Sony Exec Confirms PlayStation's Moving Away from Hardware Business Toward a Platform Business

[iamthemilkman]

But arguably the most interesting tidbit, at least for gamers, came from the subsequent Q&A with investors, where Sadahiko Hayakawa, Senior Vice President in charge of Finance and IR at Sony, said:

In the gaming business, we are moving away from a hardware centric business model more to a platform business that expands the community and increases engagement.

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"Expands the community and increases engagement" sounds like they'll go even further with their multiplatform strategy. I doubt MLB The Show and Helldivers 2 will be the last.

 

[RustySK]

I mean with the release of the Steamdeck, we really have reached the point where the already somewhat arbitrary divide between consoles and PCs has completely broken down.

Consoles as we know them have been on the way out for ages - at least insofar as the mainstream market is concerned - this was always going to happen in some capacity.
The question is what this decision (assuming they actually follow through on this) will actually entail, because it might mean they intend to compete with digital storefronts like Steam, it might simply mean they intend to switch to some sort of licensed PC architecture for future console equivalents, hell it might mean just about anything, really.

Could also just be the usual meaningless PR logorrhea these people are paid to produce, for that matter.

 

[Nebulon_Galaxy]

Once i see Master Chief on PS5 and Gran Turismo on PC/Xbox, that will be the end of an Era.

 

[Segadude113]

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"Expands the community and increases engagement" sounds like they'll go even further with their multiplatform strategy. I doubt MLB The Show and Helldivers 2 will be the last.

Sega, if you're listening!

 

[Kamako]

Is PC gaming the future for young generations? I can't imagine most youngsters first gaming device is a PC....but I suppose, nowadays, it might be a phone, or a tablet. Moving from one of those straight to a PC suddenly doesn't seem to far-fetched to me.

It just seems so far-removed from my own lived experience.

 

[qw90700]

I mean with the release of the Steamdeck, we really have reached the point where the already somewhat arbitrary divide between consoles and PCs has completely broken down.

I would also add "smartphones" to this because what people care about smartphones is the way it being a portable computer that's capable of many things and it can even "talk" like it's out of Star Trek technology. PC means "personal computer" so smartphones are very well a PC. This may be not so "wow" to young people but for me smartphones will be the star actor as a joker card in "the future" just because people would prefer 1 thing does whatever they want + it being portable which is a "wowza" factor here. That's why future of gaming is "gamer smartphones" which some companies already started with it therefore in that regard future of the business of this industry lies in merging smartphones as a PC with gaming console idea under the umbrella of "gamer smartphone" (GSP). Sony would be wise to invest on GSPs (even if they have trauma because of Xperia Play lol) but if they see no profit from it it would only mean they would suck at it considering their rivals. Microsoft has a better shot at this. The current state of the industry concerns every console company and anyone considering releasing a console.

However Sony is rubbish. They don't have IP to re-use and re-use forever because they love to kill their IP. They were too story focused therefore they dug their own grave therefore they have no future even as a video game company. In that regard if they wanna really retire from console market just like what Sega did it would be wise for Sony but then they really need to up their game on actually producing a decent game, same for Microsoft too which I wouldn't surprise if they had announce they will never release a console again lol.

And while the console industry being left to Nintendo for them to ride their wild horses it's when Sega should emerge from shadows and drop Genesis 2 and take down Nintendo with a killer Genesis gamer smartphone that's so sonic fast your phone automatically makes a call before you even device and games runs 144 FPS and can even 3D project game into your room for panaroma gameplay!!!!!!! Where is ma 512-bits super blast processing gamer smartphone bruh???? lolol

 

[moonbits]

Is PC gaming the future for young generations? I can't imagine most youngsters first gaming device is a PC....but I suppose, nowadays, it might be a phone, or a tablet. Moving from one of those straight to a PC suddenly doesn't seem to far-fetched to me.

It just seems so far-removed from my own lived experience.

most kids play roblox and fortnite on their pc, my nephew does.

I tried to explain the wonders of PC to him and he just shrugged and clicked on Fortnite.

 

[ZombieFish]

Is PC gaming the future for young generations? I can't imagine most youngsters first gaming device is a PC....but I suppose, nowadays, it might be a phone, or a tablet. Moving from one of those straight to a PC suddenly doesn't seem to far-fetched to me.

It just seems so far-removed from my own lived experience.

First OWNED device? Almost certainly not, considering the cost, but I imagine a lot of kids will start off getting time on a parent’s PC. That’s how I started nearly 40 years ago. That said, I think it’s more likely that the fate of bespoke “consoles” is to reclaim their “kid’s toy” status, so it might just be the 80s/90s again, except most adults are now that cool old with a 486.

