PS5 Nears 100 Million, Switch 2 Cools and GTA 6 Pre-Loads on 10 November

Two of the three console makers opened their books on Thursday 5 November, two weeks before Grand Theft Auto VI arrives. The picture is the same at both: fewer boxes sold, more money made from games and services. Meanwhile Rockstar's launch machine has moved from trailers to logistics.

Sony: PS5 slows, PlayStation profits

Sony shipped 2.6 million PS5 consoles in July to September, down from 4.0 million a year earlier, taking the lifetime total to 97.9 million, Push Square reports. Yet the Game & Network Services segment grew sales 9% to about ¥1.2 trillion and operating income 83% to ¥220 billion, according to The Cryptonomist; stripping out a one-off loss a year ago, including a Bungie impairment, the rise is 29%.

Players bought 88.2 million PS5 and PS4 games in the quarter, 8.2 million of them from Sony's own studios. Marvel's Wolverine, released on 15 September, had sold 2.4 million copies by 4 November, Implicator reports. Sony raised its full-year segment forecast by 6%, to ¥4.8 trillion in sales and ¥700 billion in operating income, and monthly active users hit a September record of 127 million. One blemish: on 4 November Santa Monica Studio pushed the PS5 exclusive God of War Laufey from 16 February to 20 May 2027, Push Square reports.

Nintendo: Switch 2 cools after its launch year

Nintendo shipped 2.67 million Switch 2 consoles in July to September and 6.49 million in the half, bringing the lifetime total to 26.35 million, Gamereactor reports. Half-year net sales fell 12.1% to ¥966 billion, but operating profit rose 49.1% to ¥216.5 billion, helped by a bigger software share and a refund of US tariffs. Mario Kart World has reached 16.48 million copies, and Nintendo left its full-year forecast unchanged.

GTA 6: what is confirmed for launch week

• Launch: 19 November on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
• PS5 pre-download: from local midnight on 10 November for pre-orders, says the PlayStation Blog.
• Storage: clear at least 212 GB, the size Rockstar confirmed, according to Forbes.
• Xbox pre-load starts at midnight GMT on 10 November; boxed copies with a download code can pre-load from 12 November, Forbes adds.

On a 1 TB console, GTA 6 alone takes roughly a quarter of the drive. Clean house this weekend.

Worlds 2026: the last four

In Texas, Invictus Gaming beat Top Esports 3-1 and Gen.G swept LYON 3-0, ending North America's run, Esports.net reports. Gen.G and iG now meet in a semi-final in Allen, Texas. The best-of-five final is on 14 November at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Next week: the remaining quarter-finals, the semi-finals, and a 212 GB download that will test every home connection.