PlayStation 4 Japan

It took the PlayStation 4 a day to topple the Nintendo Wii U’s install base in the UK, and little over three months to surpass it globally. However, one place where the platform may struggle to triumph over the House of Mario’s latest machine is Japan, where sales of Sony’s next-gen super machine are already starting to slump after less than a month on the market.

Media Create figures paint a pretty worrying picture of the fresh format's first three weeks available, with the platform moving just 410,083 units since its launch on 22nd February. While this is a much better start than the PlayStation 3, it’s in stark contrast to the rest of the world, where the supercharged system has rarely been in stock long enough to settle on store shelves.

Moreover, the clever editors over at IGN compared the above figure to the Wii U’s first three weeks on the market, and noticed that the PS4 is some 147k units off the pace. While it’s worth noting that Nintendo’s machine did launch within the busy December shopping period, we’re sure that Sony would have expected slightly more comparable results.

Then again, despite being heavily criticised at the time, the manufacturer did opt to release in its home region last, a decision which is starting to look more and more inspired. The sales may be impeded by the lack of relevant blockbuster titles available for the device at the moment, but it’s equally likely that Japan is simply losing interest in the home console space.

The platform holder will be hoping that Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes will give the hardware a lift when it launches later this month. With hotly anticipated sequels Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III still some way away, though, it could be a while before Sony’s next-gen system really takes off in its native territory.

[source uk.ign.com]