PS5 pre-orders exceed first 12 weeks of PS4 sales

PS5 pre-orders exceed first 12 weeks of PS4 sales, according to Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan.

During an interview with Reuters, the PlayStation head revealed that the first 12 hours of pre-orders for the PS5 matched the sales for the first 12 weeks of its predecessor, the PS4. Pre-orders for the PS5 originally launched last month, on September 16.

Ryan described the demand for the PS5, based on the pre-order levels, as “very, very considerable”. He added that “it may well be that not everybody who wants to buy a PS5 on launch day will be able to find one”, although the company is “working as hard as we ever can” to keep up with demand.

The exec also revealed that Sony is open to acquiring more studios in the future in order to strengthen its lineup of exclusives for the PS5, noting that the company wants to “bolster our in-house capability with selective [mergers and acquisitions] that might be possible”.

However, Ryan also cautioned that “AAA game development is an incredibly complicated and difficult thing to do”, and that the PS5 launch lineup came from “many lessons [learned] over many years”.

When pre-orders for the PS5 was first announced on September 16, Sony had said that it would only go live the day after. However, a number of retailers jumped the gun and launched pre-orders almost immediately, leading other retailers to scramble and open their pre-order slots as well, causing confusion for customers.

Sony later addressed the pre-order situation and apologised for the confusion, promising that more units will be made available soon. “Let’s be honest: PS5 preorders could have been a lot smoother. We truly apologise for that. Over the next few days, we will release more PS5 consoles for preorder – retailers will share more details,” it said.

Sony unveiled the new gaming console to tech enthusiasts and gamers alike some months ago and the whole universe is now in wait. The PS5 is set to launch on November 12 in the US and other select territories. The rest of the world will receive the console on November 19.