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[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Famitsu Sales: 2/24/25 - 3/2/25 has been updated with software sales rankings 11 to 30.

Software Sales (followed by lifetime sales):

1. [PS5] Monster Hunter Wilds (Capcom, 02/28/25) – 601,179 (New)
2. [NSW] Yu-Gi-Oh! Early Days Collection (Konami, 02/27/25) – 49,862 (New)
3. [NSW] Wizardry: The Five Ordeals (G*Spark Publishing, 02/27/25) – 11,299 (New)
4. [NSW] Super Mario Party Jamboree (Nintendo, 10/17/24) – 10,746 (1,209,807)
5. [NSW] Donkey Kong Country Returns HD (Nintendo, 01/16/25) – 10,418 (216,581)
6. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo, 04/28/17) – 10,062 (6,269,164)
7. [PS5] Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii (SEGA, 02/21/25) – 9,389 (77,608)
8. [PS4] Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii (SEGA, 02/21/25) – 7,545 (44,487)
9. [NSW] Okayu Nyumu! (Entergram, 02/27/25) – 5,932 (New)
10. [NSW] Minecraft (Microsoft, 06/21/18) – 5,047 (3,820,765)
11. [NSW] Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo, 03/20/20) – 3,933 (8,081,166)
12. [NSW] Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Nintendo, 12/07/18) – 3,579 (5,726,472)
13. [NSW] Pokemon Scarlet / Pokemon Violet (The Pokemon Company, 11/18/22) – 3,408 (5,529,413)
14. [NSW] Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Nintendo, 10/20/23) – 3,363 (1,995,101)
15. [NSW] Utawarerumono Trilogy Set (Aquaplus, 02/27/25) – 3,135 (New)
16. [NSW] Fuyuzono Sacrifice (Idea Factory, 02/27/25) – 2,544 (New)
17. [NSW] Nintendo Switch Sports (Nintendo, 04/29/22) – 2,431 (1,554,024)
18. [NSW] Ring Fit Adventure (Nintendo, 10/18/19) – 2,344 (3,700,604)
19. [NSW] Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake (Square Enix, 11/14/24) – 2,121 (998,416)
20. [NSW] Cladun X3 (Nippon Ichi Software, 02/27/25) – 2,091 (New)
21. [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo, 10/27/17) – 2,058 (2,554,216)
22. [NSW] Splatoon 3 (Nintendo, 09/09/22) – 2,001 (4,425,610)
23. [NSW] Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics (Nintendo, 06/05/20) – 1,927 (1,385,559)
24. [NSW] Pikmin 4 (Nintendo, 07/21/23) – 1,809 (1,301,682)
25. [NSW] It Takes Two (Electronic Arts, 12/08/22) – 1,801 (127,449)
26. [NSW] Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 Special Price (SEGA, 11/17/22) – 1,777 (243,179)
27. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 1,710 (2,371,471)
28. [NSW] Monster Hunter Rise + Sunbreak Set Best Price (Capcom, 11/16/23) – 1,643 (70,302)
29. [PS5] Dynasty Warriors: Origins (Koei Tecmo, 01/17/25) – 1,411 (101,119)
30. [NSW] Momotaro Dentetsu World: Chikyuu wa Kibou de Mawatteru! (Konami, 11/16/23) – 1,270 (1,231,831)

Famitsu Sales: 2/24/25 – 3/2/25 [Update]

Famitsu has published its estimated physical game software data for Japan for the week of February 24, 2025 to March 2, 2025.

www.gematsu.com

 

[Celine]

Nice pump for PS5. Fantastic launch for MH!

"fantastic launch" shown in OP:
01./00. [PS5] Monster Hunter Wilds # <ACT> (Capcom) {2025.02.28} (¥9.082) - 601.179 / NEW <60-80%>

01./00. [PS4] Monster Hunter: World # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.01.26} (¥8.980) - 1.350.412 / NEW <80-100%>

PS debut physical sales declined 56% compared to MH World on PS4.
As mentioned with FFVII Rebirth, that had an even more severe decline in its debut (64%), the lack of digital sales isn't an assured 'saving face' excuse as many think because digital need to recoup a big gap just to match the physical sales of the previous entry which itself had digital sales.

To note that while MH World (PS4) physical stocks were near sold-out (80-100%) during the debut, the same cannot be said for MH Wilds (PS5) which is at the range 60-80%.
A state of near sold out of the physical stocks is a factor that boost digital sales at launch (compared to the situation in which there are ample supplies of physical goods).

What I'm looking forward about this japanese launch of MH Wilds is the growth of PC sales.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Interested to see next weeks numbers. Is this a blip increase in sales or will it continue.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

"fantastic launch" shown in OP:
01./00. [PS5] Monster Hunter Wilds # <ACT> (Capcom) {2025.02.28} (¥9.082) - 601.179 / NEW <60-80%>

01./00. [PS4] Monster Hunter: World # <ACT> (Capcom) {2018.01.26} (¥8.980) - 1.350.412 / NEW <80-100%>

PS debut physical sales declined 56% compared to MH World on PS4.
As mentioned with FFVII Rebirth, that had an even severe decline in its debut (64%), the lack of digital sales isn't an assured 'saving face' excuse as many think because digital need to recoup a big gap just to match the physical sales of the previous entry which itself had digital sales.

To note that while MH World (PS4) physical stocks were near sold-out (80-100%) during the debut, the same cannot be said for MH Wilds (PS5) which is at the range 60-80%.
A state of near sold out of the physical stocks is a factor that boost digital sales at launch (compared to the situation in which there are ample supplies of physical goods).

