Xbox is outselling the PS5 in Japan as Sony struggles with supply issues.
According to Famitsu, the Xbox Series console family sold 6,695 units during the period June 13-19, which eclipses PS5's 3,035 sales. While Sony remains far ahead of Xbox in terms of Japanese sales overall, this marks the second time this generation that weekly sales have been significantly in Microsoft's favour.
Supply constraints continue to cause havoc. Xbox Series outsold PS5 for a second week in Japan last week. https://t.co/TlklXx5EOU
Series S: 3,423
Series X: 3,272
PS5: 2,371
DE: 664— John Welfare (@Welfare_JBP) June 23, 2022
Last month, Famitsu reported that Microsoft managed to sell 6,120 Xbox Series S units in the week May 9-15, with an additional 105 Xbox Series X consoles also sold in the same period. The PS5 managed to shift just 2,963 units, placing it well behind.
It’s thought that Sony is currently suffering PS5 shortages on the back of supply chain issues. IGN Japan staff report that it's simply more difficult to find a PS5 in Japan, and that Xbox consoles – particularly the Series S – are much easier to come by.
It finally happened. Xbox Series S by itself outsold the PS5 in Japan last week (May 9-15).
Xbox Series S – 6,120
Xbox Series X – 105PlayStation 5 (Disc+Digital) – 2,963https://t.co/UkBOIwNghU
— Alex Aniel (@cvxfreak) May 19, 2022
This is a huge milestone for Microsoft, which has historically struggled in Japan. To put it into perspective, last year the Xbox Series X/S was lucky to get 3,000 sales combined, but with supply chain issues hammering Sony’s PS5 sales numbers, Xbox is capitalizing on its absence from the market.
But this is, unfortunately, likely to be a temporary boost for Microsoft. By comparison, the PS5 sold 12,440 units the week before this new milestone, with the Xbox Series consoles only managing to shift a combined total of 6,242 units. That's not exactly a sign that Xbox is completely turning things around in the region.
It does looks as though Xbox is benefitting from Sony's supply chain issues, then, albeit temporarily. The figures don't mean that Sony is losing its foothold in the region, as lifetime sales show a reasonably healthy uptake of the PS5 in Japan. Since launch, Famitsu reports that the PS5 has sold a massive 1.69 million consoles, while the Xbox Series has sold just 232,000 units – a marked difference. And don’t even bother comparing these to the Nintendo Switch, which has shifted a colossal 24.7 million units across all versions.
Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.