Can’t we all just get along? Some have issued a call for peace but the next-generation console war is inevitable. PlayStation 4 fans and Xbox One fans have their own war going, and market research firms and other industry watchers will constantly pit the two consoles against each other as they fight for sales. While the PS4 undoubtedly took an early lead since it launched a week ahead of Microsoft’s new console, it looks like the Xbox One gained some ground and dominated Black Friday sales at two of the biggest retailers in the country.
According to data released Saturday by retail performance tracker InfoScout, Microsoft started out the holiday shopping season with a bang. InfoScout issued its combined console sales estimates for Walmart and Target and found that not only did Xbox One unit sales top the PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 sales did as well.
According to the firm’s data, which is based on the analysis of roughly 83,000 shopping receipts, the Xbox One was the best-selling console at Walmart and Target, accounting for 31% of home console sales despite its high price. Incredibly deep discounts on the Xbox 360 pushed it into the No. 2 spot with a 30% share of all sales. Together, the consoles combined to give Microsoft a whopping 61% of home console sales on Black Friday.
InfoScout reports that the PlayStation 4 and previous-generation PlayStation 3 each took 15% of home console sales at Target and Walmart. Nintendo’s struggling Wii U accounted for 6% of home video game console sales and the Wii represented just 1% of sales at the two retail chains.
The firm’s polling found that consumers cited “too much hype” and high game prices among the top reasons for passing on the PlayStation 4, while the lack of any must-have games was a big complaint among those who did not purchase the Xbox One.
Check out BGR’s full review of the Xbox One and our PlayStation 4 review for more info on each console.
