Is my new(ish) PS5 soon to be redundant? I really hope not
Should you wait to pick up a PS5?
I was late to jump on the PS5 console hype. I’ve never been too interested in buying new technology on the release day. I’d rather wait in hope that it’ll reduce in price, or in the case of the PS5, when more games become available. There was also the small matter of the PS5 being unavailable for months due to a chip shortage. So, I decided to wait until early 2023 to finally take the PS5 plunge.
Naturally, I was hooked from my first play of Ghost of Tsushima. The neon-lit world of Cyberpunk 2077 blew me away, and rediscovering Red Dead Redemption 2 with boosted PS5 graphics was a joy. I even enjoyed being repeatedly humbled on EA FC 24, even after being trained by a pro eSports team. I didn’t save much, if any, money by waiting a good 26 months after the PS5’s original release to own one. But still, I was confident that by waiting a short while, I’d have access to a greater library of games, without the risk of my expensive games console being phased out, say, a year later.
I may have made a mistake.
Slow sales
According to Sony, the PS5 is reportedly coming to the “latter stages of its life cycle.” This came after Sony published disappointing sales for the PS5 in its latest quarter. Sony had hoped to shift 25 million consoles in the year ending March, but has now reduced that to 21 million. Sony’s aims could reduce even further after Sony Senior Vice President Naomi Matsuoka told Bloomberg that it will aim to “put more emphasis on the balance between profitability and sales.”
It’s natural for tech products to have a life cycle, but the PS5 is not even four years old yet. To counter these lower-than-expected sales, it’s easy to think that Sony will look to the consoles next-generation, namely the PS5 Pro and the PS6. This is great news for the console collector, those types of gamer who simply need the latest tech as soon as possible. But for the casual gamer like myself, it’s a little disappointing to think my pricey purchase may soon be old hat.
Of course, we can’t expect a PS6 anytime soon. The PS5 Pro will almost certainly be the next Sony console to reach the shelves, even if we don’t know when that will be. Either way, it’s clear from Matsuoka’s comments that Sony are already planning for the PlayStation’s next phase. So, if you’re thinking of buying a PS5 today, then it’s perhaps wise to wait just a little while longer. Don’t make the same mistake as me.
Jack Needham