What I'm looking forward about this japanese launch of MH Wilds is the growth of PC sales.

In FY18, Sony reported 257.6 million units of software. Digital represented 37%.

In FY23, Sony reported 286.4 million units of software. Digital represented 70 percent... That ratio is even higher in FY24 (up 6% YOY)

Those of you who continue to ignore the inverse relationship with physical and digital and suggest that physical charts can be used to compare 2025 results and 2018 results are absolutely laughable. It reflects a massive deficit of critical thinking.

 

[gerth666]

Those of you who continue to ignore the inverse relationship with physical and digital and suggest that physical charts can be used to compare 2025 results and 2018 results are absolutely laughable. It reflects a massive deficit of critical thinking.

It suggests confirmation bias to me.
They simply look at data that reflects their opinion.
With monster hunter launching day and date on pc I'm sure that contributes to a small percentage lower ps5 sales, but the bigger contribution is clearly that digital is now a growing factor. Just as the playstation financials indicates.

 

[John Wick]

MH World was physically out of stock when launched on the market that forced the mass to go for digital version, while Wilds wasn't.

What were the respective install base sizes of the consoles at time of release?
Also the adoption of digital is far higher than 2018. I would say it could nearly be double now. But keep trying

 

[Mibu no ookami]

What were the respective install base sizes of the consoles at time of release?
Also the adoption of digital is far higher than 2018. I would say it could nearly be double now. But keep trying

PS4 had 6,220,546 units sold whereas the PS5 has 6,666,457 units. Given the price of the PS5, how recent the PS5 Pro has launched, the price of the PS5 Pro... to be ahead of the PS4 is quite an achievement.

With a proper price drop, the PS5 should easily outsell the PS4 in Japan. Onimusha and Ghost of Yotei will certainly help as will future Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts games.

 

[pulicat]

PS4 had 6,220,546 units sold whereas the PS5 has 6,666,457 units. Given the price of the PS5, how recent the PS5 Pro has launched, the price of the PS5 Pro... to be ahead of the PS4 is quite an achievement.

With a proper price drop, the PS5 should easily outsell the PS4 in Japan. Onimusha and Ghost of Yotei will certainly help as will future Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts games.

None of those will help PS5 in Japan, DQ12 will boost Nintendo hardware instead of Playstation.

MH Wilds sales drops ~50% from Worlds
Rebirth sales drops ~62% from Remake
XVI sales drops ~53% from XV

It's over for PS5 when Switch 2 release in Japan.

 

[Kerotan]

Switch just can't compete with ps5. Sony the top dog in Japan.

 

[LordOcidax]

None of those will help PS5 in Japan, DQ12 will boost Nintendo hardware instead of Playstation.

MH Wilds sales drops ~50% from Worlds
Rebirth sales drops ~62% from Remake
XVI sales drops ~53% from XV

It's over for PS5 when Switch 2 release in Japan.

PS5 couldn’t even beat the Switch 1 in Japan, the home console market is dead over there, The Switch 2 is going to be a bloodbath and i think that we are not going to see another 100K+ week of sales for the PS5 in a very long time, maybe for GTA6.

 

[T_T]

Series' sales are less than half of last week's. Yeah they must have massively reduced the manufacturing of those

 

[Woopah]

In FY18, Sony reported 257.6 million units of software. Digital represented 37%.

In FY23, Sony reported 286.4 million units of software. Digital represented 70 percent... That ratio is even higher in FY24 (up 6% YOY)

Those of you who continue to ignore the inverse relationship with physical and digital and suggest that physical charts can be used to compare 2025 results and 2018 results are absolutely laughable. It reflects a massive deficit of critical thinking.

Digital doesn't explain the size of the difference in Japan though. If we look purely at retail unit sales, PS5 software sales are notably below those of the PS4.

If we apply the rapidly increasing digital share as per Sony's reports, PS5 software is still notably below those of PS4. Digital alone is unlikely to explain the gap.

Now of course that can change in the future with PS5 getting a much better lineup, and 2025 is clearly off to a strong start.

None of those will help PS5 in Japan, DQ12 will boost Nintendo hardware instead of Playstation.

MH Wilds sales drops ~50% from Worlds
Rebirth sales drops ~62% from Remake
XVI sales drops ~53% from XV

It's over for PS5 when Switch 2 release in Japan.

Appealing software clearly does help PS5. This week just proved that.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Digital doesn't explain the size of the difference in Japan though. If we look purely at retail unit sales, PS5 software sales are notably below those of the PS4.

You're comparing end of life PS4 to life to date PS5. LTD PS5 is ahead.

If we apply the rapidly increasing digital share as per Sony's reports, PS5 software is still notably below those of PS4. Digital alone is unlikely to explain the gap.

You're ignoring the rise of F2P... The largest F2P game on PS5 in Japan in Genshin Impact... which launched in 2020.

Now of course that can change in the future with PS5 getting a much better lineup, and 2025 is clearly off to a strong start.

PS5 still has many more arrows in its quicker than the PS4 did at this point. I named them and it's not just the lineup of games, but the price elasticity is also a major factor.

 

[Woopah]

You're comparing end of life PS4 to life to date PS5. LTD PS5 is ahead.

No I'm not. I'm comparing the first 3 full calendar years of PS4 to the first 3 years of PS5. PS4 has 3 months less time on the market in this comparison but the retail results are:

PS4 - 16,228,560
PS5 - 5,403,820

PS5 could have a 70% digital ratio and it's total software sales would still be below the PS4's retail-only sales.

