An article from the New York Times has today revealed commercial milestones for two of PlayStation’s most successful IPs in recent years. New IP Ghost of Tsushima, which released to critical acclaim earlier this year, has already exceeded five million copies, while the God of War franchise has now hit 52 million, largely bolstered by the success of the 2018 PS4 title.
The article details the rebound of Sony after much of its electronics segment has faltered in recent years. Televisions, mobile phone devices, Walkman’s, and other once-popular products have fallen by the wayside since the company’s heday’s in the late 1990s and 2000s.
But Sony’s PlayStation brand has continued to thrive and fast become its largest and most important segment. The incredible success of the PS4 console, in particular, has helped Sony regain its momentum.
A quote from the article reads:
“Sony attributes much of its success over the last console generation to the popularity of its exclusive game franchises, including stalwarts like God of War (more than 51 million copies sold) and newcomers like Ghost of Tsushima, with more than five million copies sold since its debut in July.”
When author Seth Schiesel was later asked if the numbers in the article had been confirmed by Sony, he responded:
Yes they did, and I believe the 5 million figure for Ghost of Tsushima had not been reported previously.
— Seth Schiesel (@SethSchiesel) November 12, 2020
For comparison’s sake, Guerrilla Games’ Horizon Zero Dawn had sold 3.4 million units over roughly the same amount of time.
The God of War franchise, meanwhile, was last reported as having sold 21,6 million units back in 2012, which would likely put God of War 2018’s sales at around 20 million given that it is the only game in the series to have launched since.
If you haven’t played either Ghost of Tsushima or God of War 2018 yet, check out our reviews here and here respectively.