PS4 Can Achieve PS2/Wii-Like Success, Study Says

Research firm Strategy Analytics has released the results of its latest study, predicting that the PlayStation 4 will outsell the rival Xbox One by a healthy 40 percent by the year 2019.

The "Connected Home Devices" report, released Wednesday, predicts that the PS4 will reach around 80 million units sold by 2019, compared to 57 million for the Xbox One.

At this time, both the PS4 and Xbox One will be close to the peak of their lifecycle, Strategy Analytics says, also adding, however, that there will still be room for "modest growth" in 2019 and beyond.

Sony shipped around 18.5 million PS4s during the console's first year, which Strategy Analytics notes is close to matching the first-year sales pace of the PlayStation 2 (20.1 million) and is up substantially over the slow start for the PlayStation 3 (10.5 million).

Strategy Analytics has high hopes for the PS4 in the long-run, saying the console "is on path to reproduce the success of the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii," according to GamesIndustry International. The PS2 is the best-selling home console of all-time, shifting more than 150 million units to date. The Wii, meanwhile, has sold over 100 million systems.

As for the Xbox One, Strategy Analytics reports that its estimated 12.4 million units shipped in the first year was better than the Xbox 360's year-one tally of 10.4 million systems. The firm claims Xbox One sales could have been better, however, were it not for the PS3-like challenges it faced, including a higher initial price point than its main competitor.

The Xbox One, which originally came bundled with Kinect, launched in November 2013 at $500. Microsoft later offered a $400 non-Kinect bundle, the same bundle the company lowered to $350 only months later. $350 is the current introductory price for a new Xbox One, compared to $400 for the PS4.

Nintendo's Wii U, however, will "trail a long way behind its rivals," according to Strategy Analytics. "It is looking more and more like Nintendo struck lucky with the original Wii," it said.