What you need to know
- There's increased demand for Xbox Series S and X in the UK.
- Gfk has reported a 76% increase in console sales and attributes this spike to Starfield's launch and the new version of the Xbox Series S release.
- Starfield's launch posted a 46% increase in the standard Xbox Series X console sales for the week ending September 2nd.
- The launch of the Xbox Series S 1TB edition posted a 20% increase in the number of console sales in the week ending September 9, 2023.
- Read on for more details.
Starfield is undoubtedly Bethesda's biggest launch yet, hitting over 6 million players
across Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC as of September 7, 2023. And the hype for the entry continues to build up as the days go by.
According to a report by GamesIndustry.biz, Microsoft console sales have skyrocketed following the debut of Bethesda's first new IP in 25 years which was preceded by the release of a new version of the Xbox Series S. The entry ships with double the game storage available on the regular Xbox Series S.
And as it now seems, both releases are working in Microsoft's favor. Per the data shared by GfK, Xbox Series S and X sales jumped 76% during the first week that Starfield launched.
Dorian Bloch, GfK head, cited that this is the biggest week yet in terms of Xbox Series S and X in the United Kingdom, which is closely followed by the week ending September 9, 2023. The new version of the Xbox Series S posted a 20% increase in console sales in this particular week.
Statistics show the launch of the new version of the Xbox Series S contributed to 24% of the total number of console sales in that particular week. Notably, Starfield's launch contributed to a 46% increase in the standard Xbox Series X console sales for the week ending September 2nd.
Grab an Xbox Series S 1TB, and you'll have the space to play multiple big games, including Starfield. It also comes in black, which may be more your style compared to the regular white Xbox Series S.
It is currently the best week this year for Series X. And the following week [ending September 9th] is the fourth best for X. In-between is week one and week six, which were early year blips.
David Bloch, Gfk Head
Starfield hype is real
Judging from the numbers posted in terms of Xbox console sales in the UK following Starfield's release, which concurrently aligned with the release of the new Xbox Series S 1TB edition, there's a lot of interest building up the entry.
Microsoft Xbox hardware sales in the UK have been significantly low for the better part of this year, posting nearly 23% year-to-date. It was only in August that the trend began to pick up ahead of Starfield's launch and the new version of the Xbox Series S release.
For those yet to explore and venture into this new world of goodness, check out our Starfield review for more insights (spoiler-free).
