Former PlayStation boss Shawn Layden said he believes innovation at Sony shouldn’t come “from creating a PS6 for $1,200″ but to do “another PS5 for $300.”
As technology costs skyrocket and rumors of expensive game consoles swirl, the former president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment America took the time to The trophy room podcast to encourage the PlayStation maker to consider an unexpected, less costly course of action. Highlighting how previous hardware advancements have generally delivered innovative qualities that are clearly identifiable from generation to generation, he explained why the PlayStation 6 simply relying on “more ray tracing and more teraflops” may not be the best idea.
As Layden says: “I think we have enough power in the machine.”
“Innovation shouldn’t come from making a PS6 for $1,200. It’s about making another PS5 for $300,” he added. “Now that would be real innovation. This is the first platform I’ve seen that has gone up in price over time. I mean, the PS2, at the end of the PS2 era, was $99. You could buy a PS2 for $99.”
The PS5 launched almost exactly six years ago with two main options from which players can choose: a basic version with a disc drive for $499 and a digital edition for $399. What seemed like relatively reasonable prices in 2020 now seem almost like a bargain thanks to a series of price increases over the last few years. Today, buying a base PS5 directly from PlayStation costs $649, a Digital Edition costs $599, and a Pro costs an incredible $899 (up $200 from its price). reveal the price). Things get even worse when you look retailers like GameStop.
Sony blamed “continued pressures in the industry” global economic landscape“, but that did little to ease the pain of the average buyer. Like console sales for Sony, MicrosoftAnd Nintendo suffer, Layden believes that Sony should not be looking for a way to a likely more expensive future, but rather a cheaper past.
“I think if I were in their shoes, that’s what I would do. I would try to find a way to reduce the cost of the 5,” he added.
Later, he continued: “It’s a tough place to be in right now, I think. What the company needs to do is do what it’s never done, which is not repeat the console. Make it smaller, make it cheaper, do whatever you can around that, but the silicon is good, the operating system is good. It’s more than enough to make the kind of games we all want to play.”
If you look at the raw console release schedule, we’re close to releasing the next PlayStation, but many gamers are saying they don’t want to see a PS6 announced until hardware prices drop. In May, Sony said it was I’m still trying to decide when its next console should launch. This followed a February report which stated the company planned to push the device until 2028 – or even 2029 – in line with previous launch expectations for 2027.
For now, however, we know unfortunately little about the PS6. As PlayStation continues to fight the backlash against his decision to kill physical disksA the leaker said that RAM and storage for the console alone could cost up to $680. Meanwhile, a month of October patent suggests Sony could consider leveraging its own vision of frame generation. How much the PS6 will ultimately cost is a mystery, but the future does not look particularly bright.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer at IGN. He is best known for his work on sites like The Pitch, The Escapist and OnlySP. Be sure to follow him on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
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