A Quick Look at Console Sales History
In 2014 Jon Peddie Research (JPR) estimates that there were nearly 50 million units of gaming consoles (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Wii) sold. In 2015 we saw a drop to around 40 million units sold, and following in 2016 another drop that was under 35 million units.
JPR has stated that “2016 was a disappointment” in console sales. In 2014 PlayStation, by far one of the most popular gaming systems on the market, had around 15 million units sold. Where as in 2016 only around 10 million were sold, according to business insider.
JPR states that “The enhanced PS4, and VR capability didn’t give the kick Sony and others had hoped for…”
Console Sales Is Projected to Increase by At Least 50% This Year
With the release of the Nintendo Switch and other projects such as Microsoft’s Scorpion there’s an expected jump in sales. According to Business insider, the Nintendo Switch sold nearly 2.74 million units just in march of this year.
JPR estimates that sales will make a 77% increase based off the Switches sales and projects to be released later this year. This would put sales at 60 million units in 2017, 10 million more than that of 2014.
A graph showing past sales and 2017 estimates.
What this means for Consumers
For the average consumer, the amount of sales doesn’t mean all that much. Despite this, the sales of overall consoles and games dictate how quickly games and newer technologies can be put out by companies.
When companies see a drop in sales that usually means fewer people can be on staff to develop new projects and sometimes even new games. This of course means it takes longer to make high quality games. As a result games will either be released well after its original release date or be poorly made and a universal disappointment.
How It’s Made : Videogames
If you’re interested in seeing how video games are made you can watch this video.
Not only does the release of new gaming systems allow gamers to play higher quality content, it allows people who couldn’t afford older systems still being produced to buy them. With a newer release of the PS4 and coming newer versions of the Xbox One people can buy older models for a fraction of the cost, because it’s not the newest model anymore.
The actual numbers may not mean much to the general gamer, but just be sure that when the numbers go up you’ll probably be getting better content.
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