It is set to be a huge year for game consoles with the Nintendo Switch 2 having been announced and Grand Theft Auto 6 arriving on PlayStation and Xbox ahead of PC.
Whether your first experience of playing games was on a handheld device or on a more traditional home machine, consoles have only gotten better as time has went on.
While the PlayStation 2 continues its reign as the best-selling video game console of all time, sales of Sony’s PS5 have climbed since it first came out in 2020. Despite this, the current generation console hasn’t been able to beat out its predecessor and the newest console to make the top 5 is the Nintendo Switch.
With the Switch 2 hitting shelves later this year, here we take a look at the best-selling games consoles of all time.
5. PlayStation 4 (PS4) – 117 million
When it was released in 2013, the PlayStation 4 quickly dominated its generation of consoles. With an impressive library of exclusive titles – such as The Last of Us – there were more than 117 million PS4’s sold according to official numbers from Sony. | CNISAK - stock.adobe.com
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6. PlayStation (PS) – 102.49 million
A console which was first conceived as a collaboration between Sony and Nintendo, the PlayStation was released in 1994 in Japan and a year later around the rest of the world. According to Sony’s official figures, there were more than 102.49 million original PlayStation consoles sold. To this day, the PlayStation still has one of the biggest console game libraries ever. | Matthieu Tuffet - stock.adobe.com
7. Nintendo Wii – 101.63 million
Released around the same time as the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, the Nintendo Wii was unique with its motion sensor control. Selling around 101.63 million units from its release in 2006 until it was discontinued in 2013, the Wii is the eighth best selling console of all time. | Getty Images
8. PlayStation 3 (PS3) – 87.4 million
Released in 2007, the PlayStation 3 was Sony’s follow up to their best-selling console the PS2. When it was released, the PS3 – much like its predecessor – also included the ability to play DVDs on the system, including Blu-Rays, and continued to be sold until it was discontinued around 2016. As of March 2017, the PS3 sold around 87.4 million consoles worldwide despite not getting off to as strong of a start as earlier editions of the PlayStation. | oasisamuel - stock.adobe.com