PS4 Was The Best-Selling Console In The U.S. And Worldwide In 2014

Sony Computer Entertainment Japan Asia President Hiroshi Kawano speaks during a news conference in Tokyo September 9, 2013. Reuters/Toru Hanai

Sony has issued a statement announcing that its flagship PlayStation 4 console has been a best-seller not only in the US, but also for the world for all of 2014. The PS4 has sold a staggering 18.5 million units within fourteen months since its launch. This impressive figure doesn't just allow it to beat the Xbox One, but it also makes the PS4 the fastest-selling console in the history of the PlayStation family, according to VentureBeat.

This announcement comes close on the heels of the industry-tracking firm NPD's report on console sales figures for the month of November and December, which pegged rival Microsoft's Xbox One as the bestseller for that period. However, Microsoft's success can be attributed to a hefty $50 price cut on the Xbox One in the U.S., allowing it to sell faster than the PS4 during the holiday season.

"We are humbled by this success and want to thank gamers worldwide for helping us achieve holiday sales of more than 4.1 million across 123 countries and regions. We are looking forward to another momentous year in 2015 and bringing an epic line up of titles to PlayStation fans around the world," a Sony Computer Entertainment America spokesperson said in the statement.

Interestingly, a VGChartz.com report on worldwide sales figures for the same holiday period revealed that the PS4 continued to outsell the Xbox One by almost a million units despite the latter performing well in the US following a price cut. Sony's success can be attributed to its stellar performance, which is widely regarded as being better than the Xbox One. Gamers have noted PS4's edge over the Xbox One in the aspects of framerate and resolution for cross-platform games released for both consoles.

It's pretty clear that Microsoft has been aggressively pursuing the price-cut route to match PS4 sales. The company even announced earlier today that it would continue the discounted price. The discount was originally intended to be a holiday promotion in the U.S., but it appears that this may be a new promotion that extends the discount, reports The Verge. Sony, on the other hand, hasn't made any move over the past two months to match the Xbox One pricewise.

The Xbox One price cut is especially noteworthy considering the fact that the U.S. has traditionally been an Xbox stronghold. Luring customers with aggressive pricing strategy in that part of the world is a sign that Microsoft might be on the back foot in this generation's console war.