Rumour: PS6 Could Span a Console and Handheld Device

The PS5 Pro is now announced so the rumour mill moves on to the next big thing.

This would be great if it becomes true. Being able to play games from the PS4 and PS5 library if backwards compatible would be awesome.

I’ll take a console and handheld, but please no weak-arse Series S type compromise holding next gen back.

Would be awesome to have a new PSP with PS4 powers and backwards compatibility. Day 1 purchase for me.

So much talk if PS6 while the 5 is still going strong.

Sony already did this, years ago: Vita & PlaystationTV.
It was imperfect, but also years ahead of this possible future.

With my luck it's probably a digital PS6 w/o drive and a PS6 "alldigital-streambox".
Would love a PSVita Pro though

How original

Sony going back to the tried and true strategy of copying Nintendo's innovations.

Not even criticizing them either. Portal seems to be doing well and Switch is the market leader. If they can steal that thunder and transfer it to the AAA/4K segment of the market they will have a massive hit on their hands.

Yeah I think this would be the best option now anyway, let's just completely forget this generation ever existed and just move on to a more exciting one. Release 5 exclusive masterpieces with the launch of PS6. And we might be able to forget this abysmal gen.
Bundle the console with a handheld for 700 max (And PS6 on its own for 500 max) and we love Sony again.

@RiotShieldsHurt they actually dabbled with this during the PSP/PS3. The PSP had some streaming functionality with PS3. If I remember correctly it had very limited compatability, but it was there.

2026 at the earliest.
And probably won't be worth buying until 2028 at the earliest if the PS5 is any indication.

I don't know how I'd feel about it to be honest. On the one hand I do enjoy portable gaming...but I'm not really a fan of the Switch approach. It feels like a Jack of all but Master of none situation. I prefer a dedicated handheld and a dedicated home console but I know those times are sadly a thing of the past so maybe I just gotta get used to it.

I still use my Vita daily today. To me that is the peak of handheld gaming. It's not big and bulky like modern handheld systems. The games are built with portability in mind. Ah the good ol' days!

With the way the PS5 gen is going first party game-wise, handheld or not there's a 0% chance I'll buy anything PS6-related.

Adding an handheld with weaker specs that plays the same games as the PS6 would just hold back that generation for playstation like the Series S is doing for Xbox, unless they can make an handheld that has the exact same specs as the main console withot compromise.

@thefourfoldroot1 most games still release in PS4 is that not holding next gen back?

@Frmknst I know we had covid and supply issues and all that jazz, but this generation has been a real lame duck.
Rumour has it that 50% of PS4 owners have yet to upgrade. I do not blame anyone that decision tbh.

@Toot1st
Yes, it is. But MS require next gen games on their system be held back through their parity requirement. This then means it will be on PS for multiplatform games. It’s a bit different as it means it’s inevitable, whereas staying on last gen isn’t depending on sales numbers and such, and is likely to reduce as a problem over time whereas the Series S type problem is locked in till next gen. Nobody wants that.

@RiotShieldsHurt I know you said it was imperfect, which it was, since the Vita TV couldn't play every single Vita game. I know I do regret not getting a Vita TV when they were really cheap here.

@thefourfoldroot1 Ummm...you can't have both. If you're asking for the handheld too, then games will be developed for it in mind too. Besides, prior gen has already held this generation back. In fact that's consoles all over since obviously PC is way ahead.

@get2sammyb The PS6 will be a thing and likely a PS7 as long as the PS6 sell like the PS5 but the handheld PS6 is the rumour here. Hoping it's not just a PS Portal 2.

If this is all about having a handheld console that can play the entire PS4 library, then I would find this very interesting for sure, but only if the PS6 is a seperate unit that plays PS6 quality titles that the handheld console can’t play. Because if this is anything like the Series set of consoles that Microsoft released, then we will be back into a generation where one console holds the stronger console back, and I am definitely not a fan of that scenario! However whatever happens, I will probably only buy into the generation when the inevitable PS6 Pro gets released. That way I will be able to play PS5 games at 4K 60fps and the PS6 games at the best possible speed. My backlog is a Generations behinds worth anyway.

