Sony currently rules the console roost with the PS4 but the company needs its next console – the PS5 – to be a success too. And with the Nintendo Switch now starting to dominate the sales charts, the reveal of the price and release date of the PlayStation 5 is becoming more important. The bad news for PS4 gamers is that Sony isn’t willing to rush announcing its full plans for its next-gen gaming machine.
And it means a longer wait for the big news that will help shape a lot of players in deciding whether to buy the PS5, Xbox Series X, or switch to a PC set up.
Fans were hoping for some kind of big event to be hosted in February but that doesn’t seem to be on the cards.
Instead, Sony unveiled the official PS5 website, complete with references to the 2020 launch and price.
Sadly this doesn’t provide much in the way of hard facts but it does contain something interesting that PS4 gamers should know.
The tech giant isn’t willing to risk a bad start for the PlayStation 5, and that means waiting to find out more.
A message on the PS5 website reads: “We’ve begun to share some of the incredible features you can expect from PlayStation 5, but we’re not quite ready to fully unveil the next generation of PlayStation.
“Sign up below to be among the first to receive updates as we announce them, including news on the PS5 release date, PS5 price and upcoming roster of PS5 launch games.”
And we heard more about the PS5 during Sony’s latest financial briefing, which offered another glimpse behind the current PlayStation 5 news delay.
The company’s chief financial officer, Hiroki Totoki, via VGC, confirmed that it was ‘difficult’ to discuss the PS5 price at this point in time, something that fans are desperate to know.
“First, we must absolutely control the labour cost, the personnel cost, it must be controlled,” Totoki revealed.
“And the initial ramp-up, how much can we prepare initially, we will work on the production and the sales, and we will have to prepare the right volume as we launch this.
“What is not very clear or visible is because we are competing in the space, so it’s very difficult to discuss anything about the price at this point of time, and depending upon the price level, we may have to determine the promotion that we are going to deploy and how much costs we are prepared to pay.
“So it’s a question of balance, and because it’s a balancing act it’s very difficult to say anything concrete at this point of time, but when I said smooth transition, we mean that we will definitely choose the optimal approach and that we will try to have the best balance so that we will be profitable in the life, during the life of this product.”
The reference to competition certainly makes it sound like Microsoft’s Xbox Series X is playing a part in the continuing mystery.
But as CCN points out, Sony is also likely benefitting from a lot of free press due to the lack of answers.
While the downside is that false rumours can run rampant, Sony can also rely on analysts and market experts to keep talking about the subject.
And the latest PS5 price and release references make it sound like Sony is willing to wait as long as needed to make its next console a success.