You're ignoring the rise of F2P... The largest F2P game on PS5 in Japan in Genshin Impact... which launched in 2020.

No I'm not. Why do you keep accusing me of ignoring things?

My whole argument is that there are more factors beside digital. The rise of F2P is likely to be one of those factors in the decline of software sales.

PS5 still has many more arrows in its quicker than the PS4 did at this point. I named them and it's not just the lineup of games, but the price elasticity is also a major factor.

Agreed.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

No I'm not. I'm comparing the first 3 full calendar years of PS4 to the first 3 years of PS5. PS4 has 3 months less time on the market in this comparison but the retail results are:

PS4 - 16,228,560
PS5 - 5,403,820

PS5 has been out for over 4 years now, not sure why you're saying first 3 years, and I'm not sure where you're getting these numbers for PS4 and PS5. I can tell you that the PS4 did not sell 16 million units in Japan.

PS5 could have a 70% digital ratio and it's total software sales would still be below the PS4's retail-only sales.


No I'm not. Why do you keep accusing me of ignoring things?

My whole argument is that there are more factors beside digital. The rise of F2P is likely to be one of those factors in the decline of software sales.

You're focused on a 70% digital ratio not closing the gap on software sales, but you're ignoring that F2P takes up engagement. It's not as if the engagement is lower, which is inherently what we're discussing here. You inherently have to calculate the pie separately. If you added digital to the list and you added the number of players who have "purchased" a F2P title, your gap would likely be closed.

The fact that hardware is ahead (something you still seem to be miscalculation) is pretty evident of what I'm saying here.

 

[Woopah]

PS5 has been out for over 4 years now, not sure why you're saying first 3 years, and I'm not sure where you're getting these numbers for PS4 and PS5. I can tell you that the PS4 did not sell 16 million units in Japan.

They are software figures. Why would I apply a digital ratio to hardware? That doesn't make any sense.

I'm using the first three years because we don't have PS5 retail software sales for 2024 yet.

You're focused on a 70% digital ratio not closing the gap on software sales, but you're ignoring that F2P takes up engagement. It's not as if the engagement is lower, which is inherently what we're discussing here. You inherently have to calculate the pie separately. If you added digital to the list and you added the number of players who have "purchased" a F2P title, your gap would likely be closed.

I literally just said "The rise of F2P is likely to be one of those factors in the decline of software sales."

So it sounds like you agree with me no?

Normally our conversations are quite interesting and cordial, but you continually accuse me of ignoring things I'm not ignoring. Why do you keep doing that?

The fact that hardware is ahead (something you still seem to be miscalculation) is pretty evident of what I'm saying here.

PS5 is slightly behind PS4 launch aligned, but it closed the gap a lot this week.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

They are software figures. Why would I apply a digital ratio to hardware? That doesn't make any sense.

I'm using the first three years because we don't have PS5 retail software sales for 2024 yet.

Okay, so that's what I'm saying doesn't add up and going back to my point on actual reported earnings from Sony, that gives us a much clearer picture than physical charts from Japan.



FY20 - 338.9 million units of software (65% digital)
FY21 - 303.2 million units of software (66% digital)
FY22 - 264.2 million units of software (67% digital)
FY23 - 286.4 million units of software (70% digital)

FY13 -Data not available
FY14 - Data not available
FY15 - 158.7 million units of software (19% digital)
FY16 - 217.9 million units of software (27% digital)
FY17 - 246.9 million units of software (32% digital)
FY18 - 257.6 million units of software (37% digital)
FY19 - 245 million units of software (51% digital)

As you can see software sales are actually much higher now overall and the digital split is tremendously different. Trying to use physical retail charts simply does not tell the whole story.

If we apply the same trend lines that you're doing it would have looked like this

FY15 - 128.54 million units of physical software
FY20 - 118.615 million units of physical software

You would actually think there was a decrease in software sales simply by disregarding digital software sales.

FY16 is essentially year 3 of the PS4. If we compare that with year 3 of the PS5 that would by FY23. Let's take a look at how extreme the differences are.

FY16 - 159 million units of physical software
FY23 - 85.92 million units of physical software

FY17Q1-Q3 - 136.768 million units of physical software
FY24Q1-Q3 - 68.626 million units of physical software

You combined FY16 and 17Q1-Q3 and you get 295.768 million units.
You combined FY23 and FY24Q1-Q3 and you get 154.546 million units.

Not factoring in digital, you would think that PS5 sales are 50% of what PS4 sales were. But what was reality?

FY16 - 217.9
FY17Q1-3 - 194.9
Total - 412.8

FY23 - 286.4
FY23Q1-Q3 - 227.2
Total - 513

The reality is software sales are actually UP and CONSIDERABLY SO once we factor in digital. We don't have regional breakdowns, but given that PS5 hardware is selling better than PS4 hardware during the same duration, I think it isn't a leap to assume that the trendlines would be at least somewhat similar.

I literally just said "The rise of F2P is likely to be one of those factors in the decline of software sales."

So it sounds like you agree with me no?

Normally our conversations are quite interesting and cordial, but you continually accuse me of ignoring things I'm not ignoring. Why do you keep doing that?

Apologies if I'm coming across less than cordial, but it's probably due to frustration that we keep dancing around clear evidence that physical only charts do not tell the whole story. Where is this explosion of software sales coming from when we know that the Europe is actually down on hardware LTD compared to the PS4 and the US like Japan is only slightly ahead.

I think we agree that F2P is a factor, but I don't think you're actually considering that when you're looking at per annum title releases.

