14 DAY TRIAL // The impressive initial sales numbers posted by the PlayStation 4 have shown Sony that its new home console is a strong force in the marketplace and the company is thinking about breaking the sales records of the PS2 and the original Wii from Nintendo.
John Koller, who leads the hardware division of Sony, tells CVG that, “I don't think that's really the goal though. Again, it's really about; how can we just get the biggest possible install base. I don't think we have a specific number that we're shooting for because that's where the PS2 was or that's where the Wii was.”
The executive says that the PlayStation 4 beat both mentioned rivals during its first 24 hours on the market.
The PlayStation 4 has sold 4.2 million units as of December 28, 2013, which is better than the figures that the Xbox One from Microsoft managed during the same timeframe.
Koller adds, “I think that has brought a lot of people into the fold who I think would otherwise have said, ‘Wait, I'm not sure which, maybe I'll just make a decision based on where my friends are’. In this case they're saying, ‘I know that PlayStation stands with me’. So we return that favor by making sure the best games come.”
The big problem for both next-gen home consoles is that they are currently only offering a small selection of platform exclusives and launch titles, but that should change later during the year.
At the same time, both Sony and Microsoft need to deal with the fact that their devices are not actually available on store shelves in many places and, in the future, supply might be even more constrained.
The PlayStation 4 is at the moment available in the US and the EU and will be offered starting on February 22 in Japan.