The time has come to take stock on the side of Sony with the presentation of its quarterly financial results spanning the period from October 1 to December 31, 2023 and it is as always on the side of additional data that our gaze is turned. Well, regarding the PlayStation 5, there is no real surprise, since after the 46.6 million in the previous quarter and the 50 million mark crossed on December 9, the count is now at more than 54.8 million, with still 8.2 million consoles sold over these three months. This is a little better than last year (+1.1 million), but it remains below the firm’s expectations, which consequently has revised its forecasts downward for the conclusion of its fiscal year for the gaming branch, going from 25 to 21 million PS5 sales expected by March 31, 2024. If you were wondering why the Slim model is currently on sale, the answer is probably to be found there since we will have to sell 4.6 million of them by this date. Moreover, for the next financial year running from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025, Sony expects a gradual decline in sales of its machine…since it will already enter the second half of its life cycle as explained by CFO And COO Hiroki Totoki. Yes, as a reminder, it was launched at the end of 2020.
Side PlayStation Network123 million active monthly users were counted, a nice increase of 11 million compared to the previous year. On the other hand, we do not have still no figures for PlayStation Plus… THE PSVR 2 is also still absent subscribers.
Regarding gamesit’s still the same with no distinction between those on PS5 and PS4, for a combined total of 89.7 million copies sold during the quarter, an increase of 3.2 million compared to the same period last year. Among them, the share of dematerialized represents 66% and no less than 16.2 million were titles first party. This is not really surprising since nothing but Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 sold more than 5 million copies in 11 days following its launch on October 20. Besides, speaking of the gameInsomniac Gamesit crossed the 10 million mark as of February 4, 2024. However, it is still a drop in terms of exclusivity for PlayStation Studios compared to last year (20.8 million, a decrease of 4.6 million).
As such, games from third-party publishers can be enough and this brings us to the next point, which may disappoint some. Indeed, Hiroki Totoki has declared during the webcast that there would be no release of large games with known licenses first party over the period from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.
When it comes to first-party software, our goal is to continue to focus on producing high-quality works and developing live service games. But even if major projects are under development, we do not plan to release any major new titles from existing franchises in the next fiscal yearlike God of War Ragnarök and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
Although the cost burden related to acquisitions will ease over the next fiscal year, we expect first-party software profit to decrease slightly compared to this financial year due to the impact of lower sales. As a result, operating profit for the next financial year is currently expected to increase slightly compared to this financial year. However, although this is our reference, we review measures to further improve profitability ahead of the announcement of forecast annual results in May.
Regarding PlayStation 5 hardware, which will enter its fifth year since launch, in part due to its entry into the second half of the console cycle, we aim to optimize sales with a greater emphasis on balance with profits, so we expect a gradual decline in unit sales starting next fiscal year.
We expect third-party software sales to continue to grow gradually due to the expansion of the PlayStation 5 install base and high level of user engagement. In network services, we expect subscribers to be at the same level as this financial year, or even slightly lower, due to the impact of the price revision we implemented this financial year, but we expect sales to gradually increase due to the shift to attractive premium services.
This does not mean, however, that there will be no exclusive new features, since the remaster ofUntil Dawn is expected in 2024, as well as Stellar Blade from April 26. Furthermore, this speech does not concern new licenses, as Concord by Firewalk Studios, planned for this year if nothing has changed. Obviously, the attraction for the latter is also less than for games of Santa Monica Studio And Insomniac Games cited, but we will have to be patient. This announcement also refers to the previous observation that many games live service saw their release postponed.
If Nintendo releases its next console during this period, it is still a beautiful red carpet that seems to have rolled out for it Sony.
The PS5 Slim with disc drive is currently sold €474 on Amazon And €474.99 at Fnac.
Read also: Insomniac Games: the list of games until 2030 on the run following a hacker attack…
| Alexandre SAMSON (Omega Law) Responsible Proofreader – Editor | ||
| Addicted to Assassin’s Creed and Destiny, big fan of RPGs and passionate about video game experiences in general. Reader of comics (DC) and various mangas (One Piece!). Chemist by training and Whovian at heart. | ||
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