In perhaps surprising news, sales of the PlayStation 5 have failed to meet forecasted levels. This has led to the company stating that the console is entering the end of its life cycle, prompting speculation about when we may see a new next-gen console.
The console saw release during the COVID pandemic in November 2020 and was highly sought after, indeed demand outweighed supply at periods due to a chip shortage. This only served to heighten the desire of players to get their hands on the coveted prize and for many the purchase of the console was seen as obtaining the Holy Grail itself.
What happened to sales of the PlayStation 5?
As reported on Bloomberg, Sony’s Senior Vice President Naomi Matsuoka confirmed that the company is expectant that the sales of the console will decline further from the start of the next fiscal year, commencing from April 2024 to the end of March 2025. She was quoted with the following;
Looking ahead, PS5 will enter the latter stage of its life cycle. As such, we will put more emphasis on the balance between profitability and sales. For this reason, we expect the annual sales pace of PS5 hardware will start falling from the next fiscal year.
Given the current cost of living crisis, it is perhaps unsurprising to see sales fall for the console. With many players having to tighten their belts in terms of what is affordable, the times of being able to afford a current-gen console are perhaps realistically out of reach.
However there are still players out there who would love to get their hands on the console and although the figures may not meet expectations, the demand may still be there.
When could we potentially see a PS6?
With Microsoft seemingly in disarray, it would be the perfect time for Sony to capitalize on this and it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to see it coming in the next couple of years. Some fans have even speculated about this given the previous trends of releases.
Whilst the PS4 was released back in November 2013, the current-gen console was released in November 2020, therefor the suggestion is that we could see the next-gen console being released potentially in November 2027. This would see it keeping in trend for maximum appeal in the run-up to the festive period.
Despite the PS5 Slim seeing discounts across many retailers since its launch in November 2023, it appears that it has done little to improve sales and that is why Sony has made the frank announcement regarding the PS5.
The forecasted figures and their revised numbers only go to show that this could be the decline of the current gen console. Whilst it has been released for over three years and the advancements in technology it is perhaps unsurprising to see talk of a next-gen console already on the cards.
What do you make of the latest news? Let us know in the comments below!
