The so-called “next generation” consoles arrived in 2020 with the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5. Even though the latter offer much more power and promise 4K and 60 FPS resolutions in some games, sales have not been as high as expected. The main cause is obviously the tension on stocks during the Covid period. But with the return of availability, in recent months things have changed a bit. If the Nintendo Switch is still leading in terms of number of consoles sold, the PS5 has taken the lead in terms of revenue generated. Because we mustn’t forget that the selling price of the last Playstation has been revised considerably upwards.
Did PC gamers switch to the PS5 because of the price?
But the most important question to ask can be found in other figures that Sony just released. There are the raw sales numbers, but also what Sony executives shared during a presentation discussing Q3 2022 results. For example, Sony noted that the percentage of monthly active users increased by about 30 percent in December:
‘nearly 30% of [monthly active users] of the PS5 are users who have never used the PS4, so with the release of the PS5, new user acquisition is growing . Earlier this week, Sony reported that the supply problems were finally over. If you’re looking to buy a PS5 console, you should now have a much easier time finding one at retailers around the world.
So where are these new users coming from who had not previously “tasted” the previous generation of Playstation? It’s hard to say with precision. However, at the end of the year 2022, many of us have met gamers who are tired of the crazy price evolution of the PC platform. Some of them have waited during the whole Covid period to upgrade to the return of honest prices… In vain.
Let’s not fool ourselves. Many of these PC gamers have certainly switched to the PS5. A platform that gives them access to AAA games for less than a next generation graphics card. Hopefully this objective analysis is also done by AMD Nvidia and Intel. Because over the years, the PC has outlived all the consoles and has even become stronger. If tomorrow it should sink, they will be the only ones responsible.
NB: On February 22, Sony will launch its VR solution at a price of $549.99 / €599.99. For this amount, players will have the PS VR2 headset, PS VR2 Sense controllers and a stereo headset.
