Arstechnica.com – June 11, 2006:

Like a good soccer match, the monthly sales battles between the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 2 have a lot of exciting back-and-forth. So far, however, the PlayStation 2 has remained in control of the match, outselling the Xbox 360 in six of the seven months since the Xbox 360’s debut. The situation is a strong reminder that Sony’s PS3 gamble, while huge, has a little more cushioning than is commonly recognized.

Since the release of the Xbox 360, Microsoft has averaged 246,000 console sales each month in the US, while the PS2 has seen an average of 473,000 units—a number bolstered by an estimated 1.5 million sales in December alone. Leaving out December, Sony’s average drops to 302,000 per month, still outpacing the Xbox 360 by a healthy margin.

If Microsoft’s latest and greatest can’t outsell Sony’s six year old console, how can they beat the PS3?!



  1. Dylan Neild says:

    Well, because the PS2 is $129 CDN and the 360 is $499 Canadian… that’s how. At $499, it’s not the kids saving up – it’s the parents buying it as a gift – and parents will go for the PlayStation brand at $129 over the XBox brand at $499 most days of the week.

    Once the PS3 comes out at $699 or $799 Canadian, the tunes will change, I’m sure.

  2. blastum says:

    $130 is certainly closer to “impulse buy” level than $500. One has to wonder if the $500 consoles will ever sell as well as the $130 consoles. Perhaps the WII will win after all.

  3. Jared Lewandowski says:

    The PS 2 is only $120 and has like a million cheap ass games… Hello?!?!? For the Xbox 360 to even compete with that is spectacular!

  4. cooltrip71 says:

    This article is a bit skewed. They can’t compare a PS2 to a XBOX360. Main reason, PRICE! With PS2’s in the $149 or less range and the XBOX360 in the $299 and up…of course the PS2 will outsell XBOX360. I’d like to see the stats when the PS3 is released and to get the full functionality you need to pay $600. (20gb model is really compromised.) It will turn a lot more attention to XBOX360 and Wii.

  5. Bryan says:

    It’s common sense right here. The main reason a lot of people don’t purchase a console right away is because they want an expanded library of games…they want to be able to goto Blockbuster and rent stuff…or borrow from their friends.

    when you have a system lacking a large library, a cheap system for 120 dollars and a boat load of games….what system is mom going to buy lil johnny

  6. Firas says:

    What has been said above is true, but it is quite remarkable that the PS2 still sells after 6 years. You’d think that everyone who could possibly want a PS2 has one. 100 million units and still going strong, even outselling the next generation of consoles, now that in my opinion is a resounding success. And for those who argue the cheap and large library argument, where is the original X-Box in these stats? Probably nonexistent.

  7. ds1w says:

    I could be wrong but I don’t think Xbox ever came close to the volume of titles available for the PS2

  8. DogWings says:

    Given Sony’s recent track record I am confident they will find a way to screw it up when it comes to the Playstation line.

  9. Bryan says:

    @6

    Well, the XBox just didn’t put out as many games … period … end of sentence. They focused on quality games and not soo many crappy games that the PS2 put out.

    The XBox had a different target audience, males between 18-25, and therefore didn’t put out games like Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy. They put out stuff like Halo, Project Gotham Racing, NFL2kSeries, etc.

    While I was in college, I worked part time at an E.B Games, now a Gamestop. And I can tell you one thing, the PS2 was junk. If I had a dollar for every one that came back broke, was traded in, or just misused I wouldn’t have any tuition bills.

    But the XBox, that thing was a tank. And the 360 is even better…Project Gotham 3…OMGZ

  10. Nate says:

    The other comments here have already addressed the main points, but I think it is important to note an additional idea:

    It’s fairly telling, in my opinion, that people are buying PS2s. To me, it doesn’t show that people love Sony, but that they’ve realized they’re not going to buy a PS3. Microsoft will undoubtedly counter the launch of the PS3 with a spectacular lineup (including Halo 3, according to Bill Gates) and maybe even a 360 price drop. Then, Microsoft will be in the position that Sony was in six years ago. By the time the PS3 comes out, Microsoft will already have a library of next-generation games to go with the still-increasing library of original Xbox games. Face it, Sony has already botched this one in trying to make the PS3 their vessel to launch beta – I mean blu-ray.

