We're now nearly six years into the current generation of consoles, which began with the launch of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S back in December 2020, so we should be full of excitement for what's next. Right? You'd think so, since every console generation in history has lasted a similar amount of time and naturally led into the next, where millions of us were ready and waiting to be engulfed in new hardware, drawn into new games, and very happy to shell out money for a brand new machine.
Next-gen hardware is always pushing the boundaries of graphics, offering games, features and ideas that justify the price of being part of the conversation. While the PS5 and Xbox Series X were already approaching the danger point of diminishing returns, they still had fantastic titles like Astro's Playroom and Demon's Souls, and were able to push things to 4K and 60fps for the first time outside of PC. But as the years have passed, these consoles have failed to push the boat out again and again as the industry continues to face the harsh realities of triple-A game development and rising technology costs caused by externalities.
First-party exclusives have been thin on the ground, with some studios releasing only one or two titles during a generation, if that, while others rely solely on predictable remasters. Developers and third-party publishers have picked up the pace somewhat, but they're not immune to rapidly growing budgets and unsustainable production timelines that require all games to be instant hits or risk layoffs and studio closures. The video game industry is in a tough spot right now, and generations of traditional consoles are rightfully under the microscope as both hardware and software are more expensive than ever.
Not to mention, for the first time in history, we've spent an entire console generation watching hardware prices rise exponentially, rather than watch them come down over time and become more affordable to a wider audience. So what's the reason to be excited about what's to come?
The PS6 is coming whether we're ready for it or not
I have to imagine that PlayStation and Xbox were already making loose plans for the next generation of consoles when the PS5 and Series X/S were just coming out, and the rough specs for the PS6 and Project Helix were locked in for a few years at that rate as well. Research and development of products like this takes a very long time and costs hundreds of millions of dollars, so to suggest that any company can simply pull the plug when the landscape suddenly changes beneath them is downright silly.
Triple-A video games take five or more years to produce these days, so imagine how much runway you need to schedule the development and release of the console used to run them. While recent reports suggest that the cost to build the PS6 has risen from $760 to nearly $1,000 in the face of rising component costs that every major company in the world is dealing with, an ironic twist given that many of the same brands are also pioneering the data centers that drive up costs in the first place. Unfortunately for us, we will be the ones paying the price.
I cringe when I see Project Helix or PS6 for less than $900. In a world where the PS5 Pro is already approaching four figures, how long will it take for a new console to finally cross that dreaded threshold?
The proliferation of live-service titles like Fortnite, Roblox and Call of Duty over the past console generation has also radically changed the gaming habits of millions of people who no longer operate on the assumption that every few months there's a big exclusive game to dive into, or an annual release that redefines what a beloved series can be. We live in an ever-growing world of virtual ecosystems that have inherently abandoned traditional platforms in favor of something more fluid, removing the incentive to upgrade when a new console comes out. If Fortnite or Call of Duty is already running well, why bother?
The rumor of the PS6 not having a disc drive as PlayStation abandons physical media is another nail in the coffin for curious consumers whose media investment will be met with a brutal middleman as they are forced to abandon the past for a digital future. The Helix is also said to be ditching the disk drive to save costs and further benefit from the extra profits that come from cutting out the middleman, which isn't surprising given its hybrid PC nature. This is not a future to be excited about, as games as an art form are pushed aside in favor of making as much money as possible.
But that doesn't mean we have to accept it
Sure, we'll be seeing a new controller, a new user interface, and more powerful hardware than ever before, but why does it matter when the current generation of consoles hasn't proven itself in the six years it's been around? We're asked to upgrade to a new model when what's sitting under our TV works just fine, while the industry has dug itself into such an unsustainable hole of inflated budgets and excessively long development times that the generational timelines it once depended on are now its own worst enemy.
PlayStation's exclusive portfolio is thin right now, while Xbox is about to go through its biggest round of layoffs in its history, which will reportedly see countless star studios shut down to cut costs, meaning that whenever these new consoles come out, they won't be straight-up loaded with games that either don't exist elsewhere or will work just fine on the consoles we already have.
Our own James Lucas wrote a great article about how Sony, abandoning physical media, has handed the future of video games to PCs in more ways than one.
I like to think that our current brutal present of relentless corporate cutbacks, rising costs and studio closures can somehow pave the way to a more sustainable and valuable future for the medium. It's incredibly hard to stay hopeful right now. So we should do our best to vote with our wallets, even if it means dealing with the ultimate FOMO when the PS6 hits the market.
Things are going to get a lot worse before they get better, and I promise you the big game companies will take you on the road if it means making more money if they can. Right now we don't need a PS6 or any new game consoles.
- Mark
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Sony PlayStation
- Original release date
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November 7, 2024
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$749.99
- Processor
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AMD Ryzen Zen 2 (8 cores, 16 threads, 3.5 GHz)
