After four months of the Xbox One outselling Sony’s console, the PlayStation 4 is back on top.
The PS4 was the best-selling home gaming system in the United States in November, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group. Sony Interactive Entertainment’s box got a boost from the release of the PlayStation 4 Pro, which is a 4K-capable upgrade that launched November 10. This is the first time since June that the PS4 outsold the Xbox One. Sony, Microsoft, and NPD all declined to offer exact numbers.
November is one of the two biggest months of the year for video game and hardware sales. It kicks off the holiday-shopping season, and it can often represent a significant chunk of a gaming publisher’s or hardware company’s annual revenues. That was likely once again the case this year, as data from Adobe suggests the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One were among the most in-demand products for online shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Sony denied to comment on the November NPD numbers, but Microsoft provided a statement from Xbox marketing boss Mike Nichols where he confirmed that consumers have a strong hunger for consoles.
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“We have seen strong momentum for Xbox One since announcing the new Xbox One S at E3 in June,” Nichols said. “That momentum continued in November as gaming consoles were once again among the most sought-after products to buy over Black Friday weekend. In addition, we saw record engagement among Xbox One owners on Xbox Live as fans enjoyed new games and great deals. In fact, the total players online on Sunday, November 27 was up 40 percent compared to last year.”
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