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[RetroGamingUK]

If it's something like a PS5 Portable then great

Release it a year before PS6

- by then it should be able to play all PS5 games at a reasonable proce

- it'll have access to entire PS5 library

-it'll get access to all cross-gen games (it's 2025 and PS4 still gets new games)


For simplicity's sake it must do 3 things…

- play EVERY PS4/PS5 game

- have "PS5" in the name

- have no exclusives (if you want to make a handheld style game fair enough, but it'll run on PS5 home console too)

 

[GHG]

The S was the cheapest way to play this gen for years. MS is phasing out these systems, ending subsidy strategy and adjusting for tariffs so you're really just deflecting and changing the subject.

Changing the subject? You're the one who stated the following:

Hardware prices don't drop anymore so your only savings are to plan it at the beginning just like this.

I'm simply highlighting the fact that what you're asserting there has not held true in the real world. And just an FYI, Microsoft are simply using tarrifs as an excuse here.

You're also assuming that this handheld from Sony will be cheap. What makes you think that when they are happily selling a PS portal that isn't even capable of local rendering for $200?

 

[Punished Miku]

You're also assuming that this handheld from Sony will be cheap. What makes you think that when they are happily selling a PS portal that isn't even capable of local rendering for $200?

On that I can agree. It could be a high end one for all we know. Guess we'll see.

 

[StereoVsn]

Why not just keep evolving the PS Portal tech, make it excellent in the Portal 2 and release it at a very competitive price?

As the Portal is just a streaming machine it would be a heck of a lot and more straightforward to just do a new version.

I would think Sony would do both. Portal is at a completely different price point vs this new handheld. We are talking $200 (maybe $250 with upgrade) vs $600+.

There is no reason Sony couldn't have Portal 2 as a companion to PS6 and this new handheld for folks who want something they can easily use to play outside the house.

 

[Bitstream]

seeing how eurogamer just gets its news from neogaf anyway

can i be in the screenshot?

 

[Lucifers Beard]

It would be interesting if Sony released their own Switch style device that could be docked where it then has enough horse power to deliver a higher end experience.

I'd probably be more interested in that than a traditional console to be honest.

 

[Geometric-Crusher]

Apparently Sony is already in the pre-marketing stage, maybe the ''ps6 and handheld '' is on the way.

 

[Geometric-Crusher]

If it's something like a PS5 Portable then great

Release it a year before PS6

- by then it should be able to play all PS5 games at a reasonable proce

- it'll have access to entire PS5 library

-it'll get access to all cross-gen games (it's 2025 and PS4 still gets new games)


For simplicity's sake it must do 3 things…

- play EVERY PS4/PS5 game

- have "PS5" in the name

- have no exclusives (if you want to make a handheld style game fair enough, but it'll run on PS5 home console too)

very good except having ps5 in the name, the best name is PSP as if the original psp never existed.
It also needs to run PS6 games when the PS6 comes out.

 

[Venom Snake]

Just depends on the forced feature parity or lack thereof

These days, it's hard for me to imagine a modern Sony console (even a handheld) without modern Sony games on it. People most likely wouldn't see such a product as an alternative to Steam Deck or ROG, branding enforces a certain way in which it is perceived and desired by the customer (not to mention how it justifies premium pricing).

On the other hand, it's equally hard for me to imagine that, following the PSP example, dedicated titles will be developed by internal/external studios and published by SCE (like GOW: Ghost of Sparta or Resistance: Retribution). Making anything for a major console takes already so much time and resources that it would require extensive changes to their management model and Sony doesn't seem to be ready for it (i mean, just look at their PSVR support, although that may not be a completely relevant example).

It's a bit strange that they took on such a task, juggling extremely different hardware concepts by a brand so associated with high-budget exclusive titles wouldn't have been so risky 20 years ago, but now... I don't know.

 

[pacman4000]

I think this means PS6 could be a seamless gen, like PS5 Pro Pro or something.

Exactly.
And this will be true regardless if there is a portable PlayStation or not.

It's hard to imagine anyone making a game that can't run on base-PS5 at all.

And if the games can run on PS5, then why not release them on PS5. Not only from a technical perspective but also, and more importantly, from a economic perspective.

I.e. generations are truly dead.

Will this get its own games or PS5 and 6 games?

Given the above, does it matter?
No it doesn't.

Also, this is NOT a Series S type of problem. The biggest problem with the Series S, from a game development perspective, isn't the lack of gfx power. It is the lack of memory.

