Sony’s PS5 is currently the weakest sales console in recent history in Japan, after accusations that the country has neglected the country.
It was recently revealed that Sony’s PlayStation 5 sells worse in Japan than any other home console in the country’s recent history. This news comes after many Japanese fans and analysts publicly accused Sony of not taking the Japanese market seriously.
PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan has denied the validity of these allegations, but recent developments indicate otherwise. Outside of Japan, the PS5 was incredibly popular, leading to console shortages from the start of launch (though it would be easier to find a PS5 this year). Of course, the PS5 also has a shortage of supply in Japan due to COVID-19 production problems, but it seems that the console was not received with the same great praise in Sony’s home country.
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A translation of a GamesIndustry.biz Japan Edition article by ResetEra user SinCItyAssassin reveals that the PlayStation 5 is currently becoming the lowest-selling home console in recent Japanese history. Part of the translation reads:
“PS5 sales in the 4th and 5th week are about 11,000 units, while the 6th week is 17,000 units. These sales are far too low. The total sales of 240,000 are by far the lowest in the history of PlayStation home consoles. If that happened then he would have to spend less than half as much as he did on PS4. ‘
The article notes that Japanese gamers may feel this way due to a variety of factors, including Sony’s censorship of games for Japanese audiences. The PS5 unveiled this summer with no Japanese narrative, and the DualSense controller’s confirmation button being changed from O to X was already the case in other countries outside Japan), and the original launch of PS5 units in Japan was barely more than that of the PS3, which prevented early adopters from acquiring the new console.
Despite the fact that the PlayStation 4 was so well received worldwide, according to the chart above, it sold less than the Nintendo GameCube and PS3 in Japan and sold the Dreamcast (which was only on the market for only three years). a trend that could continue with Sony’s latest console. This is probably not something Sony wants to see happen in its own backyard, because the PlayStation 5 lags so far behind its predecessor.
On the other hand, Sony may be ok that it’s a side effect of its more global approach to late. The company certainly knew there would be a setback if they made decisions such as swapping the X and O buttons or moving the PlayStation headquarters to California. That is, maybe Sony is indeed okay with its latest console which has less lifespan than the Dreamcast in Japan, as it means that the kind of success in other countries is that the PlayStation 4 and 5 had.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz Japan Edition, ResetEra
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