Sony teased a handful of hints about its forthcoming PlayStation 5 on Tuesday via Wired, giving everyone a glimpse of what to expect from its next-generation console. Left out of the article was a potential price point, however.
At the very least, system architect Mark Cerny confirmed that it's going to impress everyone in the graphics and performance department, and that it will be backward compatible.
Sony PS5 Price
The price of the system didn't come up in the interview, but writer Peter Rubin has taken to Twitter to confirm that pricing was indeed discussed. Cerny didn't reveal outright how much the system is going to cost, but did tease the console will launch with an "appealing" price tag.
"I believe that we will be able to release it at an SRP [suggested retail price] that will be appealing to gamers in light of its advanced feature set," said Cerny.
Of course, "appealing" could mean anything from "affordable" to "super expensive but reasonably priced for its specs." Cerny's comment about the system's advanced feature set suggests it won't be cheap, although there's probably no telling just how much it'll cost until closer to launch.
Sony PS5 Release Date
As for when it'll be released, Sony has yet to tease a release windows for its next console. But last May, PlayStation head John Kodera said the system was at least three years off, so it probably won't arrive until 2020 at the earliest.
The next generation of PlayStation consoles usually come six to seven years after the previous one is released. The PS4 was released in 2013. It has since sold more than 79 million units and remains a popular home console option to this day.
The gaming industry might look a lot different in 2020 compared to now, of course. There's the impending popularity of cloud gaming, for starters, which Google, Microsoft, and Amazon will likely have a big influence on considering they're developing their respective cloud-based video game streaming services.
So, the question then becomes: is Sony prepared to tackle video game trends to arrive in a couple of years' time? The PS5 could very likely feature some sort of cloud gaming support to have its name in the bandwagon, at least, but right now it's difficult to gauge if Sony plans to go all-in. Plus, there's always the chance of surprise innovators suddenly sprouting out of nowhere, much like when Nintendo released the Wii and redefined motion-based gaming for good.
In any case, the video game landscape will be exciting to watch going forward.
