PlayStation 5 continues to be dominating the present console technology, however the PS6 isn’t as far-off as you could assume.
Sony’s subsequent console is anticipated to enter manufacturing in 2027 for an end-of-year launch, nevertheless it may break the mould considerably with a handheld part.
After the success of the Switch (and its successor), and handheld PCs just like the Steam Deck, Sony has been rumored to leap again into the hand held house for the primary time in over a decade, and whereas we wouldn’t depend on the PS6 being a hybrid system, we will see Sony pushing one thing moveable.
It’s a really completely different world from 2011, although, when Sony launched the PlayStation Vita – so what can it do in a different way this time?
Days passed by
Sony
To perceive Sony’s potential play right here, we have to return a methods. The PlayStation Portable (or PSP) was an absolute delight that, had it had an additional analog stick, may have been a bona fide competitor to house consoles.
It launched in 2004 (not less than in Japan), and I can’t let you know the variety of hours I put into Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 Remix and Def Jam: Fight for NY on the factor. By the time the Vita rolled round in 2011 (once more, in Japan) and 2012 in the remainder of the world, the world was completely different.
The iPhone had put an online browser, an app retailer, and way more in our palms, and kicked off a smartphone arms race that continues to today. Android was starting to search out its footing, too, and whereas commuters loved enjoying the nifty video games on their telephones, they didn’t essentially need to play a full Uncharted journey on the prepare.
The Vita may have made for an unbelievable PSP follow-up, had there not been such a spot between the 2. Sony primarily ran the identical playbook greater than half a decade aside, and simply couldn’t discover a solution to the smartphone market.
Nintendo
There’s an argument to be made that it was Nintendo that discovered that equilibrium with the primary Switch. The console was hardly low cost, nevertheless it was cheaper than shopping for a house console and a devoted handheld, and also you wouldn’t want to vary video games when leaving the home. In some ways, it felt like Sony walked in some methods in order that Nintendo may run, and whereas that may be hyperbolic, Nintendo has actually discovered itself in a race now.
The firm’s newest console, 2025’s Nintendo Switch 2, is actually a beefier Switch, and it must be given the rise of handheld PC alternate options to consoles.
The new State of Play
Giovanni Colantonio / Digital Trends
With that (very truncated) historical past lesson out of the way in which, the panorama is totally completely different now. And, within the cyclical nature of issues, Sony operating that very same previous PSP playbook won’t be the worst thought: Give us a console that may play console-quality video games, and provides us the video games to play on it.
Of course, that’s just about what Nintendo is doing, too. Nintendo is aware of that its ‘secret sauce’ lies in exclusives, so it is aware of you’ll purchase a Switch 2 for Pokémon, Mario, Zelda, or anything you’ll be able to solely get.
Unlike Microsoft, an organization intent on placing its video games nearly anyplace, Sony has its personal staple of IP, however when you begin making the following God of War title a handheld unique, individuals will lose their minds – except it’s the identical PlayStation 6 recreation you’ll be able to take elsewhere.
That’s why it looks like something the PS6 does do by way of a handheld will probably be tied to a much bigger system to proceed enjoying when you’re house. Longtime leaker Moore’s Law is Dead has instructed that PlayStation’s latest push for its low-power mode is probably going to assist video games run on some type of PS6 handheld.
“It is becoming glaringly obvious that Low-Power mode is a Trojan Horse for getting PS6 Handheld support ready before its launch, and they honestly seemed a bit annoyed at how few devs directly support it so far,” one supply instructed him.
While you can argue that the Steam Deck and different handheld PCs just like the Asus ROG Xbox Ally buck this pattern since they’re not hybrid in nature, there’s an argument that they’re – letting you play a ‘good enough’ model of your favourite recreation figuring out you’ll be able to log onto your PC or Xbox whenever you get house to select up through cloud saves.
To paraphrase The Joker in The Dark Knight, “there’s no going back, you’ve changed things.” The Switch kicked off an arms race to marry portability and energy effectivity in a manner we’ve not seen in gaming for some time, with producers like Lenovo, Asus, MSI, and plenty of extra going head-to-head to eke out a drop extra energy from their {hardware} with out sacrificing battery life.
Is Sony geared up for that type of competitors this time round? I’d argue they’ve bought a greater probability than most. I believe we have been all stunned when Switch 2 was confirmed to be using some semblance of DLSS 4.0, given Nintendo’s by no means been on the bleeding fringe of {hardware} growth, however we’re speaking about Sony right here.
The Vita had many shortcomings, positive, nevertheless it additionally had an important OLED show in 2011. This is the corporate behind the Blu-Ray, which integrated a DVD participant into the PS2, and that was the one producer to drop a mid-gen refresh this time round with the PS5 Pro.
Then there’s an ongoing partnership with AMD, which helps enhance upscaling on the PS5 Pro and is simply possible to assist discover extra effectivity good points down the again of the proverbial couch.
There’s additionally an argument that Sony already has one thing of an ecosystem in place. The PlayStation Portal, whereas not able to enjoying PS5 video games natively, has a modern UI and dovetails completely with the brand new console, providing a snug kind issue and a giant show. Is it actually so simple as taking what’s already there and shoving the center of a console into it?
It’s onerous to say, however Sony not too long ago rolled out the choice to stream video games on to it and not using a console, exhibiting they’ve actually not forgotten in regards to the 2023 machine.
More storage, extra issues?
Samsung
In some ways, Sony’s greatest opponent right here is Sony itself. The firm has pushed two handheld consoles with proprietary reminiscence playing cards that break the bank for small good points, however that type of shtick doesn’t fly lately.
microSD playing cards might be slotted into your handheld PC, and whereas Nintendo has copped some flak for its insistence on microSD Express playing cards, it’s nonetheless possible simpler to get than the Sony Memory Stick Duos of yesteryear (ask your dad and mom, children).
Maybe, although, Sony is coming spherical to the thought of letting customers choose their very own options. The PS5 eschewed the dear reminiscence card-style format of the Xbox Series S and X and permits customers to put in their very own drives below the hood, whereas the PS4 had help for USB onerous drives.
If Sony can permit microSD card performance from the leap with a possible PS6 handheld, we would see it make the type of waves the Vita may solely dream of.