The best-selling PlayStation in history: more than 450 million consoles sold to mark an era

Three decades of PlayStation experiences. Sony is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its video game division at a time of change for the industry. The era of big exclusives is fading and the strategy is moving towards a more multiplatform territory. Following Microsoft’s footsteps, the Japanese company has decided to launch its games on the PC. It has also dared to release Lego Horizon Adventures on Nintendo Switch, suggesting that we may see more PlayStation titles on other consoles. Meanwhile, PS5 is still strong and has already sold 65.5 million units. After the launch of the PS5 Pro, the machine still has a long way to go, although it has faced major challenges such as the semiconductor crisis or the coronavirus pandemic.

Tracing the history of PlayStation means revisiting an important stage in the video game industry. Just like its competitors' consoles, Sony has been a key player in shaping and elevating video games to a new level, because beyond the machines - which it also has - it has been the home of great titles and sagas that remain in the collective imagination of gamers today.

Over those three decades, PlayStation has sold more than 450 million units, but what are the best-selling consoles of all time? Here’s what the numbers say.

5. PSP, Sony’s great portable

Since Game Boy, Nintendo has been at the forefront of the handheld market. It is true that Game Boy Advance sold far less than its predecessors, but Satoru Iwata’s ingenuity ushered in a new era for the Kyoto-based company, which surprised with Nintendo DS, a handheld that, like Wii, tried to innovate and create new ways to play. In contrast to this vision, which attracted even people not used to playing video games - the casuals - Sony opted for a traditional but incredibly powerful handheld. Halfway between the PSX and the PS2 (closer to the latter), its fantastic LCD screen and impressive graphics defined an era. It was the handheld for sagas traditionally released on the desktop: Silent Hill Origins, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, GTA: Liberty City Stories, Gran Turismo...

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Unlike its competitor, PSP did not work with cards or cartridges, but used its own optical format, the UMD. The console was also suitable for watching movies, as they were sold in this format. In addition to the original model, Sony released several revisions, including a slim model. The most controversial was PSP Go, a premature experiment that eliminated the physical format at a time when console owners were not yet accustomed to the digital format.

4. PlayStation 3, the console that made a comeback

After winning the 32-64 and 128-bit generations, PlayStation’s success went to its head. Managers made some arrogant comments and decided to launch the console at a stratospheric price for the time, $599. When it went on sale, the public did not respond and Sony had to maneuver to remedy the situation. Ken Kutaragi, the mastermind behind PlayStation, ended up leaving the company, while the Japanese accelerated to launch a cheaper first revision, but without backward compatibility with PS3. Although Wii was never considered a direct competitor, the duel between PS3 and Xbox 360 was hotly contested.

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Among the games featured were God of War 3, Red Dead Redemption, GTA IV and V, Dishonored, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, and Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which remains a PS3 exclusive to this day. Naughty Dog returned in style with two before and after sagas, Uncharted and The Last of Us. As with other consoles, there were lighter and cheaper models.

3. PlayStation, the console that started it all

It is well known that Sony and Nintendo worked on a SNES with a disk reader, but the agreement broke down and Sony went ahead with its plans. Led by Ken Kutaragi, the arrogance of the Kyoto-based company was that the PlayStation would be no match for their all-powerful Nintendo 64. Big mistake. It was at E3 1995 when Steve Race, president of Sony Computer Entertainment in the US, took the stage and said one word: “$299”. The audience went wild, and the console triumphed worldwide. PlayStation won the favor of developers and worked with them to create games for the system.

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PlayStation swept away the Sega Saturn, surpassed the Nintendo 64, and took a huge chunk of the home console market. It gave birth to Tomb Raider, was home to some of the most famous Final Fantasy games (including VII), invited us to infiltrate with Solid Snake in Metal Gear Solid, and allowed us to fight in the best fights of Tekken 3. An unforgettable console that was the prelude to other great Sony successes.

2. PlayStation 4, a generation of great games

After regaining lost ground, Sony succeeded in remarketing a best-selling console. With nearly 120 million units sold, PlayStation 4 marked the entry into the most modern phase of the industry. Unfortunately, the Japanese left behind backward compatibility, which was only recovered with the latest console. Meanwhile, Xbox One decided to continue offering this option, although Microsoft’s policy was so disastrous that it left the way open for Sony’s then-new hardware. The same thing happened to Nintendo, which after the success of the Wii did not know how to channel it into the Wii U, one of the Japanese company’s least sold machines.

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For the first time in PlayStation history, Sony ventured into a more powerful revision, the PS4 Pro. The console added HDR and improved the performance and resolution of some games. The truth is that in the final stage of PS4, some titles were already suffering the ravages of time, but Naughty Dog managed to make The Last of Us Part 2 run flawlessly on both platforms. The same can be said for Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, a true masterpiece of the adventure genre. On the other hand, one of the console’s most memorable games is undoubtedly Bloodborne, which is desperately in need of a remaster.

1. PlayStation 2, the crown jewel

It is still the best-selling console in history, although the Nintendo Switch is hot on its heels and may end up surpassing it, as the hybrid still has a long life left (the announcement and launch of its successor is expected next year). Launched in Spain on October 26, 2000, the console was marketed at a price of $299.99, which did not prevent it from selling massively. The PS2 was the cheapest DVD player, so many people bought it to take advantage of the fact that they could also watch movies. It was like a multimedia center, although video games were still the center of attention.

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No one can forget Fumito Ueda’s two masterpieces, ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. Or Jak & Daxter, Silent Hill 3 or the always emotional Final Fantasy X. The PS2 transported players to adventure worlds like Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King and let them play soccer in PES 5. They walked the streets of Liberty City in GTA III and the jungles with Naked Snake in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.

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