Sony is celebrating another milestone, as the PlayStation 4 has officially outsold the PlayStation 3. Whether players prefer their games from Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo, the PS4 is having a bumper year in both software and hardware sales.

Even though the PlayStation 4 is officially entering the end of its life cycle - and there are rumors of behind-the-scenes work on the PlayStation 5 - Sony is still shifting an impressive number of units each month. While this may seem a little unusual, it's important to remember Sony has had a huge year with the PS4, thanks to exclusive titles like God of War and Spider-Man.

According to Sony, the company's latest financial report confirms that the PlayStation 4 rounded off Q2 with sales of 86.1 million. This means the PS4 has sold a further 3.9 million in the past three months and nudges the next-gen console ahead of the PS3's lifetime sales of 83.8 million. On the software side, the statistics reveal that Sony sold 75.1 million units in its second quarter (up 17% on 2017), and subscribers to online services have reached a whopping 34.3 million (up 6.2 million on 2017).


Known for titles like Little Big Planet, God of War II, and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, the PlayStation 3 boasted some impressive exclusives in its day. First hitting shelves in 2006, the PS3 remained in mainstream production until 2016, and was still being made in Japan until May 2017. Despite the PlayStation 3 stepping aside to make room for the PlayStation 4 in 2013, it's still fondly remembered in gaming circles.

As for the PlayStation 4, the sales are great news, as gamers look at what comes next for the likes of Sony and Microsoft. Although the recent boost to PS4 sales will likely change Sony's sales predictions for 2019, it looks like the console will still trail behind some of its predecessors. Looking at the figures, the PlayStation 4 is still a long way off from beating the original PlayStation's 102.49 million units and the PlayStation 2's 155 million units. Considering the PlayStation 2 is the best-selling game console of all time, it'll be tough for anything to topple it from the top spot.

Back in July, it was reported that the PlayStation 4 had passed 80 million units sold, but the new financials have surpassed that, and now put the PS4 as the sixth best-selling console of all time - which is no mean feat so late in the game. How much longer the PlayStation 4 has left on its lifespan remains to be seen, but let's not forget that the upcoming releases of The Last of Us Part II and Death Stranding are sure to sell a few more consoles for anyone who doesn't have a PlayStation 4 yet.