- Shuhei Yoshida has talked about the increasing length of console generations
- The former PlayStation boss believes PS6 could launch in 2028
- On a 2028 launch, he said “that feels right to me.”
Former PlayStation head Shuhei Yoshida has some thoughts on when the next console generation – namely the PlayStation 6 – could end up happening.
In an interview with GamesBeat, Yoshida spoke about the ever-increasing length of console generations and what that could mean for the eventual release of the PlayStation 6. Spoilers, he doesn’t think it’s coming any time soon.
“Right, it’s getting longer,” Yoshida said in relation to the time between console generations. “The last cycle was seven years. If it’s seven years, we’ll see a new one in 2027. I have no information about the next PlayStation, but it feels a bit too early for me to say. The PS5 generation was slowed down because of manufacturing issues. If the next PlayStation comes out in 2028, that feels right to me.”
Yoshida also speculated that the next Xbox console could launch around the same time, referring directly to Microsoft’s “leak about a 2028 plan.”
He also relates this slowing of growth, overhiring and subsequent industry-wide layoffs to the Covid 19 pandemic of recent years, saying: “I think it’s an overreaction to the Covid situation. Companies invested too much, including ourselves. Then we had to face reality and make adjustments. If you take out the Covid years you’d have smoother growth over the years.”
It remains to be seen whether or not (and indeed when) the games industry can get back to a stable, sustainable level of growth over time. But Yoshida’s speculation is sound here. That can also be seen in the transition from Nintendo Switch into Nintendo Switch 2, which will be a gap of more than eight years by the time the upcoming console launches.
For now, though, you can be sure that you’ll still be getting a good few years of use out of your PS5 console yet.
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