Following the launch of the Kinect-free bundle for Xbox One on June 9th, Microsoft has announced that hardware sales “more than doubled” in the month of June relative to the console’s performance hitherto.
In a statement, the company attributed the boon in sales to the strong reception in the wake of its game-centric E3 conference, though it’s readily apparent that the $399 SKU had a significant impact on sales.
“Over the past month, we’ve seen a strong spike in interest in our Xbox One console options, including the new $399 offering, and the amazing line-up of games announced during E3. Since the new Xbox One offering launched on June 9th, we’ve seen sales of Xbox One more than double in the US, compared to sales in May, and solid growth in Xbox 360 sales.”
While Microsoft withheld a concrete number at this time, the last figure the company published was at the tail end of April, announcing that the Xbox One had sold through over 115,000 units during that month in particular off of the back of Titanfall’s successful launch.
Comparatively, it’s understood that PlayStation 4 remains the market leader in terms of cumulative hardware sales. That said, the fact that Microsoft is trumpeting the Xbox One’s performance in June could signal that the console has overtaken (or, at least, reached parity) with PS4 sales during those four weeks in question.
Still, it’s worth keeping in mind that Sony’s console is currently available in more countries worldwide and remains the cheaper option, even after Microsoft’s $100 price cut. And with Xbox One receiving some positive press after a turbulent first year, PlayStation 4’s once-trailblazing lead doesn’t look as watertight as it once did.