A new Q3 FY22 financial report from Sony has revealed a startling statistic about the current PlayStation 5 user base – that around 30% of current monthly active users (MAUs) have seemingly never owned a PlayStation 4 console.
‘Engagement metrics of users who transitioned from PlayStation 4 to PS5, such as their PS Plus subscription rate, gameplay time, and average spending amount are significantly higher than those when they played on PS4, so we will continue to focus on accelerating the transition of PS4 users to PS5,’ Sony said.
‘In addition, nearly 30% of PS5ʼs MAUs are users who never used PS4, so, with the spread of PS5, the acquisition of new users is progressing.’
Essentially, this means nearly one-third of all PS5 owners either skipped the PS4 generation, or are completely new to the PlayStation ecosystem. This would certainly align with the rising popularity of gaming in the mainstream, although the sheer number of newer MAUs is surprising.
Read: How COVID got my entire family back into gaming after years away
Even amidst the strong economic downturn, it appears Sony is making strides towards attracting new players – likely on the strength of exclusive blockbuster game releases like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West, and God of War Ragnarok, the latter of which recently hit 11 million copies sold.
It’s also important to consider this milestone in light of ongoing PS5 production bottlenecks, which Sony recently claimed were finally cleared.
Since 2020, it has been extremely difficult to purchase a PS5 console without the aid of social media, stock trackers, and gaming websites. This has limited the window of buying opportunity to active internet users with a key interest in purchasing the console, and those who have extra income to spare.
Given these circumstances, Sony still recording a boost in consumer uptake from non-tenured gamers is impressive.
While there may be outliers in the data, this report seems to reflect a changing consumer base, and a growing movement towards gaming as a hobby. In future, Sony will look to maintain this fresh user growth, likely with new exclusive titles, and through cross-media collaborations, like the phenomenally popular Last of Us TV show adaptation.
