According to recent court documents from Brazil, the PS4 was much more successful than the Xbox One.
Microsoft has consistently refused to disclose sales figures for its Xbox consoles, so we are unsure of how well or poorly they have performed in comparison to PlayStation and Nintendo’s systems. The PS4 apparently sold more than twice as many units as the Xbox One, according to Microsoft, according to recent court documents.
In 2013, Microsoft unveiled the Xbox One, emphasizing TV, Kinect, and multimedia entertainment. This ultimately led to the early years of the platform failing as Sony’s then-current console, the PlayStation 4, focused exclusively on games, leading to lopsided sales in favor of Sony. A few years after its botched launch, Xbox One eventually distanced itself from all TV-related activities, and Microsoft ceased disclosing the console’s sales figures.
Game Luster was the first to discover this Xbox One information in Microsoft submissions to Brazil’s national competition watchdog. The documents, which The Verge was able to interpret, show that Sony sold more than twice as many PS4 systems as Microsoft sold its previous-generation Xbox.
Microsoft admitted in court documents posted earlier this month that Sony had overtaken it in terms of console sales and installed base after selling more than twice as many Xbox [consoles] in the previous generation.
Given that Microsoft ceased disclosing Xbox One sales data in 2016, the majority of observers and analysts already assumed the Xbox One had not performed as well as the PS4. It’s also surprising to learn that the Xbox One and PS4 look to have a huge market share disparity, with the PS4 selling more than twice as many units as the Xbox.
Microsoft accuses Sony of preventing games from being added to Game Pass.
The court documents are a part of Microsoft’s ongoing legal battle as it continues to come under fire from numerous regulatory bodies and governments around the world for its contentious and significant Activision Blizzard acquisition.
When Sony last disclosed its PS4’s lifetime sales, I did some quick math and came up with a little over 117 million. The Xbox One thus sold fewer than 58 million units. According to expert studies from the past, the true number of Xbox One consoles sold is probably closer to 55 million. Here are some similar figures. Global sales of the Xbox 360 reached 84 million at the end of 2014. By the end of 2019, the WiiU has shipped roughly 13 million systems. The Xbox One therefore neatly fits between those two vintage devices.
Microsoft obviously wants to sell more Xbox systems since every business wants to sell more of their crap, but in recent years, the tech giant has made it clear that it is more concerned with expanding its services like Game Pass than with shipping consoles. Microsoft has discovered a well-liked and effective way to get Xbox games and services into your living room without needing to get an Xbox in there, too, as Game Pass has become accessible on additional devices and platforms via streaming.
