The PS5 eventually took the top spot in sales in Japan in February, beating even the reigning Nintendo Switch champion.
According to the PS5 website, 366,982 units were sold family (opens in a new tab)which means sales are up 457% year-on-year as Sony only managed to sell 65,772 units in February 2022. Twitter user Genki_JPN (opens in a new tab) he also pointed out that the PS5 sold more units in February than in the first quarter of 2022 combined.
This major news means the PS5 has beaten the Xbox and, more impressively, the Nintendo Switch as the best-selling console in Japan. The Switch came second with 221,041 units sold, so it wasn’t really a close fight.
Fighting with the software
In the week ending February 19, Sony also climbed the list of best-selling software titles, according to the website Press the square (opens in a new tab). Hogwarts Legacy AND Wild hearts topped the chart, selling 36,958 and 26,905 units respectively. However, that’s to be expected given the increased number of PS5 units sold and how new both games are.
Despite Sony taking the top two spots, the next closest title in the rankings was Tales of Symphonia Remastered on PS4, which ranked eighth. Outside of those three games, the Nintendo Switch ruled the software Pokémon Scarlet/Purple AND Splatoon 3 both are at the top of the stack.
The secret of success
While it’s shocking to see the PS5 end Nintendo’s impressive streak, it’s not so surprising that this success comes now as news has surfaced that the PS5 shortage in Asia has come to an end.
This massive surge in sales comes in tandem with Sony’s announcement that the company has finally resolved the supply issues that plagued this next-gen console around the world.
Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan told the audience at the gala PlayStation Partner Rewards (opens in a new tab) that Sony finally resolved the PS5 shortages in December 2022. His message seemed to be aimed at Japanese audiences, as the company can now ship next-gen consoles to “many customers in Japan and Asia”, kicking off “the buying season for the end of this year and into 2023 .”.
Therefore, an increase in the number of units available would naturally result in an increase in the number of units sold. However, this does not detract from the incredible success that PS5 has had, especially in the face of Nintendo Switch.