Ps4 will easily be over 100million sold by the time production ends.
Switch I'm not so sure. Hell 3ds isn't close to 100 million sold.
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Could a PS4 portable be Sony answer to Nintendo?Can it be done?
- Thread starter HighFive
- Start date
Switch I'm not so sure. Hell 3ds isn't close to 100 million sold.
Neither do I.
Also, if they DID need to answer anything, a portable console wouldn't be it.
Your talking literally 2 months.The PS4 has had sustain success over years with its biggest exclusives arguably coming in the next 2 years.The Wii sold 102 millions and switch its tracking ahead of it
You aren't gonna beat Nintendo in the portable space, I wouldn't bother dumping money and resources into it. Just stick to what they do well.
I don't think they will go down this route. Their marketing campaign in the lead up to the PS4 launch was that they had the best specs. This was in response to the limitations of the PS3 such as no party chat due to the lack of RAM (Or so I am told) and the poor ports they received like Skyrim.
Microsoft has now reclaimed that title and I think Sony are more concerned by this than the growing popularity of the Switch. The Xbox brand is a bigger competitor and they want to focus on that. There's plenty of room for a traditional console and a Nintendo console because they are different from each other. I know many people that have either a Playstation or an Xbox and a Nintendo system but I rarely know anyone that has two traditional consoles: A Playstation and Xbox.
Because of this, I don't think that they are directly competing with Nintendo, but they would be if they tried to step into the territory of a unique system and that's not going to help them against their biggest competitor. (P.S. I view the VR headset as an input device and not a system.)
Microsoft has now reclaimed that title and I think Sony are more concerned by this than the growing popularity of the Switch. The Xbox brand is a bigger competitor and they want to focus on that. There's plenty of room for a traditional console and a Nintendo console because they are different from each other. I know many people that have either a Playstation or an Xbox and a Nintendo system but I rarely know anyone that has two traditional consoles: A Playstation and Xbox.
Because of this, I don't think that they are directly competing with Nintendo, but they would be if they tried to step into the territory of a unique system and that's not going to help them against their biggest competitor. (P.S. I view the VR headset as an input device and not a system.)
Trying to get something into PS4 is not likely at this point. Assuming a PS5 is several years in the future still it's certainly possible for a portable version to exist. Not sure how much demand would realistically exist, though. First party output for Sony's portables has been piss poor and I don't imagine they'll improve on that any time soon.
Not trying to do the list war thing but
God of war
Spider-Man
Last of us part 2
Etc…
If Sony do make another portable gaming device it'll be a streaming box rather than a dedicated handheld with its own software.
Then I can play my PS5 games on the go too.
Then I can play my PS5 games on the go too.
Heart says yes, mind says no. For most of handheld history there has been st most two competitors
Gameboy and gamegear
GBA and NeoGeo pocket color
Nintendo DS /PSP
Then came mobile
3DS/mobile/Vita
And now it looks like
switch/Mobile
Mobile ate a lot of the shovel/junk/tv-tie-in/kids games. All that's left are the games that appeal to people who prefer buttons to touchscreens. I prefer buttons but many don't care.
I also feel that long form games are just better when they aren't on the same thing as I get calls on...
Gameboy and gamegear
GBA and NeoGeo pocket color
Nintendo DS /PSP
Then came mobile
3DS/mobile/Vita
And now it looks like
switch/Mobile
Mobile ate a lot of the shovel/junk/tv-tie-in/kids games. All that's left are the games that appeal to people who prefer buttons to touchscreens. I prefer buttons but many don't care.
I also feel that long form games are just better when they aren't on the same thing as I get calls on...
I'm just straight not going to buy any handheld they make again after how they handled the Vita. Going a step further I'm going to stay away from anything that's not a mainline PlayStation system now. Their support in that regard is garbage.
I see a lot of people dismissing the Switch as a portable in this thread - but to the general public this is a home console and it will threaten Sony's hold over the market if the support gets stronger.
The biggest thing will be multi-plat games imo. The tough thing about this is that the biggest multi-plat games come from EA and Ubisoft and these two developers are notorious for adjusting their games to fit what they perceive as the Nintendo Audience.
Ubisoft seem to be getting better on Switch - and looks like they've been rewarded for it with success beyond Just Dance haha.
EA though... They'll release gimped version after gimped version on Nintendo consoles and scratch their heads every time why Nintendo console owners refuse to support their games on their consoles...
