Sony’s woes in the Japanese market continue, as sales data has revealed that the company sold less than one million PlayStation units in Japan across all of 2020, marking the worst sales numbers since the console line launched in 1994.
Related: Report: Censorship Among Key Reasons PlayStation Brand Faces “Decisive Decline” In Japan
According to a chart of recently compiled sales data provided by Japanese video game magazine Famitsu, combined sales of both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 consoles amounted to only an approximate 800,000 units, a sharp decline from the approx. 1.2 million sold in 2019.
Not only does this decline in annual sales denote the first time the PlayStation brand has failed to sell over one million units since the original PlayStation first launched in 1994, but it also represents the console family’s fourth-consecutive year of declining sales.
Related: Report: AT&T Confirms Sale Of Crunchyroll To Sony’s Funimation for $1.17 Billion
While some of 2020’s abysmal sales numbers can be attributed to both the then-upcoming release of the PlayStation 5, which would have dissuaded players from buying the ‘last generation’ PlayStation 4, and PS5 stock issues similar to those seen across all of Sony’s markets, such limited-time events would not account for four straight years of sales decline.
Rather, this losing trend lends credence to reports that Sony has turned their attention away from Japan in order to focus on Western markets, which has subsequently soured Japanese customers to the PlayStation brand.
Unfortunately for Japanese players, every passing day seems to bring more evidence suggesting that Sony truly has chosen to focus on the West, with the company most recently announcing that they would be halting production of all but one model of PlayStation 4, the 500GB PlayStation 4 Slim, in the region.
What do you make of this decline in Sony’s sales? Let us know your thoughts on social media or in the comments down below!