Xbox Series X/S surpasses PlayStation 5 in monthly sales in North America and Europe

Both the Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 have been on sale for nearly a year and a half, and sales have been good, but many gamers are still struggling to buy next-gen consoles due to supply and premium sales. The situation is largely the result of a global chip shortage, and the PlayStation 5 appears to be the one console most affected.

According to the NPD Group, console sales fell overall in February, with hardware sales in North America down 27% year-on-year and worse in Europe, where sales fell 32%. Of course, the magnitude of the declines for different game consoles is not the same. In any case, thanks to the better supply situation, Microsoft has beaten Sony this time, and the monthly sales of the Xbox Series X/S in both North America and Europe have exceeded the PlayStation 5 for the first time, but both are still lost to Nintendo.

In fact, when PlayStation 5 sales were booming last year and due to shortage supply, Sony quietly lowered PlayStation 5 production. According to Sony, procuring parts and logistics for the PlayStation 5 has become increasingly difficult due to various constraints in the supply chain, and even revised its original sales targets.

Not sure if the severe supply issues the PlayStation 5 has suffered will be a long-term phenomenon, perhaps Microsoft can use this opportunity to fill the void and grab more market share. NPD Group analyst Mat Piscatella said, in the past year or so, hardware sales have been closely related to supply, and sometimes players did not choose products on their own initiative. Therefore, it is impossible to fully understand players’ preferences by analyzing only hardware sales.