With the portable Playstation having the same amount of memory as the platform that will get all (or at least 99%) games for a foreseeable future; the existence of the portable version really isn't a problem. Just scale down the gfx even more (and let AI compensate for that rather well).

 

[Insane Metal]

I wish they'd focus more on getting good single player games again.

 

[Rockman33]

...it just needs to be more capable than Series S.

Series S in a handheld would be incredible.

 

[SomeNorseGuy]

Not sure if this necessarily is a good thing for the PS ecosystem. A bit to early to tell. But loving getting more competition in the handheld market, should benefit us handheld enjoyers at the end of the day.

 

[Thanati]

...it just needs to be more capable than Series S.

Well, to be fair, most things are

 

[Buggy Loop]

Sonys future hardware plans sounds messy. Hard to see how it all comes together in a cohesive way. I think a hybrid would be a better idea but I know their core base would implode on themselves.

Why would core base implode?

They better hope that this is not requiring games to be made specifically for the handheld because we all know how Sony supports side projects.... i.e. its DOA if that's what happens. Best case scenario is this is getting PS5's series S treatment

 

[onnextflix5]

I'm not sure having to support 2 platforms again is good idea for Sony, look how the vita turned out, it's likely to be abandoned a few after ps6 comes out. Why not focus on improving the ps portal concept.

 

[Quantum253]

Will this handheld render the Portal useless? If you can have a fully integrated handheld that also streams, would you still keep the Portal or trade-in for a superior device?

 

[pacman4000]

I wish they'd focus more on getting good single player games again.

I don't think the hardware engineers make games (ok, with the exception of Cerny, lol) so this isn't a situation where something has to go to give place for something else.

 

[pacman4000]

I'm not sure having to support 2 platforms again is good idea for Sony, look how the vita turned out, it's likely to be abandoned a few after ps6 comes out. Why not focus on improving the ps portal concept.

3 platforms.
Which really is 1 platform, called PlayStation.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Series S in a handheld would be incredible.

If, just like this generation, even more than half of the next gen will be cross-gen, then the baseline for any handheld should be above the Series S. I wonder what kind of tech issues a Series S handheld will bring to the table.

 

[RoboFu]

I wish they'd focus more on getting good single player games again.

Yeah I don't see the point. Sony doesn't have mega sellers like Nintendo to drive a PlayStation only handheld unless it can play ps6 games. If it just plays ps5 games then I don't see the point.. it will be another vita.

I still say their best bet is a steam handheld.

 

[pacman4000]

And with 1 platform ("PlayStation") I predict the following will happen:
In time for PS6 the PS5 will get a new design, similar to the one used by PS6. The PS Portable will of course follow the same "style-sheet".

I.e this new PS5 Digital will be the PlayStation low-cost option. The PS6 Digital be the premium option and Portable will be the, you guessed it, the portable option.

Oh btw, don't worry. A separate BD drive will be released too. Fitting perfectly to both the PS5 Digital and the PS6 Digital.

 

[Killer8]

Thought this was meant to be a PS6 portable that would launch alongside the PS6 console, acting as a lower spec variant for more portable minded gamers, which developers would also need to target a la Series S - now it's a lower spec PS5?

This thing is dead on arrival, especially when Switch 2 will be in its peak sales years in 2027-8.

 

[nial]

Thought this was meant to be a PS6 portable that would launch alongside the PS6 console, acting as a lower spec variant for more portable minded gamers, which developers would also need to target a la Series S - now it's a lower spec PS5?

This thing is dead on arrival, especially when Switch 2 will be in its peak sales years in 2027-8.

It's exactly like that, something that even DF addresses:

This sounds somewhat like Sony's own take on the Series S, the difference being that we'd expect to see the handheld arrive in close proximity to Sony's actual next generation console - the PlayStation 6. You'd imagine that the platform holder would also be looking at the handheld to run variants of PS6 software too. This may sound optimistic but PS6 will be using the same architecture, leaning heavily into machine learning features, which the handheld should support.

Nothing has changed since the last few comments by Kepler, this is just DF's own analysis on the matter.

 

[pacman4000]

Thought this was meant to be a PS6 portable that would launch alongside the PS6 console, acting as a lower spec variant for more portable minded gamers, which developers would also need to target a la Series S - now it's a lower spec PS5?

This thing is dead on arrival, especially when Switch 2 will be in its peak sales years in 2027-8.

If Switch 2 peaks in 27-28 (which I too think it will) then how can the power of a MORE powerful device (the PS Portable) really be a problem? Your reasoning doesn't make any sense.

And again, it's a PlayStation Portable. Not a PS5 or a PS6 Portable.

 

[Kacho]

Why would core base implode?

