Even with Sony having just released the PlayStation 4 Pro this year, it is only realistic to expect that the Japanese gaming giant would eventually launch a next-gen platform in the distant future. There are rumors that the highly-anticipated PS4 successor, unofficially called PlayStation 5, will be unveiled in two or three years as the public clamor for the console gets louder as time passes by.

According to the latest reports, Sony itself has been providing hints that the company is slowly but surely gearing up for a PlayStation 5 launch. For one, Shawn Layden, the chairman of Worldwide Studios and President of Sony Interactive Entertainment America, tipped the German website Golem that the PS4 successor is definitely "coming," but the development of the next-generation console will take a long period before it is ready.

Interestingly, some observers at the recent Paris Games Week 2017 think that the PS4 era has already reached its peak, and Sony might making its first move to introduce the PS5 in the years to come. The online publication VG 24/7, which was among the participants of the Paris Games Week, felt that the modern gamers have "popped through the mid-generation malaise in 2017." The expectation after the event is that in 2018 and the years that follow will be the time for "killer releases that will define the PS4 era."

For now, it is rumored that the PS5 will eventually be released in 2019, although it is possible that Sony will take more time to develop the next-gen console. With the clash of PS4 Pro against Microsoft's newly-launched Xbox One X, Sony will have to step up their game, given that the early reviews for their rival's 4K gaming machine are generally positive.

As the PS4 Pro is being branded as Sony's 4K gaming platform, the company can only improve upon this feature when they finally launch the PS5. Some users are impressed by the Xbox One X's superior 4K display feature, and the only way for Sony to lead the race is to go higher than 4K. Chris Kingsley, co-founder of game developer Rebellion, even suggested that the PS5 should be the first hardware to offer 8K graphics. Although, it is also likely that Sony will go with native 4K display and 60 frames per second as its frame rate.

Sony was the first among the console makers to embrace the virtual reality (VR) platform via PS VR, so it is possible that the PS5 will prompt the launch of VR headgear's second release. Players could experience a more remarkable VR experience with the PS5, with the leading AAA game titles finally getting VR support.