PS5 is slightly behind PS4 launch aligned, but it closed the gap a lot this week.

Where are you seeing PS5 behind the PS4 in Japan, launch aligned?

 

[MrA]

Okay, so that's what I'm saying doesn't add up and going back to my point on actual reported earnings from Sony, that gives us a much clearer picture than physical charts from Japan.



FY20 - 338.9 million units of software (65% digital)
FY21 - 303.2 million units of software (66% digital)
FY22 - 264.2 million units of software (67% digital)
FY23 - 286.4 million units of software (70% digital)

FY13 -Data not available
FY14 - Data not available
FY15 - 158.7 million units of software (19% digital)
FY16 - 217.9 million units of software (27% digital)
FY17 - 246.9 million units of software (32% digital)
FY18 - 257.6 million units of software (37% digital)
FY19 - 245 million units of software (51% digital)

As you can see software sales are actually much higher now overall and the digital split is tremendously different. Trying to use physical retail charts simply does not tell the whole story.

If we apply the same trend lines that you're doing it would have looked like this

FY15 - 128.54 million units of physical software
FY20 - 118.615 million units of physical software

You would actually think there was a decrease in software sales simply by disregarding digital software sales.

FY16 is essentially year 3 of the PS4. If we compare that with year 3 of the PS5 that would by FY23. Let's take a look at how extreme the differences are.

FY16 - 159 million units of physical software
FY23 - 85.92 million units of physical software

FY17Q1-Q3 - 136.768 million units of physical software
FY24Q1-Q3 - 68.626 million units of physical software

You combined FY16 and 17Q1-Q3 and you get 295.768 million units.
You combined FY23 and FY24Q1-Q3 and you get 154.546 million units.

Not factoring in digital, you would think that PS5 sales are 50% of what PS4 sales were. But what was reality?

FY16 - 217.9
FY17Q1-3 - 194.9
Total - 412.8

FY23 - 286.4
FY23Q1-Q3 - 227.2
Total - 513

The reality is software sales are actually UP and CONSIDERABLY SO once we factor in digital. We don't have regional breakdowns, but given that PS5 hardware is selling better than PS4 hardware during the same duration, I think it isn't a leap to assume that the trendlines would be at least somewhat similar.



Apologies if I'm coming across less than cordial, but it's probably due to frustration that we keep dancing around clear evidence that physical only charts do not tell the whole story. Where is this explosion of software sales coming from when we know that the Europe is actually down on hardware LTD compared to the PS4 and the US like Japan is only slightly ahead.

I think we agree that F2P is a factor, but I don't think you're actually considering that when you're looking at per annum title releases.




Where are you seeing PS5 behind the PS4 in Japan, launch aligned?

2022 ps5 split was 35% digital 65% physical in Japan according to cesa, you're comparing worldwide to Japan, plus you're comparing all games to new releases, part of digital split is it includes over a decade of titles long since unavailable new at retail
As far as ps5 behind ps4, ps4 launched in February 2014 in Japan, 4 years 3 months is May 2018 for ps4, it was a little over 6.7 million units,

 

[Mibu no ookami]

2022 ps5 split was 35% digital 65% physical in Japan according to cesa

CESA is a survey and surveys can be entirely misleading depending on who and how you're surveying. If you did a survey on neogaf for example you'd think GaaS has no market instead of dominating the market.

An example of a CESA survey

　The survey was conducted from January 16th to February 8th, and a self-administered questionnaire was mailed to 1,500 samples. The response rate was 73.5%, with 1,103 samples, and the gender ratio was 49.7% male and 50.3% female. 27.7% of the respondents lived in the Tokyo metropolitan area, 15.7% in the Keihanshin area, and 56.7% in other areas.

Incredibly small sample size. Analog survey which is going to most likely favor analog respondents. Even the ratio of respondents (male/female) is highly suggestive of inaccuracy among the actual demographic. Then you have the geographical data skew.

you're comparing worldwide to Japan

Yeah, I am because there is no ACTUAL evidence that Japan is this outlier. You have similar trendlines for the PS4 and PS5 in both the US and Japan.

plus you're comparing all games to new releases, part of digital split is it includes over a decade of titles long since unavailable new at retail

Yeah, that's consistent with physical charts not capturing digital software sales, especially long living software sales... You're helping my point and you don't even realize it.

As far as ps5 behind ps4, ps4 launched in February 2014 in Japan, 4 years 3 months is May 2018 for ps4, it was a little over 6.7 million units,

Sure, we can go by the launch date in Japan (even though it was available to be imported before then as it launched in the US in November the prior year), but even then we're talking about very comparable sales numbers.

6,843,160 units for the PS4 vs 6,666,457 units.

We're talking about 176,703 units or 2.58% a margin that can easily be washed away by a number of factors such as the pandemic, the increased price of the PS5, the increased price of the PS5 Pro, the delayed release of the PS5 Pro compared to the PS4 Pro.

The key here is that hardware is in line in Japan with what we're seeing globally, in fact it's doing better than the PS5 globally. Making believe that the software simply doesn't exist digitally and focusing entirely on these physical charts is a major mathematical error and would absolutely buck global trends for digital vs physical and relying on CESA surveys to back that mistake up is just as bad. It's a survey but its not a scientific survey.

 

[Walter Matthau]

Capcom shared the full sales number (including digital) for World in Japan after its first week so hopefully they’ll do the same for Wilds.

What we do know is the game sold really well and has helped push PS5 the same way World did with PS4.

 

[Fafalada]

What we do know is the game sold really well and has helped push PS5 the same way World did with PS4.

