Helldivers 2 has emerged among other gaming behemoths to claim the spotlight as the month’s top-seller. Yes, you heard that right—in February 2024, the game managed to outsell other titles from major players on the market.
PlayStation’s recent success with Helldivers 2 in the UK gaming market appears to be a silver lining amid broader concerns. According to GSD, as of February, video game sales dipped by 5.5% compared to the previous year, but Arrowhead Game Studios’ latest title managed to come out strong.
Helldivers 2 Dominates Sales, But Sony Suffers
Even with the dip in the gaming market, Helldivers 2 has become the top-selling game for the month. The game has shown remarkable sales growth over its first three weeks on the market, with 57% of sales coming from the PlayStation platform—keep in mind, it’s only available on PS5 and PC.
In contrast, other notable releases like Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League and Skull and Bones have fallen short of expectations. While one could argue it’s because of their questionable reception by the public, console sales themselves in the UK have seen a significant drop of 33% year-over-year (YoY).
Amid this backdrop, PlayStation 5 remains the leading platform, despite a 2% month-over-month and 28% YoY decline in sales.
The less-than-average performances of new releases raises questions about the industry’s trajectory. Helldivers 2 is doing well, but is it enough to save Sony’s underwhelming sales?
Earlier this year, it was reported that Sony adjusted its PS5 sales forecast for the fiscal year ending in March from 25 million to 21 million units. This led to a sharp drop in the company’s shares and a whopping $10 billion reduction in market value.
The PS5 Could See The End of Production Soon
Things aren’t looking so good for Sony right now, and it doesn’t help that the company announced that the console is approaching the latter stage of its life. This could mean they’re looking at the console’s successor, the PS6, already—or maybe they’re betting on the arrival of the PS5 Pro model to pick things up.
We’ve previously discussed reasons as to why sales could be dropping for the console. There’s a noticeable lack of first-party exclusives for the console this time around, when comparing it to the PS4 and its subsequent variants.
Sure, the PS5 got exclusives like the Demon’s Souls remake and Rachet & Clank: Rift Apart, but other titles were eventually released on the PC or PS4, which probably resulted in people holding off on upgrading.
Leaks have told us the PS5 Pro will be coming soon, but do we need it? The PS5 has many great games, however, none have pushed the console to its limits.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 will be released at the end of the month and is said to run at around 30FPS (uncapped) on the PS5. If more games run in this direction, the PS5 Pro could be of great value.
What are your thoughts on the current state of Sony and the PlayStation? Let us know in the comments below!
