During 2019, Sony took a restrained stance, with fewer releases than in 2018, probably one of the best years of the current generation, with titles like Marvels Spider-Man and God of War selling many millions of copies. And even PlayStation 4 had crossed the 100 million barrier. The preparation of the PS5, scheduled for the end of 2020, changed the strategy of the Japanese giant, putting most of its stadiums to work in the new generation, and with the postponement of important games like The Last of Us II and Dreams to 2020, or even DOOM Eternal and Watch Dogs Legion, left 2019 even more fragile than initially expected.
And the less good results are seen, according to Sony's report on the third quarter that ended in late December. With regard to the gaming business, the quarter decreased 20% compared to the same period in 2018, including PS4 consoles as video games, both produced by its internal studios and external publishers.
The sector's operating revenues decreased by around 180 million dollars during the quarter, leading the company to adjust its end-of-year forecasts by less than 459 million dollars (3%) and operating revenues of 46 million dollars.
On the other hand, despite the 7% decrease in video game sales, it was not predictable, considering PlayStation as the most popular console of the Christmas season. This can be justified by the increase in the number of subscribers to the PS Plus service, from 36.4 million in the third quarter of 2018, to 38.8 million in the same period in 2019.
Despite this slowdown in revenue, the company remains committed to preparing the PlayStation 5 for this year, which also means that games postponed last year will "force" an increase in revenue for 2020.
