With previous rumblings that Microsoft is pulling away from the console market, and now Sony legends coming out with similar sentiments, you have to wonder if consoles as we know them are nearing an end point.
In a recent interview with Eurogamer, ex-boss of PlayStation Studios, Shawn Laydon, voiced that he thinks the end is near.
PlayStation is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
Laydon said, “Frankly, we have to start interrogating what the purpose is of a proprietary console, and whether that can continue to be true.”
He goes on to say that the jumps between consoles, in terms of technology, is getting smaller and less impactful.
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With incremental differences appearing more negligible, it would make sense that generations would become much longer, but could they be eliminated?
On this point he says, “PS3 to PS4 was [...] getting the network thing done right. Then to PS5, which is a fantastic piece of kit, but the actual difference in performance... we're getting to the realm, frankly, where only dogs can hear the difference now.”
Of course, there also has to be a way to sell the idea of new consoles to consumers and here Laydon points out a problem, “If we're talking about teraflops and ray-tracing, we're already off the sheet that most people begin to understand.”
What this means for the future of consoles is uncertain. We’re bridging a gap of incredibly powerful hardware and companies wanting to pursue cloud gaming, too.
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Why would companies invest in hardware when they’re so “similar under the hood” as Laydon remarks?
The PlayStation legend goes on to say that we’re “pretty much close to final spec for what a console could be”.
Does this mean that there are only a couple of generations left in consoles as we know them?
Will we get to a PlayStation 7? Or, will consoles go the way of PC and have interchangeable parts for those chasing technology?
Topics: PlayStation, Sony, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5