@TruestoryYep
I wasn’t even thinking they would try to get a PS6 game on a handheld with its inevitable computing and thermal restrictions. Sony are not turning into Nintendo when they are doing perfectly well in the higher end console space, and this story doesn’t suggest they are. I saw this as a separate handheld market device if it exists. Obviously with some PS4 back compat, some crossover IP and perhaps even cross connection of games on both devices in some fashion, but not a Switch compromise. They’d be foolish to take on Nintendo at their own game.

Maybe it's a PS3 style situation where there's a more expensive model that has more backwards compatibility than the other?

The aggressive push by Sony to do PS5 remasters of PS4 games (even PS4 games that are already on PC like HZD) gives a sense that maybe the base PS6 won't be able to play PS4 games.

I would love another handheld Sony device, still play my Vita loads and comes on holiday every time, I would be happy with a Portal type device that allows downloads, I do not want proprietary discs, cards or cartridge's please and I love physical. The PS6 definitely needs to come with a disk drive though or I could tap out which would be really sad

I absolutely love my PS5 but I'll certainly be in no rush to upgrade to a PS6.

Wouldn't surprise me if (when the time comes) they're still releasing games for all 3 consoles, 4, 5 & 6

My answer would be I’m not interesting in PS6, period. The hybrid Switch form is excellent in paper, but they need to bring in great games at a good pace yet. PS4 made me really excited about the future with PS5 so much that I pre-ordered PS5. Not sure about PS6 yet…

I’m not sure if I’m the only one that feels this way, and I don’t feel this way all the time, but the PS5 has mostly been a bit of a letdown. It doesn’t seem like it’s anything that’s even remotely close to its full potential.

This was covered extensively on Sacred Symbols+ too with Moore’s Law Is Dead, you should check it out.

Another console they can remake PS4 games for. How convenient

@CVCubbington
I think we’ve hit the point where spending more to push games forward isn’t profitable. I don’t think it matters too much what the power of a system is, until AI progresses enough to take all of the grunt work out of game development we’ll be getting games that can be sold across multiple systems and not maxing the best.

I would absolutely buy a handheld PlayStation 6. Assuming it would be less powerful than the full console, but still able to play PS6 games at reduced specs. If the push for backwards compatibility is true, then it would also be able to play all PS5 and PS4 games. Only problem would be for the physical media enthusiasts, whose libraries are locked onto discs. Yeah… that would be a problem for me…

@Member_the_game I mean, they aren't releasing games for PS4 anymore now so seems unlikely they will go back to doing so in several years time…

Make it a true jack of all trades: allow the handheld to play dedicated titles that get the requisite compatibility patches (or are from older generations), but then have built-in Portal-like streaming functionality for games that are too advanced for that. Let users have the best of both worlds!

I'd be all over that.

@Tomato_Goose if this can allegedly play ps6 games then it needs to be at least ps4pro level of gpu (small screen small resolution but still heavy games)

@Somapix

Are you being serious? Of course they are

I mean it is getting better (as it should be considering the PS5 is almost 4 years old) but there are still loads of games that get released as Cross Gen

There was even an article on this very website this morning listing them all

https://www.pushsquare.com/guides/new-ps4-games-release-dates-in-2024

See how splitting the machines worked out for xbox and Nintendo…

I'd be into a portable if it was small enough. The steam deck/asus/Switch sure are handheld, but not really that portable realistically. I've been messing with PSPs and DSs again so I'd love to see a next gen pocketable handheld like a PSP/Vita 2.

It’s all those 140 million switch consoles sold that’s got those big wigs getting excited.

Handheld for $999, console for $1499 lmao

It amazing how Nintendo created a market that others (again) seem to be destined to follow.

It's also funny how many people here seem to be loving the idea of a dockable/hybrid piece of hardware.

@LifeGirl @Frmknst from a personal point of view I don't think this gen has been abysmal. It could have been better granted but I've had a hell of a lot of fun so far and will continue to do so. Hopefully the next gen or the one after that might make you two a lot happier.

