Sony Tech Wizard Mark Cerny Teases New Graphics Features He's Excited to Bring to 'A Future Console in a Few Years' Time,' Sparks Wave of PS6 Release Date Speculation in the Process

Sony’s tech wizard Mark Cerny has teased a fig of caller video crippled graphics features successful a caller video published to the authoritative PlayStation YouTube transmission titled ‘From Project Amethyst to the Future of Play: AMD and Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Shared Vision.’ Almost each of the adjacent 9 infinitesimal chat is astir advances successful graphics exertion Sony and AMD person been moving connected implicit the past 2 years.

But then, astatine the extremity of the video, a alternatively innocuous enactment from Cerny himself dares to notation a "future console" coming successful "a fewer years' time." And that's each it has taken to spark a increasing question of speculation astir erstwhile Sony volition merchandise the inevitable PlayStation 6.

Here’s the enactment successful question:

"Overall, it's of people inactive precise aboriginal days for these technologies, they lone beryllium successful simulation close now. But the results are rather promising and I'm truly excited astir bringing them to a aboriginal console successful a fewer years' time."

A aboriginal console successful a fewer years' time? Most are taking that to suggest Sony plans to merchandise the PS6 precocious 2028.

This isn't the archetypal clip Sony executives person talked astir aboriginal PlayStation consoles successful vague terms. In June, successful an investor-focused interrogation published connected Sony's firm website, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO and president Hideaki Nishino was asked directly: with unreality gaming much of a viable enactment than ever before, bash we request a next-generation console? Is SIE processing one?

Nishino began his effect by explaining wherefore console hardware is inactive needed contempt the emergence of unreality gaming: “We person been successful unreality gaming for implicit the past 11 years. We deployed a unreality gaming work to enactment the PS3, PS4, and PS5 generations and we are truly arrogant astir the prime we person been delivering.

“Cloud streaming done PlayStation Plus Premium, and we person a unreality streaming beta connected the PlayStation Portal, is 1 specified mode we are doing this.

“However, the concern exemplary for unreality gaming indispensable beryllium sustainable for the longer word growth. Cloud gaming is progressing good from a method standpoint, arsenic we person demonstrated with these offerings. But end-to-end web stableness is not successful our control.

“Cloud gaming is progressively providing an further enactment for players to entree content. But our content is the bulk of players proceed to privation a play experience, the gaming done a section execution, without dependency connected web conditions. PS5 and PS5 Pro person validated this thesis, I believe.”

But is simply a caller console really present successful development? Here was Nishino's effect to that question:

“Our console concern has evolved into a multi-faceted platform, and we present person a ample ecosystem of highly engaged players crossed some the PS5 and the PS4 generations. So naturally, therefore, determination is simply a immense involvement successful our next-generation console strategy.

“While we cannot stock further details astatine this stage, the aboriginal of the level is apical of mind. We are committed to exploring a caller and enhanced mode for players to prosecute with our contented and our services.”

PS6 speech shouldn't travel arsenic overmuch of a surprise. Console manufacturers often commencement enactment connected next-generation consoles soon aft they merchandise current-gen consoles. In fact, Sony started improvement of PS5 astir instantly aft PS4 came retired backmost successful November 2013. Following what’s gone before, possibly PS6 has already been successful the works for 5 years. Maybe adjacent longer.

But could Sony's next-gen console plans see a caller PlayStation handheld, too? In August, PlayStation 6 handheld rumors ramped up, alongside claims it volition beryllium dockable. If you look astatine the PlayStation Portal and however it has evolved, Sony is intelligibly steering successful the absorption of a handheld. Indeed, Nishino was asked during the capitalist interrogation astir Sony's strategy astir the PlayStation Portal, and whether handhelds were a portion of its next-generation strategy, though helium failed to reply successful a meaningful way.

The ‘will determination beryllium a next-gen?’ question has been bubbling nether the aboveground ever since the current-gen kicked disconnected successful November 2020. With the PS5 present pushing past the halfway constituent of its beingness and Microsoft releasing Xbox-branded handhelds, change, clearly, is coming.

Image credit: PlayStation / YouTube.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].