PS5 marks biggest ever month in Japan, with sales up over 450%

PlayStation 5 has enjoyed its biggest-ever month in Japan, with sales up more than 450% year-on-year in February.

According to Famitsu data, PS5 was February’s best-selling hardware in the country, shifting 366,982 units. Nintendo Switch came in second at 221,041 units.

It’s the first time PS5 has outsold Nintendo Switch in a calendar month in Japan.

PS5 sales are up 457% year-on-year in Japan for February, having sold 65,772 units in February 2022.

PS5 has enjoyed a strong start to 2023 in some regions, likely due to the much-increased availability of the console, following years of stock shortages.

As noted by Twitter user Genki_JPN, the PS5 sold more units in February in Japan than it managed in the first four months of 2022 combined, pointing to a massive increase in sales in the region.

Sony’s console enjoyed a similarly successful February in the UK, which in February saw sales increase 316% over the same period in 2022.

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While Nintendo Switch software still dominated Japan’s software charts with Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe topping the list with 189,031 units, Hogwarts Legacy, which is currently only available on PS5 and Xbox Series consoles, managed 126,086.

Due to the lack of significant market penetration of Xbox in Japan, it’s likely that most of these sales were on PS5, potentially spurring the huge sales month.

According to Game Data Library, Hogwarts Legacy is now the seventh best-selling game of the year at retail in Japan.