If Switch manages to turn things around and we start seeing complete versions of multiplat games like FIFA, CoD and Assasins Creed, then we could see an interesting shift towards the end of this generation.
The biggest thing will be multi-plat games imo. The tough thing about this is that the biggest multi-plat games come from EA and Ubisoft and these two developers are notorious for adjusting their games to fit what they perceive as the Nintendo Audience.
Ubisoft seem to be getting better on Switch - and looks like they've been rewarded for it with success beyond Just Dance haha.
EA though... They'll release gimped version after gimped version on Nintendo consoles and scratch their heads every time why Nintendo console owners refuse to support their games on their consoles...
If Switch manages to turn things around and we start seeing complete versions of multiplat games like FIFA, CoD and Assasins Creed, then we could see an interesting shift towards the end of this generation.
No but I don't know if it can sustain success like the PS4.
Even the Wii dropped off after a few years and the 3ds didn't get to 100 million.
What question is Sony being asked by Nintendo that they would consider blowing millions in R&D for a measly portable?
No thanks, portability is Nintendo's strong point. Two Ls were enough to teach Sony that
Let Nintendo make the portable consoles and Sony should continue focusing on VR and mid-higher end consoles.
No thanks, portability is Nintendo's strong point. Two Ls were enough to teach Sony that
Let Nintendo make the portable consoles and Sony should continue focusing on VR and mid-higher end consoles.
The PSP was not a 'L', and the Vita wouldn't have been either if Sony didn't do everything in its power to kill it in its second year.
It's impossible to make a 720P PS4 speced handheld at a competitive price that isn't a huge brick. Let alone dealing with battery, storage and mandatory installs. Sony and Microsoft went for power and Nintendo got out of that race. Unless portable consumer technologies make massive leaps sometime soon, the hybrid and handheld model only makes sense for Nintendo at this point.
Let's not act like people didn't buy the PSP to play SNES/PS1 games and pirated PSP games. Lol
They sold a healthy amount of units but no one was buying the games.
I hate to burst your bubble but exclusives have little to do with the PS4's sale trajectory.
I'm confident Spider-Man and especially the last of us 2 will push sales. Hate to burst your bubble
You'll be surprised how that's actually the case most of the time.
Same happens when Nintendo drops a few exclusives and you'll see people buying the console. We're practically near the end of the gen since we probably got 3 years max, what you offer at this stage is what drives the hardware.
A portable PS4 will never happen, the hardware just isn't designed for that
I can't think of a worse thing for Sony or Microsoft to do than chase the Switch's form factor
I can't think of a worse thing for Sony or Microsoft to do than chase the Switch's form factor
I don't think they do. The vita didn't get the push that I feel it could have had, but man did they push the ps4. Its doing great and I don't think they will be shifting focus anytime soon.
Sony's answer to nintendo is that they've sold almost 80M consoles in <5 years. why would they react to the switch?
I feel this hypothetical question keeps being brought up more from switch owners who love portability.
Personally, after the way they handled the Vita and this: PlayStation Boss Sees Limited Potential for Handheld Gaming, I really don't think they're going to bring another PlayStation portable device to the market anytime in the foreseeable future. It seems like their only concentration for now is providing a household entertainment experience.
Dunno, the strength of the Switch is Nintendo not having to split up their dev resources and being able to focus on a single platform.
The same should apply for a new Sony portable. But Sony isn't going to focus on PS4 level development in the near future, and will surely have their 1st and 2nd party on PS5 level development rather soon, if not already doing so. 3rd parties will continue to dish out PS4 level software, enough for Sony to not having to deal with it themselves.
So imo, it's not only a question of how viable the mobile tech will be in the next two years, but also if a new portable would force Sony to split-up their resources like Nintendo did the prior gens.
Can't really see the viability in this. Sony has imo more to gain by focusing on PS5 and make their Remote Play/Now services more available and viable on other devices.
The same should apply for a new Sony portable. But Sony isn't going to focus on PS4 level development in the near future, and will surely have their 1st and 2nd party on PS5 level development rather soon, if not already doing so. 3rd parties will continue to dish out PS4 level software, enough for Sony to not having to deal with it themselves.
So imo, it's not only a question of how viable the mobile tech will be in the next two years, but also if a new portable would force Sony to split-up their resources like Nintendo did the prior gens.
Can't really see the viability in this. Sony has imo more to gain by focusing on PS5 and make their Remote Play/Now services more available and viable on other devices.
