayStation was #1 in sales overall for home consoles. This news comes on the heels of yesterday’s confirmation that the PS4 launch is the biggest ever in the history of game consoles. Ever! And it’s all thanks to you.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft released a statement via The Xbox Wire
Xbox has seen record-breaking sales with the recent announcement of Xbox One selling more than 2 million units through to consumers worldwide since its launch. November NPD Group figures released today revealed 909,132 Xbox One units were sold in the U.S. in the console’s first nine days, making it the fastest selling console on the market in the U.S. Xbox One sales averaged a volume of more than 101,000 consoles per day, significantly outpacing the nearest competitor.
Globally, both consoles hit the 2 million point during November, and both announcements are true. Playstation 4 was the most successful console launch in history, and the Xbox One did sell at a faster pace due to the shorter time frame of availability. I guess the biggest news to me is the staggering sales numbers for the next generation launch. The Playstation 3 only sold just over 81,000 units during its first month of availability. The Xbox 360 sold roughly five times that during its debut month. That generation was filled with the cries of victory from Microsoft, and of course, fierce battling between fan boys. This generation has released very differently, while the two manufacturers try to show their victories and reaffirm their consumers purchases, I truly believe we are one step closer to getting every game, on whatever we have.
The news truly states that whichever system you bought, you are a winner. Developers have ample reason to release titles on both platforms due to the staggering numbers. Releasing for both gives them a chance to increase their sales by 100%. Third-party developers would be amiss to develop for one console exclusively without special contracts in place from the manufacturers. Exclusivity will still be something we see continuing in the coming years, but mark my words, it is going to be a lot less common now.