Titanfall was supposed to change it all, but it didn’t work. So far, Microsoft announced that it has shipped 5 million Xbox One units to retailers. In comparison, Sony has sold 7 million PS4 units to customers. It doesn’t look good for Microsoft as the company doesn’t even say how many people actually bought an Xbox One.
Microsoft’s announcement fits well with NPD’s estimates. In March, according to NPD, Microsoft sold 311,000 Xbox Ones in the U.S. while 370,000 people bought a PS4 in the U.S. In other words, the gap between the two console manufacturers is widening.
In March, the two companies bet on two important exclusive titles — Titanfall for Microsoft and inFamous Second Son for Sony. These games both topped the charts, with Titanfall leading the way. Yet, while Titanfall is a huge success, it doesn’t seem to be a system seller as they were a lot more Titanfall sales than Xbox One sales — mostly existing Xbox One users are buying the game. Moreover, it seems that Xbox One and PS4 owners are still mostly early adopters as the average Xbox One player only has 2.9 games for its console.
Titanfall is supposed to resonate well with an American audience as well, but sales numbers don’t reflect that as the PS4 is more popular than the Xbox One in the U.S. It could be worse of course. For example, Nintendo only sold 70,000 WiiU units in the U.S. in March.
In many countries, the PS4 is still hard to find in retail stores. Sony is selling its console as fast as it can produce it. It’s a worrying sign for Microsoft, as the PS4 production line should become more efficient in the coming months.
