The PlayStation 5 has now surpassed 20 million units sold worldwide and Sony has promised to significantly increase its production efforts within the next six months.
Sony executive Veronica Rogers told gamesindustry.biz that the company is “planning on a significant ramp-up in PS5 production this year” and is “working endlessly to make sure that PlayStation 5 is available for everyone who wants one.”
As noted by industry analyst Daniel Ahmad on Twitter (below), the PS5 hit 20 million units in one year, six months, and 22 days (568 days in total) meaning it’s fallen slightly behind the PS4’s record of hitting 20 million units in one year, three months, and 14 days (471 days in total).
For reference, the PS4 sold 20m units in 15 months and 14 days (471) days.
The PS5 hits 20m units after 18 months and 22 days (568 days).
It’s worth noting that the PS5 actually hit 10m faster than the PS4 did. But the issues with supply is the reason why it’s behind now https://t.co/TVYbguCjvH
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) June 3, 2022
That being said, the PS5 has encountered significant production issues due to component shortages that have plagued the video game industry and beyond, forcing Sony to re-evaluate its sales forecast for the year in February.
The company announced in its latest financial earnings results that 19.3 million PS5s had been sold by the end of the 2021 financial year, meaning the console fell short of its original sales target by 3.3 million units. Its goal for this financial year, however, meaning from April 2022 to March 2023, is to sell an ambitious 18 million units, tying in with Rogers’ comments today about significantly increasing production.
Sony’s chief financial officer Hiroki Totoki said earlier this month that this number was based on the “current visibility into parts procurement”, however, meaning the company is still expecting component shortages to be an issue over the next year.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer who occasionally remembers to tweet @thelastdinsdale. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.