The broad strokes of the PlayStation 5 are currently forming as Sony slowly reveals more and more about what to expect from their next generation console. While the console was first revealed a short while ago in an exclusive interview, what to expect from Sony for their next console is beginning to take shape. Much of what Sony is talking about right now with the PlayStation 5 is sounding like they’ve got their sights set on pleasing their millions of existing fans while trying to appeal to as many new ones as possible.
In a recent investor relations presentation, Sony outlined the next generation of consoles giving us even more new details about the PS5. In what can only be interpreted as a mission statement for the PlayStation 5, Sony says that “We will harness the power of new technology to offer completely transformative and immersive gaming experiences. We will leverage Backwards Compatibility to transition our community to Next Gen faster and more seamlessly than ever before. We provide stability of environment for content creators.”
There are many things that Sony has already talked about when it comes to the PlayStation 5. They’ve said that the console will feature a new CPU and GPU. It will also feature an SSD and the aforementioned backwards compatibility feature.  It will be capable of things like Ray Tracing, 8K visuals, 3D Audio, and that it will indeed have disc support.
Trying to deliver content to gamers however they want it
However, one of the things that they did expand upon in this investor presentation is the role of cloud based content delivery and their plans to expand on the PlayStation Now streaming service that is currently available and launched back in 2014. It appears that Sony has a vision for the PlayStation 5 that stays consistent with their strategy from the PlayStation 4, and that they are not going to quickly do away with disc drives in the new console. Their vision is self-proclaimed to be one that will provide content to players in every way — through traditional disc-based delivery, download, or streaming.
Microsoft will play a big role in PlayStation’s future success
Sony did also talk about their strategic partnership with Microsoft for the Next Gen PlayStation 5 and this really sounds like it will be important to Sony in expanding on the streaming front. Sony says that the partnership with Microsoft is one that “will allow them to achieve growth and scale faster than ever before,” and that it is a similar model that allowed them to expand their PSN business as quickly as they did with the PlayStation 4. Sony has been in the streaming game for a while now, making acquisitions prior to launching their PlayStation Now service which has brought it to where it is today, but it sounds like Microsoft will play a large role in Sony’s future growth of the PlayStation brand.
Though both Microsoft and Sony will be facing a new threat in the “console war” with Google’s recent announcement of Stadia. The streaming service that was revealed earlier this year made some bold claims that sent ripples through the video game world. Using Google’s massive infrastructure of worldwide data centers, Google aims to deliver the same games and content that you’ll find on the Xbox and PlayStation without someone needing to buy an expensive piece of hardware to do it. It likely has Microsoft and Sony on their heels, as it appears that both companies are circling the wagons as they brace for new competition in a space that very well may be completely disrupted in the years ahead.
What we still don’t know about the PS5
The PlayStation 5 still doesn’t have price. The release date for the PS5 has not been announced. The games we can expect on the PS5 have not been revealed either. There’s still plenty that we need to hear about the console, but what they’ve said thus far does have the PS5 sounding like it’s going to be catering to all types of gamers.
