October 2021 NPD: PS5 Is Still the Best-Selling US System of the Year

Mmm... Isn't that title a little disingenuous? Like, it's not wrong. But the truth of the matter makes the statement rather irrelevant.

There was room for both a Switch and a PS5 on my shelf so they are playing nicely together.

@Hordak I recently bought the Oled it certainly makes a nice companion piece to the PS5. My wife hogs it though for Animal Crossing but I don't mind as I've got quite the backlog on my PS5!

😍Ps5😍 You little beauty 🙈

The PS5 is certainly doing well but that rapidly growing switch install it’s certainly going to be tempting to developers choosing their lead platform in 2022.

It’s starting to feel like the cross gen period is going to be very long With the weakest of the last gen the systems remaining the best seller in terms of install base growth.

You go FarCry6 to #1... And already in the top 10 best seller of all 2021. "Fun" wins in the end.

I’m fully convinced that if PS5s were easy to find Sony would be at 20 million units already. I honestly haven’t seen demand like this since the PS2.

Call of Duty is the best selling game of the year, it absolutely boggles the mind that people still play that trash.

@Ryall

Switch is a different animal, and they won’t lead on that platform. For two key reasons.

1. Switch software sales are dominated by Nintendo published titles, especially their known big IPs. Third party games sell ok, certainly better than previous generations of Nintendo platforms. But third party games typically don’t see the sales they enjoy on PlayStation, Xbox, or PC thanks to Nintendo’s own software dominating the buying preferences of their customers. I’ll even admit guilt for myself. When I look at my Switch’s catalog on my SD card, it’s 90% Nintendo IP and a handful of classic collections. Dragon Quest XI is the only big name third party title I bought for it.

2. If you’re building a multi platform AAA game, building it primarily for Switch first will horribly hobble your other console versions and on PC. Switch hardware, while impressive for what it is, is significantly behind the PS4, much less your average gaming rig (not the high end ones, but the GTX1060 based rigs that are actually the most common) and certainly far behind the 9th generation consoles and higher end PCs. You wouldn’t be competitive on those other platforms relative to your competition. I hate to say it, but graphical fidelity significantly sells games on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation.

When it comes to third parties, developers should build exclusive experiences for the Switch that cater to its audience. Ubisoft has the right idea with their Mario and Rabbids franchise. License Nintendo IP. Or go for indie and AA development with creative gameplay ideas. Your average Switch gamer isn’t like your average PC or console gamer. It’s a whole other market with different tastes.

For console and PC, focus on what their markets want.

@Dreman99 I wouldn’t call it trash. It’s long in the tooth but I’ll admit that I sunk about 500 hours into Cold War. It’s the guilty pleasure after work when I only have time to play for an hour or so.

Make your own £ to $ conversions but we have:
PS5 = £360 to £450
Switch = £200 to £280

So PS is making more money from a far more expensive console (well, duh!) and Nintendo are shifting more units? I'd say that's 1-0 to Nintendo?

I read this then as Nintendo are beating Sony and winning the console war sales, between the Switch and PS5, but the article title is pure utter clickbait. Sales numbers matter not revenue. Sonys machine costs a lot more to make so unless you can break down if So y is making more profit per console then Nintendo are with the Switch, which is doubtful, then it means bugger all if Sony are making more revenue.