It looks like the recent decline on Sony's shares incites the need of releasing the PlayStation 5. Although the company stays mum about it, the game console's alleged patent revealed it could have a backward compatibility feature.
Sony allegedly filed a new patent for the PlayStation 5, and it said to feature backward compatibility that allows older titles to run on the platform. Designed by the PlayStation 4 lead architect Mark Cerny, it notionally let the upcoming console to run the software from its predecessors, from the PlayStation One to 4.
According to TechSpot, it could work by making the old software believing it is running on its original device. In the patent, it is the process called "processor ID spoofing." The PlayStation 5 would mimic the old hardware's behavior to let the previous software run on the new hardware.
However, game enthusiasts should only take this assumption with a grain of salt. The patent has no specific reference to what hardware it will be incorporated. Only a current thread on Reddit predicted that it could be for the PlayStation 5.
Meanwhile, CCN reported Sony's shares fell by 8 percent after it recorded a decline in sales and profits. The company's game division also fell by 14 percent during the "October-December holiday quarter." It also reduced its forecast to 8.5 trillion yen from 8.7 trillion yen. Its shares on Asia also recently fell at 8.1 percent, the largest decline in its stock price for over three years.
The decline is said to be because the PlayStation 4 is already 6-years-old, and Sony has nothing new to offer. Its variants, the PlayStation 4 Slim and the PlayStation 4 Pro, and the PlayStation VR didn't even boost its sales.
Although Sony has yet to reveal its plans to boost the sales of its gaming hardware, the release of PlayStation 5 can be its best option. Nintendo always plays this trick. Its sales boosted when it shipped 9.4 million Switch consoles while Sony only dispatched 8.1 million PlayStation 4 devices.
Ace Securities' Hideki Yasuda told Reuters the demand naturally drops as the market anticipates new hardware. "The gaming business, which has been Sony's profit driver in the last couple of years, is set to peak out ahead of the launch of the next gaming console. That's inevitable due to product cycle," he said.
Asymmetric Advisors' Amir Anvarzadeh, on the other hand, is expecting there will be a surge in costs if Sony releases PlayStation 5. "There is more downside as we believe slowing growth in its games division signals a very likely PS5 launch for next fiscal year and the ensuing costs that come with the launch of a new platform," he explained.
