25 million PS2s sold in North America

The console publicity wars saw another skirmish today. Shortly after Nintendo announced the GameCube is selling out in the U.S., Sony fired back that its PlayStation 2 has sold its 25 millionth unit in North America. As of the end of 2003, Nintendo said 6.8 million GameCubes had been sold in the U.S.

Sony also boasted that 2.6 million, or 10 percent, of PS2s are enabled for online play, with one million online gamers. This statement was likely addressed torwards Microsoft, which recently hyped the fact it has 750,000 Xbox Live subscribers.

"While our competitors strive to meet the new standards we've laid before them, our focus remains fixed on driving the momentum of our platform and the industry forward," said SCEA president Kaz Hirai in a not-so-subtle jab at Sony's rivals.