Video game consoles have been around far long than most people think. Many gamers will trace consoles back to the first PlayStation, or perhaps even the original Nintendo Entertainment System, which has some of the most frustrating games in video game history. However, the PlayStation console was actually a part of the fifth generation of games, while even the NES was part of the third.
With the release of the Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5, consoles are now on their ninth generation. And with every generation there has to be a fight for supremacy. One console has to climb to the top, proving to be more popular than the rest, generally due to having the more popular games that fans just can't get enough of.
9 Gen 1: Nintendo Color-TV Sold Three Million Units
The numbers on the early first generation consoles are a bit harder to figure out than most cases due to things not being tracked as well as they are now. However, it’s not particularly surprising to see a familiar face appear as the best selling console, as the Nintendo Color TV-Game managed to sell three million consoles solely in Japan.
The system launched June 1st, 1977 for 9800 yen, which is around $88. The original version, the TV-Game 6, had six different versions of Pong on it, while the improved version the TV-Game 15 had fifteen different games available for it. Nintendo continued releasing variations on this console until 1983, when they would replace it with the Nintendo Entertainment system.
8 Gen 2: Atari 2600 Sold 30 Million Units
The Atari 2600 is still one of the most successful consoles of all time, having moved 30 million units. Though it launched on September 11th, 1977, the Atari is more successful than more modern consoles like the Nintendo Wii U or the original Xbox console.
The Atari was where companies got the bright idea to create games that could be stored on cartridges, allowing one system to play multiple games. The best selling game on the console was the original Pac-Man, selling over seven million copies— but despite its sales success it was a very poor adaptation of the original arcade game.
7 Gen 3: Nintendo Entertainment System Sold 62 Million Units
Video game consoles become a bit more familiar with the introduction of the Famicom, or the Nintendo Entertainment System as it’s known in the West. The system launched in America October 18th, 1985, two years after it had already enjoyed a successful launch in Japan.
The console moved nearly sixty two million units, driven largely by its incredible first and third-party titles. This is where gaming started to get its long-lasting franchises, like The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Nintendo flagship Super Mario, all of which continue and remain popular to this day.
6 Gen 4: Super Nintendo Sold 49 Million Units
When people think about the fourth generation, they generally think of a more popular gaming generation than the third. But despite Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis (aka Mega Drive) making things more mainstream, the best selling console only sold 49 million units, far less than the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Nonetheless, the Super Nintendo was a monster console, creating some of the best franchises with games that are remembered even now. Super Mario World and Final Fantasy VI are considered to be some of the best games in their franchises, and that’s not counting one-off classics like Chrono Trigger. While the Genesis gave the SNES a run for its money in North America and surpassed it in Europe, Sega's 16-bit effort was a total dud in Japan and really helped skew the final worldwide tally in Nintendo's favor.
5 Gen 5: The Original PlayStation Sold 102 Million Units
Sony entered the market and immediately changed how everyone looked at video games. Nintendo had spent several generations running things, but their overconfidence and desire to continue using an outdated cartridge format led to Sony becoming the leading platform for the next generation.
The PlayStation, or PlayStation One as its now retroactively called, would sell one hundred million consoles, the first console ever to reach such numbers. Games like Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid would change what people believed were possible in terms of video game narratives and cinematics, and the industry would be forever changed after this generation.
4 Gen 6: PlayStation 2 Sold 155 Million Units
The PlayStation 2 sold over one hundred and fifty five million consoles, and to this day is the best selling console of all time. Everything had fallen in place for the successor to Sony’s originally incredible successful system. It was expensive at first, but the fact that it operated as a cheap DVD player made it an easy choice for a lot of people who wanted a media system and a gaming console at the same time.
Major titles like Final Fantasy X and Grand Theft Auto III would revolutionize their genres and the medium. By the end, Sony managed to get the console down to only $100, resulting in the system maintaining its popularity far past anyone’s expectations and selling well into the next generation.
3 Gen 7: Nintendo Wii Sold 102 Million Units
The Nintendo Wii ran away with the seventh generation. While Microsoft and Sony both moved on to the high definition era and catered to a hardcore, adult gaming audience, Nintendo went in a different direction: They built a cheap system with a streamlined control method and a free pack-in game— Wii Sports— that many people bought the console specifically for, all of which led to the console becoming just as popular (if not more so) with people outside usual gaming audiences, as well as being the go-to console for families.
As a result, the Wii managed to become Nintendo’s first home console to sell over one hundred million units. Titles like Mario Kart Wii and New Super Mario Bros. Wii became mainstays of the console, never mind highly acclaimed games like Super Mario Galaxy and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess showing up for the hardcore crowd as well.
2 Gen 8: PlayStation 4 Has Sold 116 Million Units (& Counting)
This generation is somewhat debatable considering the Nintendo Switch is considered an eighth generation console and it’s still selling with no signs of slowing. However, at 115 million units, it’s currently safe to say the console is doing fantastic.
The PlayStation 4 managed to do everything right— it was powerful while being priced reasonably, and it had some of the best first-party software in it’s console life cycle. A Sony game has been a Game of the Year candidate since 2015, creating a pedigree that’s nearly unmatched.
1 Gen 9: Sony PlayStation 5 Is Already At 8 Million Units & That Number Grows Every Day
This one’s way too early to tell, but currently the PlayStation 5 has sold nearly eight million units. That’s in a single year and while being incredibly supply-constrained, and currently almost doubles that of the Xbox Series X|S. People want the new PlayStation— that’s just the way of things and has been for decades now.
Though most its upcoming major titles will all be available on the PlayStation 4, most of the core audience would prefer to have the next-gen console for those games. That said, this one could change at any time, depending on the proper circumstances, so Sony shouldn’t get too comfortable; after all, the Xbox 360 had a seemingly insurmountable lead over the PlayStation 3 during the initial stretch of their battle, and the PS3 ended up surpassing it in the end.