Sony chief financial officer Kenichiro Yoshida discusses the sales of the newly-released PlayStation VR headset, giving a positive update on sales for the device so far.

At surface level, the launch of the PlayStation VR headset seemed to go swimmingly for Sony. The device, which released last month, immediately sold well across multiple online retailers, with only certain bundles available in specific stores within a short amount of time. From the sounds of it, however, these positive signs in terms of sales have followed across the board.

That is, according to Sony's chief financial officer Kenichiro Yoshida. During the company's recent earnings briefing, Yoshida discussed the sales figures for PlayStation VR so far, and it's looking good for the company. "The sales of PS VR, which was launched in October, are on track," said Yoshida in the report.

Sony has been relatively coy regarding the expected units sold for PlayStation VR thus far, which perhaps makes it difficult for fans to know what Yoshida means when he states that sales are "on track." However, it does seem to be a good sign overall for those hoping that PS VR would kick off, with the company previously suggesting that demand was greater than that for the PS1 at launch. Meanwhile, analyst firm IHS Markit has put a tentative marker down at 1.4 million units sold this year.

Of the confirmed sales so far, Sony's device has made an impressive start. The PlayStation VR outsold every console on the market in Japan in less than a week from its release, selling 51,644 units from October 13 through to October 16. Should positive sales figures continue to be a regular occurence, then Sony could be on to a game-changer.

In the eyes of many, PlayStation VR looked to be the headset with the best chance to truly make a dent on mainstream gaming. Being tied to a single device, particularly one as popular as the PS4, has perhaps given Sony the chance to create an easy - and cost-effective - way for users to get into VR gaming, away from the more involved experiences from other headsets on the market. It's certainly paid off from a critical standpoint, with the headset's ease of use leading some to suggest that Virtual Reality is here to stay.

Of course, for PS VR to truly become a permanent fixture in gaming, the device will need to deliver more on the content side to keep users occupied. PlayStation VR released with a strong list of launch titles, but future games will need to have more depth in order to avoid "coasting on novelty" - an issue with VR gaming that Oculus CTO John Carmack recently warned against. Should Sony manage to keep content at a high quality, then perhaps PS VR could find a solid place in gaming culture.

PlayStation VR is out now.

Source: Sony