The PlayStation 5 has broken the Nintendo Switch‘ 33 consecutive month US best seller record, becoming the best seller for September.
As of May of this year, the Nintendo Switch has sold 85 million units; beating out the lifetime sales of the Game Boy Advance. Back in October 2020, the console already had achieved being the best-selling console in the US for 22 consecutive months. This was broken at 33 consecutive months in September by the PlayStation 5.
As the record was broken in October (as reported by VGC), The NPD Group Executive Director & Video Game Industry Advisor Mat Piscatella revealed his thoughts. He was asked on Twitter if the change was due to good PlayStation 5 sales figures, or a slump in Nintendo Switch sales.
“I think it’s more reflective of supply at this point,” Piscatella explains. “Sony was able to get a big number of PS5s into the market, while Switch was ramping up for OLED release. Tough to say, sales curves aren’t normalized right now.” Sony managed this despite the ongoing chip shortage, and near constant reports of shortages and selling-outs of next-gen consoles.
While the somewhat unpredictable industry has seen more complications in the last few years, Piscatella can see the funny side. “Yes, in normal times the video game market can be unpredictable, but will tease you once in a while with what seems stable but really isn’t. Right now, given how chaotic *everything* is, it’s actually a bit easier. Everyone knows that no one really knows what will happen next.”
Ace Research Institute analyst Hideki Yasuda claimed that new hardware would be key for Nintendo in 2021. For example, new hardware could tempt those who had not yet bought a Nintendo Switch; as seen with the new Nintendo Switch OLED model.
He cited the success of the Game Boy, PlayStation 2, and Nintendo DS; while the Wii and PlayStation 4 had no or practically no variations, and experienced a sharp drops in sales in the latter half of their respective launch years. Yasuda also claimed Nintendo has an “oligopoly” in Japan, while PlayStation game sales have been practically “eradicated.“ Whether this US news will be reflected in Japan remains to be seen.
Image: Nintendo, PlayStation
