The launch sales are good, but they are in no way indicative of the market's future. The PS2, 360, and Wii would have sold as well had the supply been available. The real test will be in January and February.
Analysts predict that both XB1 and PS4 will sell over 3 million total units apiece by the end of December. IIRC, Sony themselves said the same thing about PS4. Both plan to sell (or ship) 5 million by March. The Wii U also sold (shipped more likely) over 3 million units through December of last year. The Wii U was also easily obtainable in stores at this time last year, as is the XB1 currently. PS4 is still sold out.
The top sellers on both platforms are annualized AAA franchises that have front-loaded sales. It's possible, given the demographic, that the console launches were front-loaded too. There are at least a few million enthusiast console gamers starved for a new console after a 7-8 year generation. There are also scalpers and general consumers caught in the hype.
The best-selling title, CoD, is actually a very 'casual' franchise that core gamers also play. Not surprising to see it sell the best, but it is surprising to see lower sales for the exclusives considering there are other platforms to play versions of these multiplats.
Once we're past the launch hype, the holidays, and supply catches up with demand (and scalpers quit buying them), does the momentum continue? According to November NPD, software is down 24% over last November. People are going to blame the console transition, but this didn't happen in 2006. This is why people are saying to not read too far into the impressive launch numbers. Of course we want to see a healthy console market. It's just too early to call right now.
