The question of the generational leap is a subject as delicate as it is fascinating. What on the one hand represents an opportunity on the other implies a renunciation, and it is never easy to balance the drive towards the future with the comfortable security of the present. All the more so if on the one hand there is a much desired but currently unavailable console like PlayStation 5, while on the other hand there are 114 million PlayStation 4s already in homes around the world.
Sony and the generations
The Jim Ryan’s words on cross-gen support, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, may serve as starting point for reflection. Also because, over the last few months, the manager’s attitude seems to have changed, taking a somewhat ambivalent and not too clear position.
Last May, when PS5 had not yet been officially presented, Ryan declared “we have always said that we firmly believe in the concept of generations, because we believe that when you are committed to giving life to a console, it should offer features and benefits not present in previous generations. Whether it’s the DualSense controller, 3D audio or the multiple ways the PS5 SSD can be harnessed, we think it’s time to bring something new to the PlayStation community. Something different, which can only really be enjoyed on PS5“.
In short, a strong declaration of intent. Of course, to be honest Ryan had also talked about having to serve the PS4 user community for a few years after the launch of the PlayStation 5, yet Sony’s attentions all seemed to be for the next-gen. A point of view radically opposed to the feeling of continuity and the very soft transition instead heralded by Microsoft in the transition from One to Series X. Well, something must have happened in recent months, because Ryan himself, in an interview a few days ago , seems to have revised its position.
“We feel we have a responsibility to a very large community, and the opportunity to continue making great PS4 games as long as the need arises. I think it’s the fairest and most rational thing to do, and I believe that with PS4 we will see a continuation of support that we have not seen with PS3. That said, as time goes on, we will see more and more emphasis on PS5 development“.
In short, counterorder: no clear cut with the past, and indeed an obvious caress to them 114 million players who made PlayStation 4 an undeniable triumph. Now, beyond the half a step back from the Sony executive – certainly perhaps not quite coherent and unassailable, but still attributable to certain statements made for marketing reasons – the underlying misunderstanding remains.
Generational break or slow and progressive transition to the next-gen? The answer, in all honesty, is neither easy nor obvious. Also because there is no correct modus operandi, a formula to follow that works universally better than another. There are, first of all, many factors in between. The launch price of the new machine, the success of the previous console, the solidity of the launch line-up, the technological gap between the generations. In the past we have witnessed sensational moments of rupture, with killer applications on day one that just couldn’t be reconciled with a soft transition. Today, however, in an era in which we have also seen the birth of half-generation consoles, perhaps everything is more nuanced, more gradual, less clear. From a business point of view, Ryan’s turnaround has every reason in the world: thinking of leaving such an abundant slice of public behind overnight would be a very senseless gamble.
A move that can also be welcomed by the numerous owners of PS4, who will have the opportunity to feel important again in the years to come. Why think you can enjoy Horizon Forbidden West on your console it is however a fulfilling prospect. A great way to continue to trust Sony, which proves that it leaves no one behind.
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Reasoning instead in a perhaps a bit more impulsive and more selfish way, thinking more about their own interests and less about the corporate strategies of a multinational, the early adopters of PS5 can only turn up their noses. Because investing in a console at launch is always a passionate and irrational gesture, it is a moment of childish madness that we allow ourselves as adults. The joy of a new toy to be unwrapped and discovered before the others, without thinking too much.
But it is also the luck of the hardware creators, who thanks to the enthusiasm of the enthusiasts begin to set the gears in motion, with results that will only be seen after years. Anyone who has that toy on their hands today knows well about emotions that can be experienced with DualSense in the company of Astro’s Playroom or with the fighting in the dark lands of Boletaria. Spending four or five hundred euros like this, especially in a difficult moment like this, it’s a half leap of faith. A leap in the dark which, however, deserves to be rewarded with full and convinced support, also for the sake of technological progress. Seven years after the PS4 debut, with a long-lived and successful generation, turning the page wouldn’t be a crime anyway.
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Sure, it is clear that true next-gen experiences won’t be able to arrive before 2022, but the idea of not having to submit to the limits imposed by objectively dated hardware could help not a little in a development already challenged by smart working.
Beyond everything, probably the strategy chosen by both Sony and Microsoft is probably the most sensible one to date. Leaving one foot in two shoes may not accelerate technological progress and will not immediately show the muscles of the new platforms, but will allow you to proceed along the path without jerks and with a sure footing. However, indulging in the sincere 100% next-gen wonder of Demon’s Souls or Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart from time to time.
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