PlayStation fans hoping for the next generation of console will have to wait quite a bit longer for a new instalment in the console series.
PlayStation fans hoping for the next generation of console will have to wait quite a bit longer for a new instalment in the console series.
President of Sony Interactive Entertainment, Tsuyoshi Kodera has stated that the next PlayStation is three years off, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Playstation 4 was released in 2013, meaning there will be an eight-year-long span between the two consoles.
The reason behind this extended development period is, primarily, predicated on the company’s desire to shift its focus from hardware to online services. “We’re no longer in a time when you can think just about the console or just about the network like they’re two different things,” Kodera said during a press event.
Broadening the functionality of the Playstation does seem to be a likely possibility. Kodera also mentioned that the new generation of Playstation won’t be limited to a single, stationary, device.
Kodera also made mention of Sony’s continued expansion of Playstation Plus, Sony’s online distribution platform for the Playstation 4. Plus offers a variety of products and subscriptions to its users, which reached roughly 34 million as of March.
The added focus on user mobility and online subscription services will likely mean the next Playstation console will be widely different from its previous generations. With the rise of digital distribution platforms like Steam, mobile gaming, and the portability of the Nintendo Switch the habits of gamers today vary widely from the way console developers traditionally viewed the market.
Kodera seems confident in Playstation’s future, and claimed the delay of its next console will let the company “prepare [for] the next step, to crouch down so that we can jump higher in the future.”
Published: May 23, 2018 05:20 pm