Microsoft

Microsoft's Xbox One game console may be back on track and on its way to catching up with competitors.

Over the past two weeks, the Xbox One outsold Sony's competing PlayStation 4 in the US, Microsoft said. Sony's device had led monthly video game hardware sales for nine straight months this year, according to market researcher NPD Group.

The reason? Microsoft earlier this month slashed the price tag on its console in the US by $50, down from $400, for a device without the Kinect motion camera accessory. Xbox One sales have tripled since the price cut went into effect on November 2, according to Microsoft's Yusuf Mehdi, head of the Xbox devices and studios division. That price cut will remain until the end of the year.

Microsoft is focusing on consumers' hearts, minds and wallets in an attempt to rebuild its reputation among gamers and close the gap between the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, which sold 13.5 million units as of September. Sony has been hammering out relationships with games developers that give its players unique story lines and features on popular games. Microsoft in contrast is working to make the Xbox platform as broadly appealing as possible.

The strategy appears to be working, at least in the short term. Mehdi says the Xbox One is nearing 10 million units sold to retailers.

Besides the price cut, Microsoft also released high-profile games such as the remastered collection of the popular Halo shooter series and threw in free games of popular new releases, such as the next installments in the Assassin's Creed stealth series and military shooter Call of Duty. Both moves also helped drive sales of the console.