They better hope that this is not requiring games to be made specifically for the handheld because we all know how Sony supports side projects.... i.e. its DOA if that's what happens. Best case scenario is this is getting PS5's series S treatment

They would meltdown if the PS6 was a hybrid at the cost of power. That won't happen though.

I'm guessing they will market this as a complimentary device for the PS6 like the Portal. This will be an evolution of that device. It can stream PS6/PS5 games, but also play a selection of older games natively.

 

[I collect VHS tapes]

why would they do this? no one wanted the vita and it sold poorly

Switch does well but tons of people, myself included, only really use it in docked mode

 

[Punished Miku]

They would meltdown if the PS6 was a hybrid at the cost of power. That won't happen though.

I'm guessing they will market this as a complimentary device for the PS6 like the Portal. This will be an evolution of that device. It can stream PS6/PS5 games, but also play a selection of older games natively.

The base will go along with anything they do. The best looking PS5 game is likely Horizon 2 and that is also on PS4.

 

[nial]

They would meltdown if the PS6 was a hybrid at the cost of power. That won't happen though.

I'm guessing they will market this as a complimentary device for the PS6 like the Portal. This will be an evolution of that device. It can stream PS6/PS5 games, but also play a selection of older games natively.

Switch was easy for Nintendo because the Wii U was already way less powerful than its competitors. Sony will not be able to follow-up the PS5 with a more powerful or heck, at the same level of power, hybrid console, like Nintendo was.

 

[simpatico]

Exactly.
And this will be true regardless if there is a portable PlayStation or not.

It's hard to imagine anyone making a game that can't run on base-PS5 at all.

And if the games can run on PS5, then why not release them on PS5. Not only from a technical perspective but also, and more importantly, from a economic perspective.

I.e. generations are truly dead.


Given the above, does it matter?
No it doesn't.

Also, this is NOT a Series S type of problem. The biggest problem with the Series S, from a game development perspective, isn't the lack of gfx power. It is the lack of memory.

With the portable Playstation having the same amount of memory as the platform that will get all (or at least 99%) games for a foreseeable future; the existence of the portable version really isn't a problem. Just scale down the gfx even more (and let AI compensate for that rather well).

I think it's a good path forward for Sony and for gamers, if:

-They're able to release games that cannot be played offline on a regular PS5. The way to make this as seamless as possible is having a streaming option for PS5 owners who want to play these games. This keeps everyone happy and gives Sony more reps to prepare for the streaming-only PS∞ future. I think a lot of PS6 owners don't want developers to have that limitation when planning a game.

-They find a way to clearly advertise which games are compatible on which systems. There will be some bumps in the road, but there's no going back to trashing a whole library when a new console comes out. Especially when they're all just walled garden gaming laptops anyways. The technical barrier excuse cannot hold water anymore.

 

[Buggy Loop]

They would meltdown if the PS6 was a hybrid at the cost of power. That won't happen though.

I'm guessing they will market this as a complimentary device for the PS6 like the Portal. This will be an evolution of that device. It can stream PS6/PS5 games, but also play a selection of older games natively.

Oh, that the PS6 would be the handheld?

Yea I don't think it would happen. I agree the rumoured handheld will be complimentary.

 

[Rockman33]

If, just like this generation, even more than half of the next gen will be cross-gen, then the baseline for any handheld should be above the Series S. I wonder what kind of tech issues a Series S handheld will bring to the table.

Really not sure that will be possible. Power of series S with new features, specifically a good upscaler that can also run 1/4 of the power draw of a series S. Raytraced 60/fps games at 720p upscaled to a 1080p screen sounds great.

 

[Donald mac Ronald]

The S was the cheapest way to play this gen for years. MS is phasing out these systems, ending subsidy strategy and adjusting for tariffs so you're really just deflecting and changing the subject.

You'll spin anything from uncle Phil won't you.

Justifying a price increase in a POS piece of hardware and the party line of phasing out hardware lol, and they were just subsided by good guys MS all along.

So what exactly is the strategy? For every other sane person out there it's obvious MS stopped selling the consoles because nobody was buying them. They couldn't even give them away for free.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Really not sure that will be possible. Power of series S with new features, specifically a good upscaler that can also run 1/4 of the power draw of a series S. Raytraced 60/fps games at 720p upscaled to a 1080p screen sounds great.

that wouldn't be a series S, which is my point. a new and more efficient architecture alongside better raytracing capabilities (which will become more important for next-Gen)

 

[pacman4000]

I think it's a good path forward for Sony and for gamers, if:

-They're able to release games that cannot be played offline on a regular PS5. The way to make this as seamless as possible is having a streaming option for PS5 owners who want to play these games. This keeps everyone happy and gives Sony more reps to prepare for the streaming-only PS∞ future. I think a lot of PS6 owners don't want developers to have that limitation when planning a game.