I don't think this is a situation of PS6 and PS6 handheld. While Nintendo pulled off handheld beautifully with the Switch, developers have been vocal about the problems Microsoft and the split Series S/X approach caused. I'd say this is more likely the PS6 and a handheld being developed at the same time as independent products.

PS7 RUMOURS INBOUND!

If this happens to be a handheld aimed at releasing alongside the main console, I'd expect it to be some sort of streaming successor to the Portal. With much-needed improvements to the steaming quality, a "Portal 2" could end up selling massive numbers.

I dislike streaming to large TVs but a quality handheld device would tempt me, I can't lie.

Sounds like Sony is listening to Gamers I mean Nintendo is not just a fluffy gimmick relying on power lol ...crawls back under a stone

I'm all for handheld gaming now....missus got me the ps portal that I thought I didn't want....and now I much prefer playing on that as opposed to the console on the TV.....so I'm all for Xbox and ps to release a native handheld

@__jamiie I love the idea of dockable hardware if it's from Xbox or playstation....as Nintendo just don't have good enough third party support for me

I’ve barely used my Series X since launch, but I bought a ROG Ally last year and have been using it mostly as a Game Pass machine. It’s brilliant.

I’d buy a PS6 and a handheld device day one.

Really wish Sony would have a showcase so we can focus on the ***** that actually matters, which is the games.

I sincerely hope PS6 isn't a thing until at least 2028.

no reason for portable when steamdeck exists , & even then - if sony made exclusive portable games i’d hope people petition for them to just release it on console too.

@Number09 nintendos been about gimmicks since arguably the n64 😂

The only thing I would say is the reason Nintendo games work so well on Switch is that their games can break up easily into 5 minute experiences. Waiting for the bus you can play a level of Mario. On your lunch break you can do some chores in Animal Crossing. I wouldn’t want to turn on a PS6 handheld game and watch a bit of a 15 minute cutscene only to have to turn it off halfway through.

Saying that, I do think the future in gaming is more about being able to play you want to, not about experiencing the most realistic digital earhair.

They should’ve been exploring this since PS4Pro. One of the many problems, is that the gaming majority don’t all want to play games on high-end systems. Especially console gamers.

Sony/MS should have a hybrid system as the alternative to the main console, not a digital-only one. If games are going to be scaling between PS5/PS5Pro specs anyway…then just have them scale down to a system that’s affordable.

Tons of gamers don’t care about HDR, surround sound, high resolution, or a high rate of frames per second. Turns out they just want to play the game. So make a system for them that’s normal, not one that has to be digital-only.

Obviously that's what the portal is, an experiment for future hardware.

@BigRadical agreed 👍

@thefourfoldroot1 to be honest, given the price of the pro, I fully expect the handheld or secondary console to be a series s power-like option. If Sony wish to continue to have a mass market machine without taking a massive hit on hardware costs they’ll need to compromise on power to meet a $400-$500 price point.

I’m still waiting for them to go all in on PS5.

@nomither6 What was the N64's gimmick?

Handheld will be fail. Sony proves everytime that they don't support it and hopes the game industry wiil do that for Sony. Same with PSVR2, where are the games? Where are the games for the PS5?

Wait & see... The Gaming market will have changed a lot by then. And Sony needs to change in supporting their add-on devices more with good first party titles. The PSVita deserved a lot more imho!

First I would like to see if Nintendo is copying the Switch path in 2025 or if it's going to feature something new/extra/innovative.

@__jamiie
Exactly my thoughts.
I wouldn’t mind as they might stop chasing high end graphics and tricks etc.
And actually releasing some games from their studios.
As long as you can dock them like the switch.

@jrt87 Yep. That really is the dividing line between PS newcomers and veterans. If you remember the PS1, PS2, PS3 or even lets be honest the PS4, there is nothing to cheer about today beyond a handful of titles. And STILL - all of these years later - it is missing features that came standard in the past.

It is why the Pro is such a lacklustre looking investment especially when for that price you can build a very respectable gaming PC. Put down 200 more and you'll build something that completely outstrips it. Sony really has dropped the ball in recent years.

