The game plan for Sony's next-generation gaming console, the PlayStation 5, is reportedly to cater more on hardcore gamers, the kind "who obsess over the latest features," a new report said. The chief focus is to deliver a gaming machine that behaves like a high-end PC rig, able to handle premium quality and graphics intensive game titles.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Sony's new console "will feature sharper graphics and well-known games to help separate from rivals." Expected to touch down during the 2020 holiday season, the PS5 is seen to fiercely compete with Microsoft's Xbox Scarlett and the second installment of the Nintendo Switch.
The report said Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida imagines the PS5 as the main platform for hardcore gaming. Yoshida is convinced that in the current landscape of console gaming, "games have become more important than ever."
In line with that vision, Sony is supposedly ramping up on efforts to develop internally game titles while working with established game developers to achieve its goal of creating an exclusive gaming ecosystem. With the PS5, the object is "to play high-quality games available only on that platform."
It appears that with the goal of capturing the high-end gaming audience, the sequel to the PlayStation 4 promises to bring with it fantastic hardware to upend the competition.
However, the same approach is likely to antagonize the so-called independent game developers even as Sony justified its plan by saying the PS5 plan was motivated by the optimal use of limited resources. As indicated in the same WSJ report, small game developers felt the game plan by Sony would effectively bar them from participating.
The Sony tact is in stark contrast with that of Nintendo, whose business model for the Nintendo Switch has been characterized as "indie-friendly." For instance, Nintendo had made known its intention "to support events showcasing indie developers at the Tokyo Game Show this year," according to Nintendo Soup.
The blog report added that to date, Sony showed no indications that the company is considering to make its presence felt at the same event.
For its part, Sony said the PS5 is unlikely to exclude the indie game developers as the company expressed confidence that eventually indie game titles will be released for the upcoming game console. This will happen with or without support from Sony because it will be "hard for smaller game developers to ignore the platform," the report from the blog site added.
But neglecting the small players may also backfire on Sony as the former will find that partnership with the PS5 maker is not quite rewarding.