  11. Joyce says:

    X-box : 246,000 consoles at $350 (average) = $86,100,000

    PS2 : 473,000 units at $125 = $59,125,000

  12. Gregory says:

    Sloppy journalism. Thats like saying “calculators continue to outsell PCs worldwide”

    Well ok, thats a bit extreme, but its a nothing article and I’m surprised you gave it attention.

  13. Olly says:

    The reason the PS2 is still selling is (a) price and (b) they die so damn easily. I’m on my fourth and only one of those was because I wanted a new one (going from PS2 to PStwo).

  14. Brian Kaufman says:

    The fact that the ps2 is outselling the 360 is completely moot in the race between the ps3 and the 360 as far as i’m concerned. I guarantee you that the ps2 will outsell even the ps3 for a very very long time.

    In response to 9: what does OMGZ mean and why wouldn’t you just say OMG?

  15. Bryan says:

    @14 – I just felt like being a total moron there for a moment and let go of my grasp on the English language..

    Sorry for that …

  16. Baron Von X says:

    Actually, the PS3 is going to be a very expensive Blu-Ray player with a joystick…

  17. Brian Kaufman says:

    LOLZ

    NP MAYUN ITS C@@L

    I was just wondering.

    Anyway everyone wave goodbye to Sony. I don’t think they can survive blu-ray and the ps3 failing. In all reality I think its going to be one hell of a fight between sony and microsoft. It will be crazy to see what happens.

  18. dave says:

    In my area, it was still quite rare until well into April to be able to simply walk into a WalMart or Best Buy and see an Xbox 360 in stock, compared with rows and rows of PS2s. It doesn’t seem like an apples-to-apples comparison if you’re looking at PS2 and 360 sales for the months when it was impossible to find a 360 to buy.

    I’ll buy whichever console has the games that I want to play (I own all three of the last-gen consoles), but I think Sony’s PS3 pricing is still going to hurt them, particularly if MIcrosoft considers a price drop around the PS3 launch.

  19. TKane says:

    Ah, XB360 – the Macintosh of gaming systems. This makes the PS3 the what – an expensive Amiga? What can the PS3 offer in terms of significant performance improvements that will allow for development of truly innovative games? PS3 won’t make a great all-around media center either, so what is the point of it?

    I think Nintendo has the right idea – improved, low priced platforms with a certain amount of backward compatibility with older software titles, and nevermind the media center stuff. Leave that to MS or the major electronics vendors.

  20. Mark T. says:

    Joyce wrote:

    X-box : 246,000 consoles at $350 (average) = $86,100,000

    PS2 : 473,000 units at $125 = $59,125,000

    That does not mean $86 mil in profit. MS is selling their machines at a loss. The PS2 is likely sold at cost or they make a modest profit by now. This figure quoted mean nothing in the Console Wars. It is about licensing and service, not hardware sales. The volume of machines sold means more games sold which means higher profits for Sony.

    On a side note, the PS3 will supposedly come with Linux preinstalled. Does anybody have any idea if that will be have any affect on Linux gaming? Could a PS3 game be ported to a Linux with the proper hardware (a Cell powered Linux box, perhaps)? That could be bad news for PC gaming and Microsoft in general but good news for Linux.

  21. I’m with DogWings on this. I love the PS2, but it looks like Sony is letting their Blu-Ray fanaticism drive their console production. What will they do when that “standard” is DOA a year into the PS3’s lifecycle?

  22. ECA says:

    consider, ALSO…EXTRA CHARGES.
    That the price ISNT all you are going to pay..
    For Multiplayer access, you pay for Highspeed access, and THEN for MS network.
    Playing Half life by your self, ISNT that much fun.
    http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/pcs/apple-responds-to-poor-factory-condtions-accusations-180763.php

    even APPLE has been caught stuffing THEIR pockets.
    QUOTE:
    Apple is playing spin control this week, trying to defuse a story that first appeared in a UK newspaper on Sunday, accusing the computer maker of building its popular iPod under near “salve labor” conditions in China. Reportedly, most of the workers at the factory—which is not owned by Apple—are female, work 15-hour shifts and earn only about $50 a month. Think different, indeed.
    END Quote:

    So you think all those electonics are WORTH what you are charged??

  23. ECA says:

    How about THIS.
    Xbox360 comes out crippled, they just DID a major update.
    It dont have the HD drive as promised, unless you pay MORE.
    NO backward compatiblity, UNLESS yo pay more.
    And the market ISNT the console…
    Its the games, at $50+ per… For something with $1 worth of parts.


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