I don't see the point. All their games will probably be playable on PC and PC handhelds by then. What's the Vita 2, or whatever it's called, gonna offer that a Steam Deck 2 wouldn't already?

Doesn’t matter to me. If the PS6 is £700+, which seems all but confirmed at this point, and they stick with their current games strategy, I’m out.

@Ralizah "What's the Vita 2, or whatever it's called, gonna offer that a Steam Deck 2 wouldn't already?*

Being able to play our large PS4/PS5 libraries on the go plus buying just one copy and using it across the PS6 and PS6 portable 🙂

You said before you primarily play Steam games so this doesn't benefit you but for the rest of us who mostly use PlayStation hardware it's a dream come true!

@Ralizah
A much higher price point and a proprietary memory card.

I'll put this here for the craic save anyone else putting it and actually being serious...
"I'll wait for the PS6 Pro."

For me it has to be a single device meaning a handheld paired with a GPU powered dock (not just a hdmi connector) for more home performance. I won't invest in a home console and a handheld as separate devices since that would just be a plain stupid idea.

The time is ripe for this tech with ai upscaling and framegen assisting low energy consumption mobile chips!

If Sony comes with another boring home bound console that plays the games of two gems ago with slightly better graphics I'm throwing the towel on them.

I just hope the industry figures out how to resolve scalping, once and for all. I get Sony is trying but they almost make it so hard for a non-scalper too. I'm not suggesting I have the answer but with a ll the technological advances in the era of AI, you would think this one would be easier than it is.

I would be very happy if the PS6 had Switch functionality. If it's basically another PS Portal situation, probably naaaaah.

The PS6 is def going to cost either the same or more than the PS5 Pro. How well the portal has done and the talk of MS releasing a proper handheld will def have Sony going down this route as well. I saw a short vid on the youtube where someone was saying Xbox has changed their strategy. They had been planning 27 or 28 like Sony but are now aiming for 26. So that was why they didn't go for a pro version of the series X. So will be interesting to see what Sony do. They could probably kill off the Xbox if they allowed gamepass onto the playstation.

@thefourfoldroot1 developers hold the series s back mate. People need to stop repeating that as that isn’t how development works. Series s is current generation with “current” console tech. The reality is that this generation was/is held back by the Xbox one and PS4.

Already into ps6 conversation, sorry fans but this again indicates pro is a temporary cash grab for consumers that don't know better.

As for the handheld it makes sense. Xbox is doing it, Nintendo is built on it, and PC especially in Asia is exploding on it. Sony would be the odd dinosaur out without handheld at this point.

Though with Sonys new pricing motif, they're jumping into a red ocean history shows they're not good at competing in. It seems to me the minds behind Sonys consumer electronics businesses, which don't perform well, are now behind PlayStation. Sony likes to position their electronics as a "luxury lifestyle brand". It hasn't worked in electronics except for a subset of fans. And I think it threatens their dominance in gaming (which might be a good thing for gaming) where they're going after affluent image conscious entertainment fans, what they really have is fortnite kiddies, and what much of the gaming market that's not either wants is neither of the above. Their strength right now is that they're the default choice for anyone that doesn't want to think about it much. Not that they're sought after for brand prestige, which is that they seem too think. That places their likely direction and consumer expectation at stark odds as they enter a very red ocean

@Ralizah because they can't be left out if everyone else is doing it, they need the same feature checklist to avoid attrition, especially in Asia, and the existing Sony loyal will eat up anything Sony. Plus going back to Phil lol when he said they lost the worst Gen to lose because people built up their digital libraries on ps, I think Sony is very aware of that and paranoid about holding that library vendor lock as an asset now. They know they need to make sure to retain people for life based on that library and not give them egress routes.

@NEStalgia the pro is no more a cash grab than PC GPUs coming out so often. Just so people can have more pixels and graphical fidelity via brute force since PC needs it. And many justify their purchase by showing that current or old game x can run at 1,000 fps. The pro is for those that want newer tech that is more flashy. The console market is just following the phone and PC market. I see no problem here. And of course they are into the development cycle of the PS6. That’s just how R&D works. Still years away.

