Switch Sales Top 108 Million - Global Hardware May 15-21

[Chrkeller]

The_Liquid_Laser said:

Norion said:

The data is more muddled than I thought but the PS5 version of Elden Ring did outsell the PS4 version in Spain I think. You say later that there are some people who want a hardware upgrade so if you recognize that it's at least some then that's fine. I'm not saying and I don't think anyone else is saying that the main reason the PS5 has been selling is cross-gen games, just that it's one of the reasons since cross-gen games do still sell hardware even if the effect is diminished. Just cause we're saying it's a factor doesn't mean we think it's the main factor, you just seemed to be denying that it's a notable factor at all when it is one. Right now the main reason for it selling is brand power and next year exclusives and gen 9 multiplats will start to increase as a factor.

As I've said before, crossgen games are like ports.  Ports are better than nothing, but who wants a system of only ports?  Likewise if I said, "the Wii U didn't sell", that doesn't mean that I think it literally sold 0 units.  It means that it didn't sell well.  Context matters.  "Crossgen games don't sell hardware" really means "crossgen games do not sell hardware nearly as well as a game that would require you to buy a new system".  The Vita had a lot of ports and crossplatform games.  It sold more than 0 units, but it didn't sell well.

I entered this discussion when curl-6 said something like the PS5 could sell 30m units per year if supply were enough.  I do not think PS5 demand is nearly so high.  In fact, I think supply will catch up with demand this year in spite of chip shortages.  There is this perception that the PS5 is in demand like the Wii was.  I don't think that is the case at all.  The Wii would continue to sell out, because demand was far greater than Nintendo anticipated.  The PS5 is selling out because of limited supply. 

Wii = excessive demand.  PS5 = not enough supply.  I'm using Economics terms.  These are two common ways for the price of a product to go up.  Either increase demand or decrease supply.  In a video game market either situation could cause an entire shipment to be bought and scalped at a higher price.  The PS5 doesn't have amazing demand like the Wii.  It has limited supply.

Here is my personal confusion, a summary of two statements from you are below:

1) ps5 doesn't have true exclusives

2) true exclusives sell hardware

The problem with statement 1 and 2, is the ps5 is in fact selling very well.  So one of your two statements, by default, has to be false.