The earliest demonstrations of PS Move technology date back to the PS2 era. If anything the wiimote was a less sophisticated but more cost efficient version of what Sony was demoing.
I do give Nintendo credit for going all in with a concept in order to differentiate itself from its more mainstream competitors. On the other hand someone has to keep pushing the envelope for mainstream console gaming, and that hasn't been Nintendo for quite some time.
Imagine what the state of the console industry would be today if Sony and Microsoft had foisted waggle/gesture based default control schemes upon us like Nintendo did with the Wii; or if they had continuously recycled old technology from previous generations. With respect to online features and ecosystem Nintendo is still playing catch up to where Sony and Microsoft were before the beginning of this generation.
So yeah it's good when Nintendo are able to enjoy success by offering something unique and compelling, but I still see Sony and MS as more essential to the future of the console market and the health of third parties.
I think Sony would like to do a portable PS4 but the problem for them is how to handle physical releases.
Do they make two versions, one for the portable PS4 (probably cartridges like Switch), second one on Blu-Ray for the standalone one? How expensive are the cartridges for really huge games?
Or maybe both Blu-Ray disc and cart in one box? Or maybe buying either physical release gives you a digital copy of the game?
Or maybe the handheld would be only capable of playing digital games? Or maybe the handheld will play Blu-Ray discs?
Do they make two versions, one for the portable PS4 (probably cartridges like Switch), second one on Blu-Ray for the standalone one? How expensive are the cartridges for really huge games?
Or maybe both Blu-Ray disc and cart in one box? Or maybe buying either physical release gives you a digital copy of the game?
Or maybe the handheld would be only capable of playing digital games? Or maybe the handheld will play Blu-Ray discs?
The problem is that no company is interested in making 2 sets of games anymore. Vita died because every dollar spent making Vita games was a dollar taken away from making a PS4 game (or sadly, just marketing a PS4 game). They just made more money focusing all their budget on one console. Unless there's some way around this I don't see another Sony portable coming around. Which is sad, I would love a Vita successor.
Edit: A portable PS4 is still not technically possible anyway. That's not a thing that's anywhere close to happening from a tech perspective.
Edit: A portable PS4 is still not technically possible anyway. That's not a thing that's anywhere close to happening from a tech perspective.
a portable in 2017 would still be putting out PS3 level graphics. they'd rather just tell you you can do remote play. it doest make logistical or even marketing sense to offer yet another console developers have to account for when you are trying to maximize your mainline console and a VR peripheral at the same time.
Yep. PSP was a massive pirate machine for emulators as well as pirating games, so the unit sales really didn't tell the story. I've heard very good arguments that this is why they went with a proprietary memory format for Vita, which backfired.
Running literal ports of PS4 games would require a monstrous form factor and battery, and would be quite expensive today.
Beyond that, Nvidia would just turn around and offer Nintendo a similar/better chip that would run all the existing Switch software. Sony doesn't have some magical advantage over Nintendo in horse power and Nintendo would not allow them to one up them on the portable console concept so easily IMO as it's the inherent appeal of the whole Switch concept.
This isn't a system that's being driven by soccer moms and casuals, it's from people who want a relatively high end console experience with the flexibility of being able to play it anywhere. I think Sony would be in big trouble because Nintendo would fight them pretty hard head on if they tried to step onto that turf.
The bottom line is Nintendo is willing to put 100% of their dev resources into the Switch ecosystem ... is Sony willing to do that for a Sony portable? Nope. It will always be a second priority to a PS5, which starting like 2018 has to become the focus for Sony or they probably are going to run into a very hungry Microsoft that looks like they are getting themselves back in shape these last few years.
Beyond that, Nvidia would just turn around and offer Nintendo a similar/better chip that would run all the existing Switch software. Sony doesn't have some magical advantage over Nintendo in horse power and Nintendo would not allow them to one up them on the portable console concept so easily IMO as it's the inherent appeal of the whole Switch concept.
This isn't a system that's being driven by soccer moms and casuals, it's from people who want a relatively high end console experience with the flexibility of being able to play it anywhere. I think Sony would be in big trouble because Nintendo would fight them pretty hard head on if they tried to step onto that turf.
The bottom line is Nintendo is willing to put 100% of their dev resources into the Switch ecosystem ... is Sony willing to do that for a Sony portable? Nope. It will always be a second priority to a PS5, which starting like 2018 has to become the focus for Sony or they probably are going to run into a very hungry Microsoft that looks like they are getting themselves back in shape these last few years.
