Sony has yet to confirm its plans to develop a next-gen gaming console to replace the current PlayStation 4 (PS4). Any talks about the PS5 are not expected at this point, especially since the company has just unveiled the PS4 Pro this year. Nevertheless, hints about the PS5's possible design and features have begun to surface, with the latest one coming from a game studio's executive.
As reported by Express UK, there have been speculations about the future of the disc drive in the PlayStation console. The most popular rumor is that Sony and Microsoft are thinking about removing the physical disc slot from the future PlayStation and Xbox consoles. So, in the PlayStation 5, it is rumored that the console will rely solely on downloadable game copies instead of discs. Still, there is hope that the disc drives will be saved in the PS5, at least according to Electronic Arts (EA) CFO, Blake Jorgensen.
"Consoles and disc drives probably stay around for a long period of time," Jorgensen said in an interview via Gamespot. "I think it's the consumer deciding what's the easiest way for them to buy a game.
At the end of the day, it will be up to the future gamers if they will prefer getting a video game by purchasing a digital copy online, which is easier to do than buying the physical copy from the shelf. However, Jorgensen believes that the disc drive shall remain in the PlayStation 5 anyway, just to give the users an option. To note, EA's PC game sales are composed primarily of downloads, whereas the console game sales amount to 30% downloads.
Meanwhile, recent reports are showing positive signs that Sony will launch the PlayStation 5 in the coming years. The chairman of Worldwide Studios and President of Sony Interactive Entertainment America, Shawn Layden, told the German entertainment website Golem that the follow-up console to the PS4 is indeed "coming," although its development will probably take a long time before Sony can show it to the public.
If the rumors are anything to go by, the PlayStation 5 is likely to be released in 2019, or perhaps later, but the thing is Sony would definitely release a next-gen console in the future to answer Microsoft's newly-launched Xbox One X. Early reviews for the PS4 Pro rival are positive, with more emphasis on the gaming machine's 4K graphics support.
