The video game industry is massively successful; in 2020, the U.S. video game industry grew by 27% to nearly $57 billion in revenue, which surpasses movies and music combined! Video game enthusiasts have a fantastic array of gaming platforms to choose from, and each video game console offers unique and exclusive experiences that have earned hardcore fans throughout the years. So what video game console is most successful? The team at VR Space took a break from gaming to crunch the numbers and pay tribute to the best-selling video game consoles of all time:
The PS2 is the best-selling video game console of all time, with 155 million units sold since it launched in 2000. There are many factors surrounding why the PS2 was so successful. Sony marketed the PS2 as the console of the future; it had better hardware specifications than its competitors and a built-in DVD player that made it appealing for families. It also offered backward compatibility, drawing in PS1 fans. Spectacular exclusives such as Final Fantasy X, God of War, Shadow of the Colossus, and Kingdom Hearts also captivated potential buyers. There are nearly 4,000 PS2 game titles, with more than 1.5 billion copies sold. What is the most-sold PS2 game? The best-selling PS2 game of all time is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, with 17.33 million copies sold since its release on Oct. 26, 2004.
Since 1994, 102.49 million of the original PlayStation have been sold.
Since 2006, 84 million PS3s have been sold.
Since 2013, 116.9 million PS4s have been sold.
Since 2020, 17.3 million PS5s have been sold.
Overall, PlayStation has been more successful than Xbox in terms of sales. Xbox sales have reached 24 million units since 2001, Xbox 360 sales have reached 84 million units since 2005, and Xbox One sales have reached 51 million units since 2013. Now, on to the latest incarnation of the Microsoft console: How many Xbox Series X have sold? The answer is that 12 million units have sold since its release in 2020, so overall, it is still being outperformed by the PlayStation lineup.
The Nintendo DS is the second-best-selling console in history, gaining many passionate fans since its release in 2004. How many Nintendo DS consoles have been sold? The success of the Nintendo DS nearly parallels that of the PlayStation 2, with 154.02 million units sold.
The Nintendo Switch is the fifth-best-selling video game console in history, with 103.54 million units sold since 2017.
The Wii comes in seventh place in video game console sales; 101.63 million Wii units have been sold since 2006. It’s also the platform that’s had the most successful Nintendo game. What is the best-selling Nintendo game of all time? According to Nintendo’s official records, it’s Wii Sports, with 82.9 million units sold.
The Game Boy Advance has earned the tenth-most-successful video game console slot, with 81.51 million units sold.
Rank | Console | Type | Manufacturer | Release Date | Units Sold |
1 | PlayStation 2 | Home | Sony | 2000 | 155 million |
2 | Nintendo DS | Handheld | Nintendo | 2004 | 154.02 million |
3 | Game Boy/Game Boy Color | Handheld | Nintendo | 1989/1998 | 118.69 million |
4 | PlayStation 4 | Home | Sony | 2013 | 116.9 million |
5 | Nintendo Switch | Hybrid | Nintendo | 2017 | 103.54 million |
6 | PlayStation | Home | Sony | 1994 | 102.49 million |
7 | Wii | Home | Nintendo | 2006 | 101.63 million |
8 | PlayStation 3 | Home | Sony | 2006 | 87.4 million |
9 | Xbox 360 | Home | Microsoft | 2005 | 84 million |
10 | Game Boy Advance | Handheld | Nintendo | 2001 | 81.51 million |
11 | PlayStation Portable | Handheld | Sony | 2004 | 80-82 million |
12 | Nintendo 3DS | Handheld | Nintendo | 2011 | 75.94 million |
13 | NES/Famicom | Home | Nintendo | 1983 | 61.91 million |
14 | Xbox One | Home | Microsoft | 2013 | 51 million |
15 | SNES/Super Famicom | Home | Nintendo | 1990 | 49.1 million |
16 | Game & Watch | Handheld | Nintendo | 1980 | 43.4 million |
17 | Nintendo 64 | Home | Nintendo | 1996 | 32.93 million |
18 | Sega Genesis/Mega Drive | Home | Sega | 1988 | 30.75 million |
19 | Atari 2600 | Home | Atari | 1977 | 30 million |
20 | Xbox | Home | Microsoft | 2001 | 24 million |
21 | GameCube | Home | Nintendo | 2001 | 21.74 million |
22 | PlayStation 5 | Home | Sony | 2020 | 17.3 million |
23 | Wii U | Home | Nintendo | 2012 | 13.56 million |
24 | Xbox Series X/S | Home | Microsoft | 2020 | 12 million |
25 | Sega Game Gear | Handheld | Sega | 1990 | 10.62 million |
26 | PlayStation Vita | Handheld | Sony | 2011 | 10-15 million |
27 | Sega Master System | Home | Sega | 1986 | 10-13 million |
28 | Oculus Quest 2 | Home | Meta Platforms | 2020 | 10 million |
29 | TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine | Home | NEC/Hudson Soft | 1987 | 10 million |
30 | Sega Saturn | Home | Sega | 1994 | 9.26 million |
31 | Dreamcast | Home | Sega | 1998 | 9.13 million |
32 | Master System (Brazilian variant) | Home | Tectoy | 1989 | 8 million |
33 | Dendy | Home | Micro Genius | 1992 | 6 million |
34 | Super NES Classic Edition | Home | Nintendo | 2017 | 5.28 million |
35 | PlayStation VR | Home | Sony | 2016 | 5 million |
36 | Sega Pico | Home | Sega | 1993 | 3.4 million |
37 | WonderSwan | Handheld | Bandai | 1999 | 3.5 million |
38 | Color TV-Game | Home | Nintendo | 1977 | 3 million |
39 | Intellivision | Home | Mattel | 1980 | 3 million |
40 | Mega Drive (Brazilian variant) | Home | Tectoy | 1990 | 3 million |
41 | N-Gage | Handheld | Nokia | 2003 | 3 million |
42 | NES Classic Edition | Home | Nintendo | 2016 | 2.3 million |
43 | ColecoVision | Home | Coleco | 1982 | 2 million |
44 | Magnavox Odyssey | Home | Magnavox/Philips | 1978 | 2 million |
45 | Atari Lynx | Handheld | Atari | 1989 | 1 million |
46 | Philips CD-i | Home | Philips | 1990 | 1 million |
47 | Telstar | Home | Coleco | 1976 | 1 million |
48 | Atari 5200 | Home | Atari | 1982 | 1 million |
49 | Atari 7800 | Home | Atari | 1986 | 1 million |
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