Sony has talked up the PS5 a great deal of late, very recently having spoken about the wonders of its solid state drive, and how its backward compatibility will help them usher new consumers into the next generation. But while their plans for the next PlayStation are very much underway, with the new console likely coming out late next year, the PS4 still has plenty of life yet.
At their recent investors meet, Sony spoke of the PlayStation 4, and what role the console will play even in the presence of its successor. And it looks like the PS4 won’t be going away any time soon. Sony views the PS4’s role as “critical”, and will continue to support it for the new few years. The company says the PS4 will “remain the engine of engagement and profitability for the next three years”. Sony also sees it providing strong base for their early adopters next gen through, in view of the PS5’s backward compatibility- and also considering the fact that many megaton releases are still very much planned for the current gen system.
This very much seems to be in line with how Sony’s operated over the years. The PS2 and the PS3 both continued to be active systems for a couple of years after their respective successors had come out, and looking at how massively successful the PS4 continues to be, it’s not surprising that Sony wants to keep on supporting it for as long as it possibly can.