PS5 Japan Hardware Sales 1
Image: Damien McFerran / Push Square

In what will undoubtedly be painted as a humiliating twist for Sony, the PS5 was outsold by the Xbox Series X|S in Japan during the week ending 15th May – and it wasn’t even close. Before we delve any deeper, it’s worth noting that while Microsoft’s console has been doing comparatively well in the Land of the Rising Sun, its install base sits at a mere 204k units to date. The PS5, meanwhile, totals 1.6 million units.

Still, for the first time in over a decade, PlayStation sold fewer units than Xbox in its home territory last week. The Sony system managed just 2,693 units, while Microsoft shifted 6,225 units. As has been the case globally, this outcome can be directly attributed to the lack of PS5 stock available, but it’s still going to generate some commentary online.

PlayStation’s relationship with its home territory hasn’t been the best of late, with Sony putting more and more focus on Western countries, and even closing tentpole domestic developers like Japan Studio. While the PS5 hardware is selling just about as well as it can in the current climate, physical software sales have taken a nosedive.

To put all of this into perspective, Nintendo Switch sold 65,322 units during the past week, and its install base in Japan sits at 24,765,130 units. Neither console manufacturer comes even close to the House of Mario, then, but considering PlayStation has traditionally enjoyed a comfortable advantage over Xbox in its home nation – well, this headline will resonate.

[source famitsu.com, via gematsu.com]