The launch of the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 has been the biggest and most anticipated event in gaming for some time, with pre-orders for both consoles selling out in minutes. In fact, Microsoft has claimed the launch of Xbox Series X and S is the biggest launch in the history of Xbox, selling a record number of consoles in the first 24 hours.

The news comes from the Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, who shared a thank you message to gamers on Twitter. Spencer stopped short of sharing exactly how many consoles had been sold, or how the numbers split between the Xbox Series X and S. Though the Xbox One launch previously held the record, with Microsoft revealing back in 2013 that the console sold over one million units globally in its first day on sale.

RELATED: Xbox Asks Players to Stop Blowing Vape Smoke Into Their Series X

The lack of details means gamers won't know if the Xbox Series X sold more than a million consoles, or if the Series X and S shared the numbers evenly. This follows Microsoft's decision to stop sharing console sales figures in 2015, and is supported by comments Spencer made to The Guardian newspaper that the number of gamers playing is more important than sales of hardware: "The primary outcome of all the work that we do is how many players we see, and how often they play. That is what drives Xbox. If I start to highlight something else, both publicly and internally, it changes our focus."

Commentators have speculated that PlayStation 5 will outsell Xbox Series X, and gamer research so far has shown that Sony's console is favored by many. However, there is clearly still significant demand for Microsoft's new consoles, even without the delayed Halo Infinite, the flagship title which was planned for launch and even features on the console box art. Given Xbox One was estimated to have sold around half of the units of PlayStation 4, Microsoft probably knows that it is unlikely to win a sales argument, but with millions of additional players on PC, it doesn't really need to.

The new Xbox and PlayStation consoles were always likely to sell out at launch, and the more important numbers will come in the months ahead, although the record launch is still a positive indication of interest for Microsoft. While Phil Spencer's comments about being focused more on player numbers than console sales, supports the idea that Microsoft will be more concerned with Game Pass subscribers than Xbox Series X and S sales.

So despite sharing positive sales news for the Xbox Series X and S launch, gamers are unlikely to hear much more on how the consoles sell, except perhaps in the event that sales overtake PlayStation 5.

Xbox Series X and Series S are available now.

MORE: Video Shows FedEx Employee Tossing Xbox Series X on Porch

Source: Via Wccftech