Sony expected to sell “only” 3 million consoles in Europe in the first three years
PlayStation has been with us for over 30 years, being one of the three main pillars of modern video games alongside Xbox and Nintendo. And few brands can boast that they started the video game industry with the kind of console it should be. PS1, not only at the hardware level, but especially at the directory level. Silent Hill, Metal Gear Solid, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Resident Evil 1, 2 and 3, several of Final Fantasy the most important games in history and many other games that influence even today.
Therefore, most likely Not even Sony executives could have expected the PS1 to be such a smashing success. Well, who would have thought that something would eventually be done at the level Final Fantasy VII o Metal Gear Solid. They trusted their sales, yes, but reality exceeded PlayStation’s expectations with its first console, at least in Europe.
First PS1 sales in Europe
Portal VG Charts general Sony’s sales expectations for the PS1 when they launched it in Europe. Although they thought it would sell relatively well, They were quite cautious and they did not even jokingly expect that in the end they would actually sell on our territory.
His initial expectations were 3 million sales in the first 3 years of the PS1 in Europe. Compared to today’s sales, this is a rather low figure, but we must take into account that the industry at that time was not as extensive as it is today, and that, in addition, the PlayStation was a new console, that is, it did not come from the previous ones generations. Finally, in Europe During the same time period, 10 million units were sold, that means more than three times the initial expectations of the Japanese company.
The secret to PS1’s success
As I mentioned earlier, the success of the first PlayStation It wasn’t so much because of the hardware itself, Well, there were more powerful options back then. But the catalog he took under his arm, where many titles were exclusive to this car It was something spectacular.
Yes, Nintendo had theirs Super mario 64 or to him The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which games are considered some of the best in history. But the difference is that Nintendo came from already historic consoles with great titles; PlayStation managed to surprise with works of great depth in terms of narrative and argument, and with gameplay innovations that remain today.
