The console industry has indeed felt the semiconductor crisis over the past year. Given that the demand for these gadgets is high, it is expected that console makers such as Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are keeping up well with the production of the units.
However, experts believe that the fluctuations in sales might be a huge impact brought by consumer supply chain issues that hit the gaming industry and every available technology on the planet, including smart appliances, cars, and more.
Console Makers Could Not Catch Up With the Demand
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - FEBRUARY 08: A mostly sold-out display of PlayStation accessories is shown at an electronics store on February 08, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. The full-year trade deficit for goods and services increased 27% to $859.1 billion in 2021. PlayStations are made by Sony, a Japanese company, but are manufactured in China.
Earlier this year, NPD Group considered PlayStation 5 the top-selling gaming console in the United States alone. But before that, Nintendo's Switch topped the charts back in December.
The same thing can also be said to Microsoft's Xbox Series S, which emerged to have the biggest sales during Black Friday in November, per Adobe's Digital Economy Index data via VGC.
However, these impressive records do not immediately dictate their success in the long run. Apparently, NPD Group Executive Director Mat Piscatella noted that the existing supply chain problems could drive the changes in sales.
In an interview with Business Insider, Piscatella said that the demand for the most popular gaming consoles kicked off when the pandemic began in March 2020. Since then, the market struggled to catch up with the demand of the consumers.
In addition, the video game advisor noted that the PS5 units of Sony had outperformed both Microsoft and Nintendo in terms of sales. Aside from the huge public demand, the company has more stocks of the consoles than the two firms reportedly.
Piscatella clarified that this was not a new instance, to begin with since the semiconductor crisis has brought about console supply chain issues.
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True Consumer Demand Remains Difficult to Identify
In a similar report from Insider, these series of events contributed to the state of the video game market. With regards to these problems, Piscatella said that the console supplies have steadily affected the market shares on a weekly and monthly basis.
"I do not know what true demand is for any individual console, nor the hardware market. Sales curves right now are not normalized because of these supply challenges," he said.
For now, purchasing a gaming console remains difficult despite its accessibility. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft will have to deal with another round of supply chain issues for this year.
Meanwhile, GameNGuide wrote an article on how you can pick the best SSDs for your PS5 console. Regardless of whether you are a first-time or long-time console owner, you might want to check this guide for a while.
Elsewhere, read another article about the best Xbox Series X controllers that you should buy in 2022.
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This article is owned by GameNGuide
Written by Joseph Henry
