The Nintendo Switch, the Xbox Series and the PlayStation 5 have been selling like crazy in recent years, but the real console king in terms of sales figures is now a proud 24 years old.
The best-selling consoles in the world – an old carrot is the front runner
The first console is now over 55 years old. In 1968, Ralph Baer developed the Brown Box, which would be known to some gaming veterans as the Magnavox Odyssey. Around 350,000 devices were sold – enough to spur the production of two successor models.
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Nowadays the sales figures of the console forefather sound almost laughable. Current models are now selling millions of times. But which consoles have actually sold best to date? Statista has published a corresponding overview that answers exactly this question. Curtain up on the 13 most popular gaming consoles in the world! (Source: Statista)
Units sold: 61.91 million
It's been almost 40 years NES already under the belt now. The console went by the name Famicom in Japan, and the device was marketed internationally as the Nintendo Entertainment System – NES for short.
61.91 million times The NES was sold and almost single-handedly ensured that the video game market was revived after the big crash in 1983.
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Units sold: 75.94 million
The successor to the normal Nintendo DS was the 3DS a difficult legacy – especially since many fans of the original viewed the 3D effect as a simple gimmick with no real added value. Nevertheless, Nintendo was able to release the 3DS almost 76 million times sell and thus secure twelfth place.
Units sold: 81.51 million
The Game Boy Advance was the successor to the Game Boy Color 2001 to follow in big footsteps – which he did brilliantly. Around 82 million units have been sold by the handheld console to this day, although there has been some criticism of the design. Above all, the reflective screen and the lack of backlighting were criticized – two points of criticism that were ironed out with the Game Boy Advance SP.
Units sold: 82.52 million
The PSP turned out to be a complete success for Sony. The handheld version of a PlayStation created a buzz among gamers and sold like hotcakes. More than 80 million times The PlayStation Portable was sold and is still used by some gamers today as an emulator for other handheld consoles.
Despite the failure of its successor, the PS Vita, many gamers want Sony to give the handheld market another chance – and we are no exception. And no, the weird streaming thing for the PS5 is not a reasonable replacement!
Units sold: 85.73 million
With the Xbox 360 Microsoft was in a close neck-and-neck race with Sony's PlayStation 3 for several years starting in 2005. Almost 86 million times The console went over the counter in its various versions, and it was only in April 2016 that it was announced that production would be discontinued.
Units sold: 87.4 million
You could almost imagine it: The PlayStation 3 takes 7th place and is positioned just ahead of the Xbox 360. Compared to the Microsoft console, Sony installed a Blu-Ray player in the PS3 and offered its online service free of charge.
The PS3's built-in Cell processor was on paper far superior to the chips in competing consoles, but many developers complained that the new architecture would make programming the games more difficult.
Units sold: 101.63 million
It sold significantly better than the PS3 and Xbox 360 Nintendo Wii. The small home console was able to captivate many gamers thanks to its simple motion controls. This ensured that even small children or older people who had never used a console before quickly became familiar with the device.
More than 100 million times The small home console sold, which is probably due, among other things, to the significantly lower price compared to the PS3 and Xbox 360. As a gamer, you could sometimes overlook the fact that the Wii offered significantly less hardware power.
Units sold: 102.49 million
Sony bet with the first PlayStation 1994 the foundation for his successful console series. Production stopped in 2006, but by then the home console was selling incredibly well 102.49 million times and even caused astonished faces at Nintendo. Nobody probably expected such a huge success, after all, the PlayStation was Sony's first games console.
Units sold: 117.16 million
Sony's PS4 was now selling an impressive 117 million units. Sony was able to clearly win the last generation of consoles; the Xbox One didn't even sell half as well.
This was probably mainly due to the initial price difference. While Microsoft offered the Xbox One for $499, the PS4 only cost $399 when it was released. Even with the short-term “Always on” strategy and the scandal surrounding the difficulty of sharing games, Microsoft was not happy.
Units sold: 118.69 million
Along with the Game Boy Color, the Game Boy almost sold out 120 million times – a groundbreaking success for Nintendo! The fat original version was already working 1989 launched in Japan, in subsequent years a transparent special edition and the smaller Game Boy Pocket were released in 1996. A year later, the Game Boy Light, an improved version with switchable green backlighting, was released.
In 1998 things got really colorful with the Game Boy Color! The screen could overall 32,768 different colors and offered an infrared interface through which you could exchange data with other Game Boy players.
Units sold: 137.7 million
The Switch has made up a lot of ground in recent years and is in third place. Over 132 million times The Switch has already been sold – and there doesn't seem to be an end to the success story in sight. At least not until the end of 2024. Then the official successor is expected.
Units sold: 154.02 million
When Nintendo touches a handheld, it almost always turns to gold. This is particularly impressive on the Nintendo DS. More than 154 million units have been discontinued, the Nintendo Switch can currently only dream of these numbers.
The foldable mini console with touch screen not only brought with it a completely new operating concept, but was also able to captivate many casual gamers.
Units sold: 158.7 million
Nintendo and Sony fought hard, but in the end the PlayStation 2 won the race. More than 158 million times The console, which is now more than 20 years old, was sold – so the device definitely paid off for Sony.