We also know that it's globally up by a considerable margin.
If Japan is indeed lagging - it would mean the IP is becoming even more popular everywhere else.

2022 ps5 split was 35% digital 65% physical in Japan according to cesa

As mentioned it's survey data (and it's 2+ years old), and we're talking about market averages rather than the specific IP.
But you can use it for lower/upper bound estimate.
Assuming MH is 'within' these average ranges (and taking the survey as reliable source for 2022) this gives you a range between 950k to 1.72M. Without any other data that would make it rather likely it did in fact pass 1M in week one for PS5 alone.

PS4 - 16,228,560
PS5 - 5,403,820

PS5 could have a 70% digital ratio and it's total software sales would still be below the PS4's retail-only sales.

70% digital ratio in these totals would put it 1.8M ahead of PS4 retail.

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

So catching up with most of the comments and just one brief thing I want to add...yes PC (specifically, Steam) has been growing on Japan the past few years and last I remember seeing, its share was almost as much as the console market (15% vs 20%)...considering Switch has held steady and Xbox was already quite low, then chances are a substantive amount of that growth came at the expense of PlayStation share.

However, and worth considering since Thick Thighs Save Lives kind of mentioned PS5 sales in China so...does it ultimately matter if PS5 software sales are down in Japan if China is making up for them and then some? We could still be looking at a scenario where for MH Rise for example, it's doing at least as well in China on PS5 as it is in Japan, or close to it. The PS4 didn't have China as a market to tap into last gen; PS5 does.

Yeah on one hand it does look somewhat grim for PS5 software sales in Japan if even the biggest releases like MH are seeing gen-over-gen drops launch-aligned, and yes platforms like Steam probably are picking up a healthy amount of that drop. And yes, it's still something SIE should consider resolving; I think that's why they've initiated the rental program among other things. But given how well the system seems to be doing in China, there's zero room for people to try claiming PS declines in Japan suddenly means they're declining in Asia or even losing ground to, say, Nintendo, in regions like Asia as a whole.

Also I still think the primary factor for PS drops in Japan is due to a lacking form factor i.e it's not a handheld hybrid. School & work culture in Japan isn't too conductive for at-home console gaming where the system's sat under a TV the whole time. I dunno exactly what SIE are going to do to resolve this with the PS6 gen, but they have to try something. The PS6-based handheld rumor hopefully should bear fruit.

That's not me saying a handheld PlayStation would suddenly get software sales in Japan back up to, say, PS1-2 levels. Maybe even PS3 levels might be a challenge to hit again. But, it'd definitely bolster them at least back to PS4 and probably better still, which would be a major improvement.

Not just that, a handheld PS would also have similar appeal in other markets like, again, China, or South Korea, or even many Western territories, so the software sales boost would be seen in those markets as well. It can't come at the expense of a "proper" PS6 home console, but at least for a market like Japan, a handheld PS would likely do a lot more for sales than a home console could at this point (unless SIE start to add more microcomputer (Amiga/FM Towns etc.) productivity functionality to PS console hardware next gen).

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

Any regulars in Famitsu threads know the numbers don't include digital, and digital gets brought up for most major software launches. It's definitely considered and not ignored.

I wasn't sure if that poster was a regular to these types of threads.

That’s for sure, but i highly doubt that Wild sold more digital than physical to compensate the drop compared to World first week… All indicate that the PC version ate a great portion of PS share.

In Japan, it's possible. I mean, a market share estimate we got last year put PC at ~ 15.3% of the Japanese gaming market while console was at ~ 20%, but PC grew by a factor of 3 over a period of 2-3 years while console share stayed the same.

So, considering Nintendo's been doing extremely well in Japan (both hardware & software) and Xbox at best has only done ~ as well as XBO last gen (or to where any improvement would be rather insignificant in grand scheme when it comes to raw numbers), then it's likely that growth for PC has come at some expense of PlayStation market share.

But all that also tells me is SIE's claims of PC not being a competitor are rather baseless; markets like Japan show that it absolutely is.

Well the PS5 console sales are pretty much launch aligned with PS4.

You have PS5 digital only consoles selling around 25% of total sales including this week.

We know digital sales are stronger now than when World was released which aren’t included in Famitsu sales.

So where are all the indications PC have taken a large share narrative coming from?

TBF, at least for some it's probably based on a report from last year showing PC at around 15% of gaming market share for Japan, with console at 20%. However, PC tripled since 2020 while console stayed stagnant.

Then, when you extrapolate how well Nintendo's done in Japan with Switch, and how little traction Xbox made this gen vs. XBO gen, then it's logical to assume PC has taken some of the audience that would've otherwise been on PlayStation. However, sometimes to me it feels like people are emphasizing it as if PC is the absolute answer, instead of just one of multiple answers.

If this is true indeed, the console situation in Japan is far worse than we think and could be another reason for the drop compared to Monster Hunter World launch week.

It's kinda been known for a while that PS5 software sales have been lukewarm most of the gen in Japan, affecting even major releases like FF XVI. So this isn't really new?

We still need to know what the digital ratio for Rise is, and also see what the Chinese & South Korean sales for Rise on PS5 are. It's becoming increasingly apparent that those countries are picking up for PlayStation in Asia, even if Japan has declined for the platform.

In fact, China alone could end up completely covering drops in Japan while still contributing growth on top of that for PlayStation in the Asia region.

