PS5 Software Sales Dropped Following Price Increase to $70
The PlayStation 5 console has been a massive success for Sony, but it seems that isn't translating to game sales. According to numbers released by the company, game unit sales in 2022 were down 39 million from the previous year; that's 264.2 million units sold in 2022 versus 303.2 million in 2021. While first-party game sales have stayed largely the same, third-party game sales accounted for most of the drop off, with 220.70 million units sold in 2022 versus 269.30 million in 2021. Despite this, game sales revenue increased, as software prices jumped from $59.99 to $69.99.
As noted by Techland's Derek Strickland, it seems PlayStation fans are being more selective about which games they purchase as a result of this increase. In an industry where games are regularly discounted a few months after launch, it's plausible that a lot of PS5 users are waiting for price drops before they go ahead and make a purchase. Techland also pointed out that while Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 saw $1 billion in game sales revenue during its first 10 days on the market, that didn't make a big difference in terms of games sold for the quarter; PlayStation sold 6.2 million less games in that window compared to the year prior.
So what does all this mean? For PlayStation, it might not make a whole lot of difference, given the fact that game sales revenue was up, and first-party sales saw little impact. However, third-party publishers might have a lot to think about! Last year, games like Marvel's Midnight Suns struggled to find an audience, despite critical acclaim. If gamers are buying less, publishers might be more selective about which games to bring to market, and about their overall budgets. The $70 price point has been a source of controversy since it was first revealed at the start of this generation, and we might be seeing the first big impact of that change.
Have you become more selective about buying video games as a result of the price increase? Do you think $70 is too expensive? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter and on Hive at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
