The popularity of the PS5 and Xbox Series consoles continues to dwindle in Japan, as Mobile, Nintendo Switch, and PC emerge as platforms of choice for the youth.
In a 2023 survey conducted by SHIBUYA109 Entertainment from Japanese youth aged between 15 and 24, the top 5 gaming platforms of choice were found to be Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, Tablet devices, and Nintendo DS, indicating the dwindling interest in PS5 and Xbox Series consoles.
Respondents were allowed to select multiple platforms in the surveys. In terms of percentage, 94.7% of the respondents chose Mobile as their platform of choice, 38.5% chose Nintendo Switch, 33.2% chose PC, 26.5% chose tablet devices, and 12.2% chose the Nintendo DS. Based on the data, 80% of the Japanese youth plays video games, and 44.9% of them play daily, spending an average of 100 minutes per day on gaming.
The presence of the Nintendo DS instead of the Nintendo 3DS in the top 5 and both Mobile and Tablet devices ranking high suggests that Japanese youth is more interested in games that require less concentration. This is further verified by many choosing responses like “I always play games while lying down, watching anime or dramas, or watching gameplay videos”, “I was watching a video on a video streaming service”, “I play while eating”, and “I play while commuting to school or during free time between classes”.
There’s also the factor of consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X being unaffordable for youth aged between 15 and 24 in Japan. Not only are the consoles fairly expensive, online play being behind a paywall, and games costing as much as $70 each. Interestingly, the survey indicates that Japanese gaming audiences aged between 15 and 24 spend an average of 10,446 Yen on games annually, which is just below the cost of most AAA PS5 or Xbox Series console games these days. With PC, there’s the option to acquire games cheaper, such as via regional pricing on Steam or via keys distributed by third-party sellers.