It comes from the difference in physical software unit sales. Below I've compared PS5 at the end of 2023 to PS4 at the end of 2016 (using Media Create):

PS4 - 16,228,560
PS5 - 5,403,820

Now this isn't completely fair as PS5 had about 3 months more on the market at this stage. But as we can see, the difference is still quite big and unlikely to be explained away purely by an increase in digital.

With PC gaming growing in Japan, I don't think it's unreasonable to speculate that some of the PC audience went there.

Well, that's probably to be expected at this point. We have studies showing PC growth in Japan over the past 3 or so years and stagnation of console in same time frame. But it's also worth noting the factors contributing to that, and seeing that the platform most affected is PlayStation, then the factors are likely:

1: High price (including several price increases)​

​

2: No portable system option​

​

3: Less software exclusives (to drive adoption rates vs. competing gaming hardware/platforms)​

So it's not like PC has been growing simply for any random reason; I'd argue it's growth has mainly been due to drawbacks with the PlayStation. Drawbacks that, hopefully, SIE are looking to address. And if they manage to do so, that doesn't mean PC growth has to stop, or that Nintendo share of the market has to shrink. Not necessarily, anyhow.

 

[pulicat]

PC is bigger than PS5 in Japan and worldwide too.
More people playing MH Wilds on PC than PS5.

According the the last data we got
the most popular gaming platforms in Japan
1. Switch
2. Steam/PC
3. PS4
4. PS5

 

[Mr Moose]

PC is bigger than PS5 in Japan and worldwide too.
More people playing MH Wilds on PC than PS5.

According the the last data we got
the most popular gaming platforms in Japan
1. Switch
2. Steam/PC
3. PS4
4. PS5

Do you need a hug?

 

[Ebrietas]

But all that also tells me is SIE's claims of PC not being a competitor are rather baseless; markets like Japan show that it absolutely is.

It has always been baseless and illogical drivel. The two platforms share the same games, moreso than any other platforms at this point. That alone makes PC the stiffest competition Sony has. Anyone who buys MHW or any other major third party game on Steam was potentially someone who could have bought it on PS5 (or vice versa) instead. Nintendo, because of their decision to make underpowered hardware, will continue missing out on these types of games and others that traditionally drive PS console sales. They are still competition to an extent, but not as serious as PC, or what Xbox used to be.

 

[Danjin44]

Do you need a hug?

 

[Mr Moose]

Now I want to watch Soul Eater again.

 

[Danjin44]

Now I want to watch Soul Eater again.

 

[yogaflame]

DOA Venus vacation will, again, drive ps5 sales up

 

[Woopah]

Okay, so that's what I'm saying doesn't add up and going back to my point on actual reported earnings from Sony, that gives us a much clearer picture than physical charts from Japan.



FY20 - 338.9 million units of software (65% digital)
FY21 - 303.2 million units of software (66% digital)
FY22 - 264.2 million units of software (67% digital)
FY23 - 286.4 million units of software (70% digital)

FY13 -Data not available
FY14 - Data not available
FY15 - 158.7 million units of software (19% digital)
FY16 - 217.9 million units of software (27% digital)
FY17 - 246.9 million units of software (32% digital)
FY18 - 257.6 million units of software (37% digital)
FY19 - 245 million units of software (51% digital)

As you can see software sales are actually much higher now overall and the digital split is tremendously different. Trying to use physical retail charts simply does not tell the whole story.

If we apply the same trend lines that you're doing it would have looked like this

FY15 - 128.54 million units of physical software
FY20 - 118.615 million units of physical software

You would actually think there was a decrease in software sales simply by disregarding digital software sales.

FY16 is essentially year 3 of the PS4. If we compare that with year 3 of the PS5 that would by FY23. Let's take a look at how extreme the differences are.

FY16 - 159 million units of physical software
FY23 - 85.92 million units of physical software

FY17Q1-Q3 - 136.768 million units of physical software
FY24Q1-Q3 - 68.626 million units of physical software

You combined FY16 and 17Q1-Q3 and you get 295.768 million units.
You combined FY23 and FY24Q1-Q3 and you get 154.546 million units.

Not factoring in digital, you would think that PS5 sales are 50% of what PS4 sales were. But what was reality?

FY16 - 217.9
FY17Q1-3 - 194.9
Total - 412.8

FY23 - 286.4
FY23Q1-Q3 - 227.2
Total - 513

The reality is software sales are actually UP and CONSIDERABLY SO once we factor in digital. We don't have regional breakdowns, but given that PS5 hardware is selling better than PS4 hardware during the same duration, I think it isn't a leap to assume that the trendlines would be at least somewhat similar.



Apologies if I'm coming across less than cordial, but it's probably due to frustration that we keep dancing around clear evidence that physical only charts do not tell the whole story. Where is this explosion of software sales coming from when we know that the Europe is actually down on hardware LTD compared to the PS4 and the US like Japan is only slightly ahead.

The main disagreement I think is that I don't see Japan following the global trend.

In the calculations you kindly did above, they showed physical PS software sales in FY23/24 being around half of what they used to be in FY16/17. In Japan, physical PS5 software is less than a third of PS4 physical software (in the first 3 years and 3 months).

So I see a bigger decline in Japan than the global.

And thank you for apologising

I think we agree that F2P is a factor, but I don't think you're actually considering that when you're looking at per annum title releases.

I'm not considering f2p in terms of unit sales no, as those games aren't counted as unit sales by Sony.

I am considering them as one of the reasons why unit sales are down, as there are more popular f2p games in PS5's early years than in PS4's early years. In the timelime I'm comparing, Fortnite wasn't even out yet for example.

Where are you seeing PS5 behind the PS4 in Japan, launch aligned?

