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Sony’s PS5 is currently the best-selling home console in recent Japanese history after accusations the company has overlooked the country.
It was recently revealed that Sony PlayStation 5 sells worse in Japan than any other home console in the country’s recent history. The news comes after many Japanese fans and analysts have publicly accused Sony of not taking the Japanese market seriously.
PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan has denied the validity of these accusations, but recent developments suggest otherwise. Outside of Japan, the PS5 has been incredibly popular, leading to a shortage of consoles early on in its launch (although finding a PS5 should be easier this year). Of course, the PS5 has also faced supply shortages in Japan due to COVID-19 production difficulties, but it looks like the console hasn’t received the same widespread praise in the home country of Sony.
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A translation of a GamesIndustry.biz Japan Edition article of ResetEra User SinCItyAssassin reveals that the PlayStation 5 is currently on its way to becoming the lowest-selling home console in recent Japanese history. Part of the translation reads as follows:
“Sales of PS5 in weeks 4 and 5 are around 11,000 units, while week 6 is 17,000 units. These sales are far too low. Total sales of 240,000 are by far the lowest in the history of PlayStation consoles. If that was the case continue, lifetime sales of PS5 might end up at less than half of PS4. “
The article notes that Japanese gamers may experience this due to various factors, including Sony’s censorship of games for Japanese audiences, the reveal of this summer’s PS5 without Japanese narration, with the confirmation button on the DualSense controller being changed from O to X (this was already the case in other countries outside of Japan), and the initial launch allowance of PS5 units in Japan was barely higher than that of the PS3, preventing early users to get the new console.
Although the PlayStation 4 was so well received around the world, according to the graph above, it sold less than the Nintendo GameCube and PS3 in Japan and only narrowly exceeded the Dreamcast (which only was on the market for only three years), a trend that could continue with Sony’s latest console. Sony probably doesn’t want the PlayStation 5 to lag behind its predecessor in its own backyard.
On the other hand, Sony may be okay with this being a side effect of its more holistic approach lately. The company surely knew there would be backlash when it made decisions like swapping the X and O buttons or moving the PlayStation headquarters to California. That is to say, maybe Sony indeed agrees with its latest console to have less lifespan than the Dreamcast in Japan if that means having the type of commercial success in countries other than the PlayStation 4 and 5 have had.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz Japan Edition, ResetEra
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