Since PlayStation is currently self-sabotaging themselves, I'll give my thoughts on where I think things are headed next generation. First off, the PlayStation 6 is going to bomb at launch. Not "bomb" in the sense that no one will buy it, because there are people who will - it'll be shiny new tech after all, but it'll have the lowest and smallest install base of of any console launch in history. And not just because of the price. Everything that's been happening over the past six years, and what will follow hereafter, will contribute to this.
They're going to have a hard time trying to market that thing to people. As if I've said before, hardware and performance doesn't win people over anymore. It's expected. Not to mention the price alone will turn people away if its anywhere near $1,000. The real challenge will be player migration - getting people to migrate over to the PS6. There are still people who REFUSE to leave the PS4 and given recent events, it's going to stay that way. Same for the people with the PS5. There will be no incentive for people to crossover. I'm not paying $1,000 for a new console that's likely 5%-10% better than what I have. Simply living is beyond affordable right now. Shit is not cheap.
Their decision to end production of physical games has done more damage to the PS6 than they could've imagined. It's obvious by this point that the PS6 will be digital-only which not only fucks over people who collect physical games, but alienates a portion of their customers internationally. We haven't gotten to a point where internet is 100% globally. There are still countries that have zero or poor internet. How are they supposed to play and buy games now? Fuck them, I guess?
Then, there's the PS5 Pro which till this day I believe was unnecessary. The fact that the Pro exists is enough to prevent people from wasting their money on a PS6 especially when there will hardly even be a noticeable gap between them. If people need a new PlayStation, they'll like just opt for the PS5 Pro assuming it'll be a slightly (and I mean ever so slightly) cheaper option by then. It'll still have a disc drive until they stop producing them. And trust me, that's definitely going to happen.
The only thing they can rely on is games and if it's portable. But being portable won't help either. There are too many options plus they're not outdoing Nintendo in their own space. They tried before. That leaves games. And games will be VERY important next generation. They can't repeat what they did with the PS5. We were stuck in a global pandemic. The world literally stopped for a couple years. They can't reboot and remaster their way out. They'll need new games.
Given the current climate, gaming will be dominated by live-service and indies. Most of those games are available everywhere. All they'll have left is their doomed-to-fail live-service initiative and whatever PlayStation Studios is able to put out. Even then, things are bleak. Development cycles of AAA games are only going to get longer and more costly. So, you're likely not to see many AAA games coming next gen. They'll have to invest in any partnerships they can and/or go heavy with indies.
Even then, with they way things are, what game development studio in their right mind would WANT to be acquired now? You're telling me that a studio I and my team built over the course of several years can get shut down within the blink of an eye? And I have no say in it? Nah, fuck that. You buggin'. I'd rather risk being independent and failing because at least then I can end it on my own terms. I can only imagine the amount of distrust that studios have for publishers right now.
The PlayStation 6 is in a lose-lose situation. It's likely going to get to a point where they'll have to rebrand it within two years of it's life cycle. Do I hope any of this happens? No, but this is what it's looking like. Like I said, this next generation will be a humbling experience not just for PlayStation but the entire gaming industry. Everything is changing.
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