I believe this is the 225th week for PS5, and it is at 6,666,457. At it's 225th week, PS4 was at 6,757,344.

 

[Woopah]

We also know that it's globally up by a considerable margin.
If Japan is indeed lagging - it would mean the IP is becoming even more popular everywhere else.


As mentioned it's survey data (and it's 2+ years old), and we're talking about market averages rather than the specific IP.
But you can use it for lower/upper bound estimate.
Assuming MH is 'within' these average ranges (and taking the survey as reliable source for 2022) this gives you a range between 950k to 1.72M. Without any other data that would make it rather likely it did in fact pass 1M in week one for PS5 alone.


70% digital ratio in these totals would put it 1.8M ahead of PS4 retail.

Yes you're right, I should have caveated that better and said "might".

To make it a like-for-like comparison, we need to take that 16.2 million for PS4 and add an additional 3 months of sales. But we can't be certain that PS4 sold 1.8 million physical software units in that time, so the gap might be 68% or 69% rather than 70%.

Well, that's probably to be expected at this point. We have studies showing PC growth in Japan over the past 3 or so years and stagnation of console in same time frame. But it's also worth noting the factors contributing to that, and seeing that the platform most affected is PlayStation, then the factors are likely:

1: High price (including several price increases)​

​

2: No portable system option​

​

3: Less software exclusives (to drive adoption rates vs. competing gaming hardware/platforms)​

So it's not like PC has been growing simply for any random reason; I'd argue it's growth has mainly been due to drawbacks with the PlayStation. Drawbacks that, hopefully, SIE are looking to address. And if they manage to do so, that doesn't mean PC growth has to stop, or that Nintendo share of the market has to shrink. Not necessarily, anyhow.

Growth of PC is also down to increased support from Japanese publishers.

Lets look at the three biggest franchises to come to PS5 so far in 2025.

• Monster Hunter Wilds was on PC from day 1. World was not
• Yakuza Pirate was on PC from day 1. Yakuza 6 and Yakuza 0 were not
• Dynasty Warriors: Origins was on PC from day 1, Samurai Warriors 4 was not.

PC is bigger than PS5 in Japan and worldwide too.
More people playing MH Wilds on PC than PS5.

According the the last data we got
the most popular gaming platforms in Japan
1. Switch
2. Steam/PC
3. PS4
4. PS5

What are you basing this on?

 

[Celine]

In FY18, Sony reported 257.6 million units of software. Digital represented 37%.

In FY23, Sony reported 286.4 million units of software. Digital represented 70 percent... That ratio is even higher in FY24 (up 6% YOY)

Those of you who continue to ignore the inverse relationship with physical and digital and suggest that physical charts can be used to compare 2025 results and 2018 results are absolutely laughable. It reflects a massive deficit of critical thinking.

I think you should re-read what you've quoted.
Digital is making inroads everywhere, Japan included.
However the extent of digital adoption vary between regions and from game to game thus taking the average worldwide and applying to the specific discussion of MH Wilds (PS5) launch in Japan is naive.
As a pertinent example take Monster Hunter World (PS4), I repeat a game which digital sales had the luxury of near sold-out of physical stock at launch something that cannot be said for Monster Hunter Wilds (PS5), well its digital ratio by the end of 2020 in Japan is actually known (due to a leak) and it's inferior to the percentages you've thrown out (way way below the one for FY20):

Okay, so that's what I'm saying doesn't add up and going back to my point on actual reported earnings from Sony, that gives us a much clearer picture than physical charts from Japan.

FY20 - 338.9 million units of software (65% digital)
FY21 - 303.2 million units of software (66% digital)
FY22 - 264.2 million units of software (67% digital)
FY23 - 286.4 million units of software (70% digital)

FY13 -Data not available
FY14 - Data not available
FY15 - 158.7 million units of software (19% digital)
FY16 - 217.9 million units of software (27% digital)
FY17 - 246.9 million units of software (32% digital)
FY18 - 257.6 million units of software (37% digital)
FY19 - 245 million units of software (51% digital)

Of course the irony here is that with a hypothetical digital ratio of 55% during launch week MH Wilds (PS5) physical+digital sales would still be lower than MH World (PS4) physical-only sales so to match MH World (PS4) physical+digital launch sales it would need an even higher digital ratio.

The variable absent during MH World (PS4) launch but present now with MH Wilds (PS5) launch is the PC version which by all accounts seems to have experience a strong growth and I wouldn't be surprised at all if just with the launch week MH Wilds (PC) had already outsold what MH World (PC) sold in Japan by the end of 2020 (again known through a leak).

 

[thicc_girls_are_teh_best]

It has always been baseless and illogical drivel. The two platforms share the same games, moreso than any other platforms at this point. That alone makes PC the stiffest competition Sony has. Anyone who buys MHW or any other major third party game on Steam was potentially someone who could have bought it on PS5 (or vice versa) instead. Nintendo, because of their decision to make underpowered hardware, will continue missing out on these types of games and others that traditionally drive PS console sales. They are still competition to an extent, but not as serious as PC, or what Xbox used to be.

Yep, with the growth of Steam, the console and PC gaming segments have gotten more similar than dissimilar. It's the opposite of what we saw during 7th gen, when the convergence was happening other way around i.e lots of once PC-only devs going to console because the mid '00s were kind of a "dark age" for PC gaming retail/sales-wide, and consoles like 360 & PS3 looked like new horizons. And they were.