Sonys electronics are expensive because they are good and quality. Their TVs especially. Sony is a premium electronic brand. But there are plenty of normal brands like vizio and insert Chinese brand here. Luxury lifestyle examples for electronics are McIntosh, Bang and Olufsen.

PS brand does have prestige worldwide. With prestige a brand can lure people in on name alone. And this is what the PS has. Sure we can all protest about how it’s being ran now. But I’m confident the Japanese will turn it around.

A portable PS6 device would be cool, but I'm perfectly fine with my Switch and Steam Deck for my portable gaming needs.

Happy with a portable device of some sort but definitely not an Xbox x/s situation.

@Vaako007 either consoles are PCs in which case they are a way worse value, or consoles are not PCs and should not be comparable to PCs pricing and upgrade strategies. Nor do most PC gamers need to upgrade to every new iteration while the console mid Gen is proposed as a fix to the obsolescence of the base model (even though it will of course not exceed 15% install base)

The pro represents a marginal upgrade that is increasingly looking like it'll be thrown out to be replaced rapidly. If consoles are into continuous upgrade cycles they've outlived their primary purpose and it's no wonder the market is losing interest.

But again we go back to "premium" and "lifestyle". Informed consumers don't pay more for that. Vain and uninformed people do. Or brand loyalists but that's a tiny niche.

Honestly, just have cross-purchase between PS6 and Steam Deck 2 (or maybe 3 by then) and have MS make digital Xbox purchases available to play there too. Most people won’t buy all those handheld devices. If these PS and Xbox handhelds are real then both companies really need to stop copying Nintendo and innovate for once.

@Vaako007 if you think Sony’s electronics are that great you didn’t see the PS1s that had to be turned upside down to read discs, or all the faulty PS2s that doubtlessly contributed to that 155m consoles “sold” figure. The launch PS2’s disc trays broke remarkably often.

Some thoughts:

• This is pretty far in the future and it might change a lot. I think the Ps5 will have a very interesting later life cycle with a lot of projects coming to fruition.
• I hope they learnt from the X/S situation that it is not really that convenient to have two different SKUs to develop for: and for those mentioning Ps4 cross-gen games, we're fully past the Ps4 for big projects, we've actually been there a long while...
• With the commercial success of the Switch, the great buzz around SteamDeck and the surprising sales of the Portal, it makes sense they are at least exploring their possibilities.
• I really don't want a "Switch" as it's an unappealing (for me) machine that is not a reliable home console or a viable portable. It is just stuck in a limbo where it's the worst place you can play your games on and I only touch it for the rare must-play Nintendo exclusive (TOTK is the last title I played there).

@tselliot I think the biggest problem with stopping scalping is that nothing about the purchase is invalid. It's an actual sale to actual people. It's just that their intent isn't to own it.

The only real fix for scalping is stop using fomo as a sales tactic (will never happen) or make enough to avoid the ability for scalpers to organize to consume all available inventory to control price.

There's also the legislative fix of treating organized scalping as a criminal organization but that's hard to enforce, big Corp would have a problem with that rules solid to making price fixing and supply manipulation illegal.

Then there's draconian gateways of selecting what customers may purchase which controls it better, but also raises a lot of doubts about how those customers are selected.

It's a big factor that made me want out of consoles. The 30th anniversary shows us these companies thrive on low supply, high demand, driving scalping this driving status and demand and thus driving their own prices and prestige up. Scalpers have power because Sony and Nintendo WANT them to.

It's just not fun anymore.

@Tecinthebrain I get that. If your collection is already on PSN, why shift?

Problem is that a significant chunk of those libraries are physical and require discs. Also, if there's a requirement for all Playstation games to run on both, it'll risk turning into a Series S/X situation again.

Nintendo solved this by releasing a single hybrid device, but Sony obviously won't do that.

It would obviously sell to PS faithful, but the handheld market is becoming rapidly crowded again. Especially if the rumors of Microsoft also developing a handheld are true.

@NEStalgia This is turning into seventh gen again. Nintendo does a thing. It's wildly popular. Everyone else decides they need to do the thing too, but, unlike Nintendo, they don't commit to it, so it won't work as well.

