Sony teases PlayStation 6, says consoles aren't going anywhere despite cloud gaming rise

[midian182]

Why it matters: Sony has given some scraps of information about the PlayStation 6, dropping its first hints that the console is in early stages of development. The company said the future of the platform is "top of mind," and it is exploring a "new and enhanced way for players" to engage with games.

The news comes from Sony Interactive Entertainment's new president and CEO, Hideaki Nishino, who took part in an investor-focused interview published on Sony's corporate website.

Nishino was asked a question that has been appearing with increasing regularity these days: as cloud gaming becomes increasingly advanced and more of the world gains access to faster internet connections, is future console hardware being made obsolete by cloud gaming?

Nishino said that despite cloud gaming's increasing popularity, and the fact Sony has supported it since the PlayStation 3, its physical consoles aren't going away as most people want "local execution" (local hardware) that doesn't depend on internet speed and stability. The CEO added that the PS5 and PS5 Pro have proved this is the case.

With confirmation that PlayStations aren't being replaced by cloud services, Nishino moved on to the subject of the PlayStation 6 and whether the next-gen machine was currently in development.

"Our console business has evolved into a multi-faceted platform, and we now have a large ecosystem of highly engaged players across both the PS5 and the PS4 generations. So naturally, therefore, there is a huge interest in our next-generation console strategy," he said.

"While we cannot share further details at this stage, the future of the platform is top of mind. We are committed to exploring a new and enhanced way for players to engage with our content and our services."

Nishino is obviously playing his cards close to his chest here. We've already seen plenty of reports pointing to the PlayStation 6 being in early development, but this is the most the Sony chief has spoken about it publicly. Given that Sony stated development of the PS5 almost as soon as the PS4 launched in November 2013, it's likely been working on the PS6 for many years.

You might remember that AMD was said to be hiring for PS6 and next-gen-console chip development as early as 2022 – Intel had tried but failed to secure the $30 billion PS6 contract that same year. There was also a report in 2024 claiming that Sony may be prepping two SoCs for the next PlayStation, one of which could be heading for a new handheld.

If Sony sticks to the same seven-year gap as it did with the PS4 and PS5 launches, the PlayStation 6 will be here in November 2027, though former veteran executive Shuhei Yoshida believes this might be too early and we could be waiting until 2028. Those dates would put it around the same time as the Witcher 4 release, suggesting CD Projekt Red's title will be one of the first next-gen optimized/enhanced games.

Image credit: Marcel Strauß

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Sony teases PlayStation 6, says consoles aren't going anywhere despite cloud gaming rise

 

[WhiteLeaff]

Cloud gaming is not even a competitor. Imagine all the hundreds of millions of gamers wanting to play via the cloud, it's impossible, so it's just a niche.

I just hope Sony doesn't try to innovate too much with something nobody asked for. Consoles just need more ASICs and more brute force. Use the advantage of having fixed hardware in millions of units effectively, it's so obvious.

 

[gingerbill]

I remember the false claims of how cloud gaming would replace consoles.

The BBC had a silly article about how their wouldn't be a PS5 and how consoles wouldn't exist.

 

[DanteSmith]

I'd like to see a PSP v2. It's an interesting concept, with enough investment in design, it's entirely feasible to bring the full power of a PS5 into a 20–25W form factor. Halo Strix has already shown the way.

 

[dangh]

I will be happy to see ps6, especially with a ps6 handheld, but I would be much more happy to see new games which kinda doesn't seems a focus from Sony anymore.

 

[godrilla]

I tried the GeForce experience ultra tier with 4080 in the cloud when from Black Friday or holiday 2024 deal for 2 months after I attempted to sell my 4090. My experience in playing Vermintide 2 at maximum settings at 4k 120hz 4 player coop even with friends in Brazil from NYC ( my location) the experience was still playable. The only shortfalls was minor artifacts. The latency was slightly worse but nothing unpalatable. Definitely a decent experience for an in between placeholder between gpu upgrades vs lower end dedicated discrete one I used to rely on. 9800x3d integrated graphics supports 4k 120hz 10 bit color over hdmi 2.1 and makes it possible as well. This was all over Fios 1 gigabit connection on a 48 inch CX oled. Saying that I still think dedicated local hardware is still superior but cloud gaming in an ideal situation can still be enjoyable in 2025 with top tier service providers/server imo.

 

[opckieran]

It’d be neat if Sony brought back install Other OS to the PS6. I mean it’s not like it hasn’t been using x86 for the past 2 generations already, and will likely continue for the PS6.

 

[Megalomaniac]

Grand Theft auto 6 having been pushed back a whole year has basically left Xbox and PS5 with an absolute gaming desert. Doom: The Dark Ages was just a temporary distraction. Frankly, I'm not enthusiastic. They keep making new consoles that are obsolete compared to PC hardware on release day one - but they think just throwing more power out there is gonna solve the problem when there aren't enough fun games.

I haven't been satisfied with a console generation since PS3, Xbox 360/Wii. We had plenty of variety, plenty of new and original titles and they just felt more fun. Dance games (DDR releases annually), music games (Guitar Hero and Rock Band for my ion Rocker drumset), rhythm games, board games (Spyglass).

 

[bviktor]

It’d be neat if Sony brought back install Other OS to the PS6. I mean it’s not like it hasn’t been using x86 for the past 2 generations already, and will likely continue for the PS6.

Not gonna happen, because of DRM and anti-cheat.

It’s not like Sony “brought” alternative OSes, it’s just that they couldn’t lock it down completely from hackers before.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

The last 2 generations have been extremely lackluster in terms of games. Mostly rehashes, remasters, and "action adventure" stews of gameplay features and all the depth of a sidewalk puddle.

I skipped the PS5 after the PS4 was a huge disappointment and I fell like the 6 will receive the same treatment.

 

[Eldrach]

Sony needs to double down on their cooperation with Steam. If they add Steam support to PS6 - they might have a winner on their hands. A «steam os» console would be very cool indeed

 

[guillejp]

Hehe, investors thinking cloud gaming is the hurdle to overcome. No guys, it never took off nor it will too soon. Maybe by PS7 time if hardware and games keep going stupid expensive.

 

[dangh]

It’s not like Sony “brought” alternative OSes, it’s just that they couldn’t lock it down completely from hackers before.

Nah, it was a feature of ps3 system on start. There were a menu option to set it in other os mode and you could install whatever compatible - I used yellow dog linux iirc.
It was slow and more or less useless unless you were into low level handling and using terminal mostly. If rather get raspberry instead.