Nowadays it's been in the reverse but just like then, ultimately the answer for console is to resolve its own shortcomings and be more effective. Sony has their approach, Nintendo has theirs, and Microsoft's trying to find theirs with this PC-console hybrid strategy. PC gaming eventually recovered because Steam stuck around for the long-term and Valve kept supporting & growing it, plus other storefronts like GOG appeared to contribute to growth. The physical retail market for PC games died but digital marketplaces were finally strong enough to support it going forward, and did other things to curb down on rampant piracy (well, compared to the piracy of today).

But yes, I think SIE need to do more with PS to make it more competitive because growth with consolized PC gaming hardware is a long-term 10+ year thing, and Microsoft seem very committed to that side hardware-wise going forward. So SIE upholding their current porting strategy with PC is just going to make PS crash out sooner rather than later, since again you've got so many 3P prioritizing Steam as a platform at least on par with PS these days if not even ahead of PS (i.e how games like Baldur's Gate 3 were timed exclusive on Steam for years via Early Access before going to console). At some point, "good enough" spec baselines are going to form not just for PC gaming at the mass level but also console gaming, and entry-level prices for that "good enough" performance on PC will keep dropping due to economies of scale. That's something SIE have to be prepared for and Nintendo to a lesser extent, if only because I think Nintendo have a better grasp on the role of content differentiation (exclusives) and how they contribute to upholding a platform ecosystem long-term, by keeping them as exclusives long-term.

It's like a long marinade; the more you let it soak in, the more it all infuses together. The longer you retain hold of games as exclusives & keep that hardware/software stack vertically integrated and tightly coupled, the more the masses will accept that relationship and see the benefits it brings to the content and to themselves as customers. I'm not saying SIE need to 100% go Nintendo on that front; it's okay to have some of the GAAS multiplatform, and maybe bring over some selection of super-old games to other platforms as a way of advertising those IP to those customers (preferably to draw interest to a new installment exclusively on PS hardware). But games outside of that should preferably stay exclusive to their own hardware, and I think successes like Astro Bot show it's viable.

Now I want to watch Soul Eater again.

I need to watch this series through to completion. Only caught some episodes on Toonami, but I liked what I saw.

Yes you're right, I should have caveated that better and said "might".

To make it a like-for-like comparison, we need to take that 16.2 million for PS4 and add an additional 3 months of sales. But we can't be certain that PS4 sold 1.8 million physical software units in that time, so the gap might be 68% or 69% rather than 70%.

Growth of PC is also down to increased support from Japanese publishers.

Lets look at the three biggest franchises to come to PS5 so far in 2025.

• Monster Hunter Wilds was on PC from day 1. World was not
• Yakuza Pirate was on PC from day 1. Yakuza 6 and Yakuza 0 were not
• Dynasty Warriors: Origins was on PC from day 1, Samurai Warriors 4 was not.

Yes, that's a big reason for the growth of PC gaming in Japan the past few years, and it's just more reason why it's more of a competitor to PlayStation than people like Herman Hulst have tried implying. Ironically, Jim Ryan was 100% correct in his take on the topic.

I'm not saying this growth for PC is a bad thing, either. Overall it's a net positive. But I balk at the idea that it "has" to be at the expense of console market growth or even console staying stable. I think some commentators feel that way, though, which is why we get takes (borderline FUD) trying to string PlayStation and Nintendo to the same anchor Xbox has found itself on, sinking into the ocean.

Places like IGN are outright egregious with it, and purposefully, to try implying Xbox's problems in the market are industry problems, just to absolve Microsoft of any blame.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

I think you should re-read what you've quoted.
Digital is making inroads everywhere, Japan included.
However the extent of digital adoption vary between regions and from game to game thus taking the average worldwide and applying to the specific discussion of MH Wilds (PS5) launch in Japan is naive.

Ironically, YOU should re-read what I said. Where did I say this was unique to Japan or even that Japan was leading the trendline? Rather I said there is no evidence that Japan is an outlier to the trend.

As a pertinent example take Monster Hunter World (PS4), I repeat a game which digital sales had the luxury of near sold-out of physical stock at launch something that cannot be said for Monster Hunter Wilds (PS5), well its digital ratio by the end of 2020 in Japan is actually known (due to a leak) and it's inferior to the percentages you've thrown out (way way below the one for FY20):

There's also no real evidence that a game selling out physically has any real impact on digital sales. Astro Bot for example was largely sold out at retail and its position on the digital store really didn't change much before or after selling out. Monster Hunter could have a ratio that skews more digital or physical than the trendline. There isn't much available analysis we could have to pre-determine that, but I would hazard there are a lot of moving parts to that. There also isn't much evidence to suggest games trend significantly more digital post-launch.

Of course the irony here is that with a hypothetical digital ratio of 55% during launch week MH Wilds (PS5) physical+digital sales would still be lower than MH World (PS4) physical-only sales so to match MH World (PS4) physical+digital launch sales it would need an even higher digital ratio.

Where did you get 55% from, other than your backside?

The variable absent during MH World (PS4) launch but present now with MH Wilds (PS5) launch is the PC version which by all accounts seems to have experience a strong growth and I wouldn't be surprised at all if just with the launch week MH Wilds (PC) had already outsold what MH World (PC) sold in Japan by the end of 2020 (again known through a leak).

Absolutely, that's a variable, but what we also have is other known factors such as the PS5 selling just as well as the PS4 in Japan for hardware and the general rise of digital downloads globally. To somehow assume an outsized boon for PC seems misplaced and agenda driven.

 

[pulicat]

Comparing Astrobot to MH is bizarre stuff here.
80-100k seller vs 5m seller.