-They find a way to clearly advertise which games are compatible on which systems. There will be some bumps in the road, but there's no going back to trashing a whole library when a new console comes out. Especially when they're all just walled garden gaming laptops anyways. The technical barrier excuse cannot hold water anymore.

Good point!

For those rare cases were a PS5 (and therefore also Portable) version simply isn't feasible, streaming could step in as an alternative for non-PS6 PlayStation owners.

Given the extreme development costs nowadays I really do think these cases will be rare for the foreseeable future. Maybe some path tracing only titles but that's probably it.

The key take-away is that adding a well thought out Portable to the family doesn't change anything.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

why would they do this? no one wanted the vita and it sold poorly

Switch does well but tons of people, myself included, only really use it in docked mode

Was Vita the one with super expensive memory cards? That would be a big turn off. And games were exclusive on the go games.

A modern day handheld that can play your library of games you already own or through cloud would be a giant boost. No need to buy dedicated handheld games.

And if it's a dockable system like Switch (easy to do and power boost docked) makes it a great hybrid system like Switch. But instead, it's Sony related games, ecosystem and the system will no doubt be more powerful than Switch 2.

 

[MicTyson]

Make the PS6 a hybrid like the Switch. Nobody uses the power anymore except a few developers.

A PS6 that's a handheld would sell gangbusters imo.

 

[I collect VHS tapes]

Was Vita the one with super expensive memory cards? That would be a big turn off. And games were exclusive on the go games.

A modern day handheld that can play your library of games you already own or through cloud would be a giant boost. No need to buy dedicated handheld games.

And if it's a dockable system like Switch (easy to do and power boost docked) makes it a great hybrid system like Switch. But instead, it's Sony related games, ecosystem and the system will no doubt be more powerful than Switch 2.

hybrid system that supports ps6 games? doesn't that end up with the same issues the xss has?

 

[pacman4000]

Another thing. Not even Sony thinks the PlayStation basket is big enough anymore. Hence the PC ports.

You have to be pretty delusional to think they will limit said PlayStation basket to PS6 only games when they can have a much bigger basket (with 3 platform).

Also, we live in a world where Steamdeck portable PCs and 9800X3D/5090 PCs live together, side by side. The Portable will be more powerful than the Steamdeck and the PS6 will be less powerful than said top gaming PC.

As I said, generations will be, or already are even, truly dead.

(yeah, I know, the Steamdeck isn't fit for everything but you get the point)

 

[pacman4000]

why would they do this? no one wanted the vita and it sold poorly

Cus many people like gaming on the go and cause this is nothing like the Vita at all?

 

[I collect VHS tapes]

Cus many people like gaming on the go and cause this is nothing like the Vita at all?

pretty sure no one knows what this thing will be like unless you can see the future

you have people in this very thread arguing it will be anything from a streaming device, to docked console like the switch, to a hybrid, to a device that can play games locally but is handled like the Vita

 

[StreetsofBeige]

hybrid system that supports ps6 games? doesn't that end up with the same issues the xss has?

Ya, I guess so. Only way to do it unless a Sony handheld goes it alone with dedicated handheld games so PS6 games are untouched from dumbing down to handheld mode.

 

[I collect VHS tapes]

Ya, I guess so. Only way to do it unless a Sony handheld goes it alone with dedicated handheld games so PS6 games are untouched from dumbing down to handheld mode.

it's not that I think they won't do that, it's just that It think no one here wants them to do that for the very same reasons people hate on the xss

I don't think Sony has the output game wise to cover two independent systems. that seems like a disaster for a whole other reason than the dumbing down one

 

[Killer8]

It's exactly like that, something that even DF addresses:

Nothing has changed since the last few comments by Kepler, this is just DF's own analysis on the matter.

This is concerning if it's mandated by Sony and not optional. The Series S situation was a disaster for Microsoft (see reasons posted elsewhere in the thread). Now potentially a sub PS5-tier handheld is similarly going to act as an albatross around PS6's neck. But then again, not mandating it seriously kneecaps the forward compatibility of the Portable with the PS6 software.

It's a catch 22 situation which Sony are walking into, the messaging of which has the potential to be confusing for people.

"It plays your PS5 games!... well maybe not all of them"
"It can play PS6 games!... well maybe not all of them"

The former is understandable enough, as people are used to imperfect backwards compatibility, but imperfect forwards compatibility is uncharted waters in the console space.