@TheOldHunter4K LOL

Nothing would surprise me after the Vita.

@Yousef- It's almost certainly happening. The Deck is selling well for a device you could only buy from Steam for the longest, and has been a smash hit, unlike their other hardware.

Sources from Valve essentially said at the time of the OLED's release that it would be another 2 - 3 years before tech advanced enough to make a next-gen Deck viable, so it definitely sounds like it's in the cards. And, frankly, they've committed pretty significant effort to keeping it updated, testing games to confirm compatibility, helping developers get their games working with Proton, etc. It's hard to imagine they wouldn't drop new hardware at some point.

@__jamiie the controller

@nomither6 Because it made analogue controls a standard or because it introduced rumble? Things which every system since has used.

@Ralizah lol yep. Though this time Aside, Lenovo MSI, Valve, ARE committing to it which makes it even more awkward.

Sounds like what xbox is doing 🤔

@__jamiie because of the button layout & the controller has 3 handles

If it ain't cheap, I ain't buying. I am still waiting for a cheap PS5 lol

@glennthefrog Nintendo may have created the market with some of their devices, but for things like the PS Move, there are Tech demos from around the year 2000 for the EyeToy. Richard Marks has in the past demonstrated augmented reality, with balls on a stick and foam wands. One I couldn't find was Sword and sorcery demo, where the wands are used as swords. If you search on YouTube "PSMove is not a Wii ripoff" there is a tech demo there and around the 13 minute point of "Richard Marks - "Interaction Technologies for Game and VR Experiences"" video on YouTube there is another tech demo.

I'm not saying Nintendo copied Sony, but with some ideas, Sony had already done a lot of research in creating similar technology.

I guess I just get annoyed when I hear Sony copied again and all of their past research is just overlooked. I do understand that it is possible Sony wouldn't have released anything like the PS Move, without the Wii, so Sony did follow Nintendo in that respect and Sony has followed Nintendo with other things. But they have done a lot of research for new things. Mind you, not sure about now though. They haven't, admittedly, released anything like the EyeToy lately and Richard Marks has left Sony too.

@jrt87 insightful comment. I agree. I play multi platforms on Xbox. That being said, I enjoy playing Sony exclusives on PlayStation, but you’re right it goes long stretches without me playing it bc of slow release schedules.

Two chips can be as simple as two projects for the PS6. Like Dreamcast Dural and Blackbelt. It's not hard for many different sources Sony can pull from of Intel, Nvidia, AMD or others for further parts then the main CPU/GPU/RAM and more the other parts.

I like handhelds but I need more information it just doesn't add up. They have projects to get used to the PS5 still, their engines, their game design, their worlds, story and more for current IP focus. I just don't think a handheld is the right time right not unless ports. The hardware would be expense or awkward and something will be complicated on the studios I just don't see it happening. They won't pull a Wii U type device they barely did dual screen with PSVR let alone Playlink with phones or other stuff.

I doubt a handheld. Why would Sony bother. Unless they can get ports from Nixxes or others to do ports or have enough studios/split teams like they did the live services, for a handheld? I doubt it.

Let alone PS4 ports to a handheld or remasters/remakes. Like pass. I don't want the PS4/PS5 IPs on a handheld I have no interest in them at all these days.

The ones I got on PS4 I'm glad I have and that's it. No matter the new ones 'if any' or current IPs they focus on just no thanks.

In 10+ years maybe like people getting Borderlands 2 Vita to Borderlands collection on Switch sure it was fair because enough time had past, enough new audiences. Enough hardware upgrade/available systems to pass it onto.

But otherwise in other cases just nah. It's too soon, many IP these days are the same, re-released all the time, don't care if portable or PS6 when the same IPs are being recycled.

The hardware can be whatever but the games are too particular these days. To compete with PC handheld sure but that's what players want I find.

Portal for PS6 could be a thing for all we know then a handheld. If it has no dual screen support either then no thanks. Sick of cheap remote play devices and oh the Dualsense then a cheap different grip. I don't know about the Dualsense controller enough or a cheap grip.

