Console gaming is hot, and the Nintendo Switch is a big reason for that. Through the first 10 months of a console’s life, Nintendo’s hybrid home/handheld system is the fastest-selling system ever in the United States. But that hasn’t hurt PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sales, as those devices are still selling faster than their predecessors, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group.
“Combined sales of PlayStation 4 and Xbox One continue on a record-setting pace,” NPD analyst Mat Piscatella said. “Over the first 50 months in market for each console, the combined hardware installed base of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One now exceeds that of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 by 18 percent, and that of the PlayStation 2 and Xbox by 4 percent.”
Microsoft and Sony have both worked to give their fans a reason to upgrade their consoles with upgraded versions of their systems. The Xbox One X launched last year and the PlayStation 4 Pro launched in 2016. Both enable 4K resolutions to varying degrees, and both are aimed at the hardcore. This gives the biggest fans and highest spenders a reason to buy new hardware and it floods low-priced used consoles into the secondary market.
But with the introduction of the Switch, the ongoing success of the PS4 and Xbox One seems to suggest that those systems have their own, large dedicated fan bases beyond generic “fans of gaming.” The Switch also has that, and it is pulling from an audience of consumers that have, generally speaking, not completely committed to Microsoft or Sony.
Or maybe they are like me and own to many different ways to play games.
