It was more than more than a year since PlayStation 5 is out and it’s still one of the hardest gadgets to find. Sony plans to make up for limited stock by resuming production Playstation 4although there were originally plans to discontinue the console by the end of 2021, according to a reported on Bloomberg. At first glance, this looks like offsetting a low supply of cars by building more bikes. Except… is it really that absurd?
The response to the report is about what to expect—The consequential parts are laughter and contempt. Meanwhile, in the same Bloomberg report, Sony said that continuing to produce PS4 was the plan so far. Older consoles traditionally continue to sell even after new ones come out. (For comparison, though, Microsoft has Officially discontinued Xbox One.)
But this situation is a bit different. Between persistent supply chain problems, consistently delayed game chains, and the already impressive state of the previous generation of consoles, there may be more reasons than usual to buy an older console.
The chip shortage problem is still here
Back in the summer of 2021, it felt like a million years ago, I wrote about how the chip shortage caused it Hard to find nearly every kind of gadget. Not much has changed. The global supply chain is still feeling the lingering effects of the original crisis in 2020. When manufacturing facilities close just as demand for new equipment soars, it’s like dropping a Huge rock into the lake. Even after the initial jet is extinguished, the ripple effects will continue for a while.
This was a big part of why it was so hard to find a PS5 this past holiday season. It’s correct, Burns are also a problem, but these problems are complex. Fewer consoles on the shelf means more competition to buy them, which drives demand for automated bots, making it hard for the average person to get their hands on a console.
On the other hand, PS4 is cheaper to manufacture than PS5 and therefore cheaper to buy. Also, because they use older chip models, their components are more readily available – meaning they can be produced at scale quickly. Having more PS4s on shelves could ease some of the pressure on PS5 sales, which could benefit everyone. Sure, people who don’t like Sony want a PS5, and giving them a PS4 instead doesn’t really solve their problem. But there are still great games for PS4 and a gambler Those who just need any PlayStation, or a parent buying a console for their 8-year-old, may not be so interested.
If everyone wants a PlayStation Yes to buy a PS5, it makes the demand problem worse. But if a portion of the market that doesn’t care what model they buy can afford a cheaper or more readily available console, there’s still more room for those committed to the PS5, though. That’s reason enough to keep making and selling PS4s right now. But it’s not just the hardware that’s being delayed.
Not many games are built for PS5
It’s not uncommon for only a handful of games to be exclusive to a new console when it first launched. For example, when the Switch was released, it was just over One Breath of the Wild machine. To some extent, that’s okay, if games that take advantage of new hardware take a while to launch.
However, the game’s delay has plagued the entire industry. There are but a handful of titles that actually use the PS5’s power. There are some real exclusivity, like Profit and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Not available on PS4. And then there are only some soft monopolies, like Deathloop (also available on PC) and the soul of the devil remake (technically exclusive to PS5, but the original came out on PS3).
Some PS5 titles are remakes or re-releases of PS4 games. Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition, Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Intergradeand Death Stranding: Director’s Cut are all variations of PS4 games that have had modest improvements and unnecessarily long names to make them stand out like the PS5 release.