 

[qw90700]

most kids play roblox and fortnite on their pc, my nephew does.

I tried to explain the wonders of PC to him and he just shrugged and clicked on Fortnite.

And people are also not interested to hear about the wonders of fire!!!! The power of potential energy turns into kinetic energy and whole stuff vibrates sonic fast and causes a synergy!!! It's like best technology ever and I don't say so because I'm pyromaniac, yes yes lol.

 

[Gavin_McShooter]

Didn't Microsoft already announce something like this months ago?

 

[Bakuma1997]

Bloodborne fans without PS4

 

[nobitakun]

They will release PS6 anyways, it's a market still exploiteable. What they may do is focus on SaaS business with something like "you get the hardware but you ought to pay a monthly quota and play whatever you want, depending on the tier", while they allow the hardware to be backwards compatible with PS4 & PS5 in case you're not paying the service for PS6 games.

Forcing the user to pay is a way to force the user to play. And if they do something very attractive they will get most of the userbase into it. For instance, have games from PS1, PS2, PS3, PSP & PSVITA into the service as well.

The PS6 SaaS service tiers would be something like:

• Bronze: You get new games 1-3 months after they are released, depending on the game. 15€ per month price.
• Silver: You get new games day one. 30€ per month price.
• Gold: You get new games day one or even earlier than its release date if they are available. You also get all DLC for free during the 1st year after release. 50€ per month price.

 

[Graw]

And then you have Nintendo 'hur dur give me $700 for a phone with joysticks that plays Mario kart and donkey kong'

 

[diet_orange]

Man, watching home consoles dissolve and leaving Nintendo the last one standing is a bizarre and humbling experience

 

[otogirisou]

Bloodborne fans without PS4

how can someone become a fan of a game they never played?

 

[emotion_engine]

I mean, I keep hearing how consoles have basically just become PCs for some time now. I like having a dedicated platform; it helps me keep things organized, especially with how ridiculous file sizes have gotten. Consoles have always been about convenience: why go to the arcade when you can play Pac-Man at home? Why build a PC when you can just pick up a console? But consoles are losing their convenience: why buy a whole separate machine to play Fortnite or some HoyoVerse game when your laptop or phone can do it? Consoles are now back to being niche, for people that are specifically into games, and they're losing what they can attach to make themselves appealling to general consumers. No one really uses physical media anymore except for, again, dedicated hobbyists and streaming boxes are built directly into TVs now. What else can they do? The Series S was popular to use as a Game Pass box; maybe that's the new trend? I don't know if I really even care, to be honest. I'm not some overly-nostalgic curmugeon that writes off all new games. I'm excited for the new Katamari game, the Code Vein sequel, and whatever Final Fantasy slop Squenix farts out next. I'll probably buy the console versions, too. But it's just hard to care about consoles anymore when they've just become PCs in slightly different shapes, or iPads with controllers.
Anyways, all of this probably means nothing because Sony hasn't been a hardware company since at least the PS3. They've just been going through the motions.

 

[Bonkers225]

Looks like Nintendo will be the last one standing. Their comebacks from the Gamecube with Wii, and Wii U with the Switch has been nothing short of amazing.

 

[Bakuma1997]

how can someone become a fan of a game they never played?

Conversion by watching the gameplays

 

[Segadude113]

Looks like Nintendo will be the last one standing. Their comebacks from the Gamecube with Wii, and Wii U with the Switch has been nothing short of amazing.

i actually like the Gamecube over the Wii and Wii U.

 

[Burzuru]

i was expecting this for awhile. its really sad to see since the ps1 and ps2 pumped out quality exclusives like no tomorrow. but the ps4/ps5 have been no games machines, since exclusives for them have felt sparse because of the long dev times. also porting them to steam made a ton of money and they probably need some of that because of concord and marathon flopping.

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

I can't imagine most youngsters first gaming device is a PC....but I suppose, nowadays, it might be a phone, or a tablet.

Yeah, computers are impossible to buy in my area, so my kids had my old school stuff (from Famicom to PS3) and then phones and tablets as gaming devises.

 

[Kamako]

Yeah, computers are impossible to buy in my area, so my kids had my old school stuff (from Famicom to PS3) and then phones and tablets as gaming devises.

Sounds like your kids are incredibly lucky! I've always wished that I could ome day introduce my own child to the video games I grew up with. I'd be watching them with the cheesiest grin on my face haha!