Sony still isn’t releasing sales figures for PlayStation VR (PSVR) yet, but it does insist that it’s performing as expected.
The Japanese electronics company today published its financial report for fiscal Q3 and, while profits are down year-on-year for the overall company, it’s good news from the PlayStation division. A total of 9.7 million PlayStration 4 consoles were sold during the quarter, stretching from October to December 2016, and sales were up year-on-year. The company attributed not only the reduction in the price of the PS4 to this success but also the launch of PlayStation VR in October. No statistics were revealed for the headset but Sony did reiterate that “PS VR is selling in-line with expectations.”
Just what those expectations are remains a mystery for now.
Still, PSVR fans will be pleased to here the headset is measuring up to Sony’s estimations at the very least. For many, the system’s $399 price point, paired with the PS4, makes it a much more affordable option than the $599 Oculus Rift or $799 HTC Vive, both of which require expensive PCs to operate. Still, with VR yet to reach its mainstream potential and so many issues left with the hardware at this early stage, it’s impossible to tell just how big the early market is for the device.
At the very least, we know PlayStation VR has sold at least around 98,617 units; that’s the current number of people that have registered to say they’re using the device to play Capcom’s Resident Evil 7 [Review: 9/10], which launched with optional PSVR support last month. It’s likely that the real number far exceeds this, though.
Sony is looking to boost PSVR sales this month with the reintroduction of its $499 launch bundle for the device, including everything you need to get started, and a new bundle that’s exclusive to GameStop and EB Games. Releases like Farpoint and Ace Combat 7 will also look to bolster the install base as the year goes on, though we’re hoping for a big update on what’s next for the device at either GDC or E3 in the coming weeks and months.
