A fresh analysis has cast a brighter beam on the gaming sector scene with respect to the general magnitude and wellbeing of the sector, and in particular, it affirms that the PlayStation 5 is anticipated to extend its lead over the Xbox Series X|S in the days ahead. Furthermore, the study also alludes that the following Nintendo hardware platform will debut in 2024.
Ampere Analysis noted in a recent study that, by the close of 2022, PlayStation 5 had achieved a milestone of 30 million units sold, in comparison to the Xbox Series X|S’s 18.5 million. Sony traditionally reports PS5 sales figures at three-month intervals, yet Microsoft has abandoned its practice of divulging Xbox sales figures, leaving it uncertain where Ampere’s data has been sourced from, aside from its own estimations.
Despite the fact that both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X encountered supply shortages in 2022, the Series S appeared to be more readily accessible, permitting Microsoft to capitalize on the shortage in Sony’s inventory and garner a slight increase in market share.
However, PS5 supply has rebounded dramatically, leading Ampere to anticipate a widening of the difference between the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S sales in the initial six months of 2023.
The PS5 and Xbox Series X|S may be the latest and greatest consoles on the market, but they still have a long way to go before they can contend with the juggernaut that is the Nintendo Switch. According to the latest figures, the Switch has already sold an astonishing 122.5 million units as of December 31, 2022, and it appears that there may be more to come. Recent reports suggest that Nintendo are already planning the launch of a next-generation console towards the end of 2024, although no specifics have been revealed as of yet.
Rumors of a more powerful Switch have been circulating for some time, though Nintendo has stayed tight-lipped about any potential plans for such a device. They have, however, affirmed their commitment to developing and releasing a new console prior to the start of the 21st century. Already having launched the Switch Lite in 2019 and an OLED edition in October 2021, fans have yet to see the much-discussed “pro” model come to fruition.
For 2022 overall, on a worldwide scale, total spending on video games experienced a dip of 7.8% year-over-year to $56.2 billion, as reported by Ampere. The firm attributed this to the postponement of “major game releases” to 2023 and a scarcity of the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Despite the downward trend in sales, Ampere highlighted that spending on video games globally had increased 18% compared to pre-pandemic levels from 2019.
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