PS5 to Overtake PS4 Install Base in Year 4, as Sony Eyes More PC and Mobile PlayStation Titles

PC and mobile titles, from PlayStation, will make up almost half of new games in 2025.

By Reuters | Updated: 26 May 2022 09:41 IST

PS5 to Overtake PS4 Install Base in Year 4, as Sony Eyes More PC and Mobile PlayStation Titles

Photo Credit: Akhil Arora/ Gadgets 360

The PS5 is expected to overtake PS4's install base the following year

Highlights

The PS5 went on sale in November 2020
PlayStation titles increased in popularity amid the pandemic
Sony forecast PS5 sales of 18 million units in this business year

Sony said it plans to ramp up production of its PlayStation 5 console as supply chain snarls ease, and signalled a radical broadening of its games portfolio, including more titles on PC and mobile.

The PS5, which went on sale in November 2020, undersold its predecessor in its second year due to component shortages which have roiled the electronics industry. But it is expected to close the gap in year three and overtake PS4's install base the following year.

Beyond the initial ramp up, "we're planning for heavy further increases in console production, taking us to production levels that we've never achieved before," Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan told an investor briefing.

While COVID-19 lockdowns in China continue to create supply chain uncertainty, "things are definitely improving," Ryan added.

Sony has forecast PS5 sales of 18 million units in the business year to end-March compared to 11.5 million a year earlier.

Outlining a shift by PlayStation away from just concentrating on single player games exclusive to its platform, Ryan said more PC and mobile titles will be on offer in addition to live service games, which provide continuous updated play.

While PS4 and PS5 titles are expected to make up more than two-thirds of releases this year, PC and mobile titles will make up almost half of new games in 2025.

"The initiatives to broaden our audience... will have a fundamental effect on the shape of our game portfolio," Ryan said.

With the shift, PlayStation is aiming to keep pace with industry change that has seen cloud technology and the increased computing power of smartphones untether users from bulky hardware and more money spent by gamers in free-to-play online titles.

Amid much speculation that the metaverse, or the idea users will spend more time in simulated environments, will upend industry business models, Ryan said many consumers will continue to play games as before.

"There will be many, many individual players who prefer to enjoy games in the way that they have played them from the past 30 years or more," Ryan said.

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Sony PlayStation 5

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Good
DualSense is great
Very powerful
Reduced loading times
Friendlier storage expansion
Capable of 8K / 120fps
4K Blu-ray player (finally)

Bad
Expensive
Lack of truly next-gen exclusives
Not a generation leap over PS4 Pro at launch
Game prices now go up to Rs. 5,000
Missing next-gen upgrades for PS4 games
No "Quick Resume", as on Xbox Series X
Limited backward compatibility
No support for Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos
SSD storage amount is restrictive

Read detailed Sony PlayStation 5 review

HDD 825GB PCie Gen 4 NVMe SSD

Processor Custom 8-core AMD Zen 2 CPU @ 3.5GHz with SMT

Graphics Custom AMD RDNA 2 GPU 36 CUs @ 2.23GHz (variable frequency)

RAM 16GB GDDR6

USB 4

Weight 4.5kg

Ethernet Gigabit

More Sony Gaming Consoles

Sony PlayStation 5 Digital Edition

KEY SPECS
NEWS

HDD 825GB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD

Processor Custom 8-core AMD Zen 2 CPU @ 3.5GHz with SMT

Graphics Custom AMD RDNA 2 GPU 36 CUs @ 2.23GHz

RAM 16GB GDDR6

More Sony Gaming Consoles

Sony PlayStation 4

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Good
Slimmer than it looks
Mechanical buttons
Better Power indicator
Runs cooler
5Ghz Wi-Fi

Bad
Hard drive panel is fragile

HDD 500GB, 1TB

Processor AMD Jaguar 1.6 GHz 8-core

Graphics AMD GCN Radeon

RAM 8GB

AV HDMI, Optical Out

USB 2 USB 3.1 ports

Weight 2.1kg

Ethernet Yes

More Sony Gaming Consoles

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Further reading: PlayStation, PS5, P54, Sony, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Jim Ryan, COVID 19, PS5 Sales, PlayStation on PC, PlayStation on mobile, Metaverse