I just don't see this being a thing unless they want to stretch themselves enough. They don't PSVR2, they don't need to Portal because it exists it doesn't need support other then firmware from the engineers/programmers that's it no game support at all with it that's why it exists the Portal to do remote play and nothing more. So a handheld, PS4/5 storefront? I mean I guess but like why?

Unless Sony themselves doing a PC handheld like Pocket PCs of 2006 and prior or something else then the PlayStation side of handhelds or some Xperia Play again. I just don't see it really happening still. A PSN app or Steam releases, whatever Sony/PlayStation would do to push their services even more likely?

@nomither6 It had 6 main face buttons (as did the Mega Drive and Saturn) and 2 shoulder buttons (as did the SNES and Saturn). The 3 prongs I'll slightly agree with, but that was purely to help 'teach' people to focus on using the analogue stick properly. I genuinely saw people at the time holding the pad by both sides and then try to stretch their thumb across to reach it.

@jrt87 im saying the pro isn’t a cash grab because its just a higher trim of an existing product. In which there is a market for. Don’t forget the goal of any business is to make money no matter the industry. And Sony isnt a nonprofit agency. They are a hardware company at heart. Sure the LE pro has a stronger argument for cash grab as they are using nostalgia to lure people. But it’s an anniversary edition for the brand. Every brand does this. Every brand has super fans whom place immense value on these special editions. Not a problem for what people want to spend their money on. Again a base PS5 is still being mass produced.

@SilentBluntman yes Sony makes good products. Their TVs for example hold their own in this competitive industry. My dad has a cool stereo system that he bought in the 90s that still works. In the 90s and early 2000s it was common for laser disc drives to go out. As the technology was still new and the laser wasn’t constantly in read mode. DVD players during the time had these issues as well. Compound this with the fact that consoles are cheap for what they are bringing to the table. PS1 and PS2 especially.

It would be hilarious how all the people "Series S will hold generation back" will somehow be okay with PlayStation handheld holding next generation back.

Because let's be real. If Sony is making a handheld, there is no chance it would be as powerful as home console.

@NEStalgia I always get roasted for this but I believe they need to spend the money again to make a real bespoke console. One that has enough overhead to last 8 years. Yes this is a pricey strategy. But it’s needed to avoid these weak sauce SOCs that have been the PS4 and PS5. So no pros for a console generation. Early adopters would just pay a higher price like usual but make the games that showcase the potential of a new stronger platform that aren’t cross generation. Then people will adopt them. Either way I’ll still be a console gamer as there are just certain games I want to play in front of a big TV instead of a monitor.

It’s up to the consumer to educate himself. My dad always told us to do our research. And many premium electronic brands do provide more measurable value through metrics compared to a normal brand, beyond just a name. I’m really into audio and good equipment does provide value. Of course one can go down a rabbit hole and keep upgrading. As past a certain point one has to decide if the gains are worth it.

I think most AAA publishers will be bankrupt if they have to increase the graphics fidelty again, ps4/ps5 graphics (uncharted 4, tlou 2, astro bot, ratchet & clank) with 60 fps is enough for me.

@__jamiie i was one of them, lol, and as a little kid with small hands too. but i did say "arguably" , & the n64 was a generation before my time so i honestly wouldnt know any better about the innovations it also brought to gaming as a standard.

N64 is still the worst controller design I've ever seen for what it's worth

They should skip PS5 Pro and go directly to PS6. PS5 is huge chaos with almost no games (only remasters and GaaSes).

@Vaako007 their TVs are way overpriced, especially their OLEDs considering LG make the screens and the LG TVs are often considered better. Sony charge for the name, feeling they can get away with pricing stuff 2-3 times higher than it’s actually worth. They also make it so you have to keep manually turning Dolby Vision on and off on their 4k disc players for some reason - in that field, Panasonic is the best brand anyway.

Sounds like a 1000 dollar reveal to me.