 

[pacman4000]

...it just needs to be more capable than Series S.

Having 16GB (and ML upscaling HW, to polish the limited rendering) it absolutely is.

What it really needs to be is something that doesn't put a significant burden on Playstation game development. And I pretty sure that has been a shall-requirement since day 1.

 

[Three]

Sonys future hardware plans sounds messy. Hard to see how it all comes together in a cohesive way. I think a hybrid would be a better idea but I know their core base would implode on themselves.

Hybrid would be bad if it is the only debice. Just have TV-out like the PSP and bluetooth pair a controller and you have your "hybrid" but keep releasing powerful non-portable hardware too otherwise you lose that market.

 

[Three]

This is concerning if it's mandated by Sony and not optional. The Series S situation was a disaster for Microsoft (see reasons posted elsewhere in the thread). Now potentially a sub PS5-tier handheld is similarly going to act as an albatross around PS6's neck. But then again, not mandating it seriously kneecaps the forward compatibility of the Portable with the PS6 software.

It's a catch 22 situation which Sony are walking into, the messaging of which has the potential to be confusing for people.

"It plays your PS5 games!... well maybe not all of them"
"It can play PS6 games!... well maybe not all of them"

The former is understandable enough, as people are used to imperfect backwards compatibility, but imperfect forwards compatibility is uncharted waters in the console space.

They should be fine. Steamdeck is far more confusing when it comes to compatibility and it still exists. For consoles we've had games people can't play or can play based on HDD ownership (360), VR headset ownership (PS4/PS5). It's not going to be difficult to have a PS Handheld section on the store or label on discs (not sure if discs would even work to get a licence for the handheld game to begin with)

 

[Jesb]

A hybrid is the only thing that would make sense. But that's only gonna be good for them if it's a ps6 level hybrid. No idea how they do this and get it to make sense. Doing a handheld that plays ps5 level games and than having a ps6 just looks like the Xbox series problem over again.

 

[Audiophile]

Release new gen console >> Migrate last gen console to a portable console option >> Use drastically cut down version of new gen console chip with built in hardware back compat, more efficient architecture and extra cache to run last-gen (PS5) and last-last-gen (PS4) games much more effectively at lower clocks and with lower thermals/power.

As a cherry on top, add in PS1/2/P/Vita local play in addition to PS4/5, then PS6 remote play (Portal-style) and cloud streaming of PS1/2/3/4/P/Vita. Also, sell an optional dock that allows you to connect to a display and clock it up to match full PS5 performance, making it an effective PS5 digital in that config.

Have 50/50 split between next-gen only first/second-party PS6 titles and cross-gen first/second-party PS5/PS6 titles for first 3yrs of PS6, majority of third party stuff is cross-gen for half the gen, cross-gen stuff naturally makes its way over to the handheld, next-gen only (PS6-only) stuff doesn't.

I'd be more than happy with that.

But if they hamstring a 210w+ PS6 with a ~15w handheld for the entirety of the generation on PS6-only titles then feck 'em. Just visuals alone would be a challenge, but we can say goodbye to the hope of games with bigger scope and more functional, dynamic, interactive, living worlds. Fundamental game design will be limited.

There's no need imo to mandate PS6 games run on the handheld. PS4/PS5 games will remain popular for many years to come, half of Sony's games will likely be cross-gen for ~3yrs and most third party games will likely be cross-gen for 3-5yrs. It'd be a shame to limit devs when they do get a chance to fully let loose on PS6 with next-gen exclusives when there'd be plenty to go around for portable players from PS5 and back.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

it's not that I think they won't do that, it's just that It think no one here wants them to do that for the very same reasons people hate on the xss

I don't think Sony has the output game wise to cover two independent systems. that seems like a disaster for a whole other reason than the dumbing down one

It'll be a tough slog for gamers then because in modern day handhelds, Steam, ROG whatever and anything MS and Sony has in the pipeline will be a system that will play tons of multiplat games, but the handheld version will be the dumbed down one the most.

I think gamers need to expect that. The days of dedicated handheld games is over IMO, unless its something truly dumbed down like mobile flash/unity kinds of games. But for the types of games all us console gamers and PC riggers play, any handheld system will almost certainly be a compatible machine to add to the pot instead of dedicated 3DS or Vita games like a decade ago.

Or who knows. Like you said before recapping people's posts, maybe the PS handheld is great quality gaming because it's cloud streamed at high quality PS5/PS6 kinds of settings on a smaller screen.