Microsoft reports more than 5 million Xbox One consoles sold

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Microsoft said on Thursday it has sold more than five million Xbox One consoles since they were launched in November.

The news came a day after video game competitor Sony said it had sold more than seven million PlayStation 4 consoles since mid-November.

Sony's numbers refer to sales to consumers while Microsoft's involve sales to retailers. Sales of Xbox

One were 60 per cent higher than those of Microsoft's earlier iteration, the Xbox 360, during the same length of time after it hit the market, Mr Yusuf Medhi, vice-president of marketing, strategy and business, wrote on the Microsoft blog in announcing the figures.

Furthermore, the new game Titanfall, which Microsoft was counting on to boost sales of the new Xbox, was the world's hottest selling game in March, said Mr Mehdi, quoting figures released on Thursday by analysts NPD Group.

Titanfall, which came out in March, involves a futuristic galaxy torn by fighting between elite fighter pilots and huge, heavily armed titans.