@Vaako007 Honestly that's not a bad plan. All but Nintendo are just chasing trying to be better PCs. At first they were chasing cheaper. Now they're not even necessarily cheaper all costs considered. And in the end that's all they really are. Weak PCs for marginally less money. There's nothing exciting about them except as an appliance to turn video games on. I think a "special" kind of gaming box would be much more interesting, but I think the problem is 3rd party. All the real money comes from selling 3rd party games, and the 3rd parties are insistent that what they want is just a bunch of PCs to copy and paste games to. They can't make money at what they're spending even with that let alone a bespoke console. Sony would probably love to do that for themselves, but it would be another WiiU, a bespoke console supported by Sony and no one else, and without that 30% of tons of software sales, there's no console (or it's the Saturn )

FWIW, PC doesn't mean desk and monitor. Hasn't for ages. Yeah, for certain games like Dota, WoW, or Starcraft 2, you kinda need that. But for the same games that are on console it's almost as couch friendly as console. Just plug into the TV. You do have do to a little more setup vs just "plug in and turn on", but using Steam Big Picture mode, for a console-like experience is a few mouse clicks of setup. Or if you use multiple storefronts (I do), installing Playnite or something similar brings it all together. You can even skin it to look like a PS4, PS5, Deck, X1, or XSX. After you set it up how you want the only thing that's really less convenient than console for the couch is that while you don't NEED a keyboard and mouse, there's a lot of moments where it's kind of necessary. A $25 wireless keybo/trackpad solves that, but it's a "second controller" to keep around for occasional use, namely for login, or older games with launchers that don't work with controller (FF13, Rune Factory 5, stuff like that.) The other is not all games behave nicely with sleep/hibernate, while console suspend is a lot more reliable (that said, I've had a lot of anomalies with PS5 Sleep and XSX Quick Resume with some games as well. Only switch seems to get it right probably because Android handles that stuff by default.) All that to say, never rule out PC entirely, if you're ever so inclined, just because you think it's not couch friendly. It is, with a little bit of setup, and yes a wireless keyboard for when you need it (I have a little controller-sized one that's kind of like the old PS3 keyboard attachment for controllers, but not attached.

As for premium brand electronics, audio is a special case, as it's not so much about premium BRAND as much as materials and design. And audio is filled with a lot of "premium" brands that are worse than average brands, and filled with a lot of ultra-lux exotic brands that are indistinguishable from premium brands (but people who happen to buy it can hear the difference!) Incidentally I'm also a bit of an audio snob, though I also can't stand the super premium pricing that has taken effect there over the past decade, and I'm infuriated to see gaming going the same route. Having said all that.......Sony CONSUMER audio isn't a brand I'd pay for in audio They charge too much and offer far less performance. Even there, they're a company that sees themselves as a much higher tier player than they are. Now they do have some advantages in automotive audio, and their pro audio has the ironic asset of being both good and cheap and is thus industry standard...

Ok. We haven't seen much ps5 gen only games, but already we are getting the Pro. The latter hasn't even been released and we're talking Ps6 now. I'm lost.

@Pete_Stooge there’s no reason generations can’t be longer now - games are taking longer to build than consoles now. It’s all about money. Thank goodness Nintendo were sensible - the Switch will be in year 9 before its successor is released.

@thefourfoldroot1 working our fine for Nintendo switch

@Yousef- pretty much multiple. For me PS is my exclusives box or if it won’t run on switch (and isn’t on xbox). I feel like right now there aren’t enough exclusives in play to account for various genres/user interests. For instance for me Horizon and Spiderman are the only Sony (exclusives) games I am playing (with Nioh and GoT also being favorites but are last gen). So as of right now that means that for me the PS “has no games”. (I am getting the Astro Bot demo though, hopefully I will enjoy).

I’m waiting on the system to pick up with more exclusives. I agree that this is years down the pipe but as a consumer that is concerning (as of right now I have no interest in the PS5pro or PS6 because the PS5 has under delivered). I think they should float smaller AA games to make their library more diverse. Like how Nintendo has made a Zelda game every year but they aren’t all huge mainline games but they span different genres. Sony has the IP catalog to put out more games if they would make them smaller or changed genres.

Edit: so the new Ghost game has pulled me back in. Well played Sony.