Hot on the heels of Sony’s most recent earnings call, industry analysts are now predicting the arrival of a mid-cycle console upgrade to the company’s flagship console later this year. It’s also been suggested that Sony is carefully aligning the release of the PlayStation 5 Pro with the launch of Grand Theft Auto 6 in 2025. In doing so, Sony is reportedly looking to solve two problems: renew interest in the platform and establish it as the go-to platform for the upcoming blockbuster title.
The CNBC report didn’t name its sources but the credibility of the claims holds up given the current circumstances.
The PlayStation 5, which launched in November 2020, is no longer the hottest electronic on the market. This is evidenced by Sony’s revised sales forecast after it set an overly ambitious target for this fiscal year. It has since made several adjustments to its plans for the next fiscal year, including relying on third-party releases over first-party exclusives. Nevertheless, the analysis suggests that Sony might have had a good reason to put trust outside of its inner circle.
The PlayStation 4 Pro, released three years after the original PS4, established a precedent for mid-cycle hardware refreshes. It offered improved performance and 4K support, catering to the evolving demands of gamers. Similarly, the PS5 Pro is expected to be a significant upgrade, though specifics remain unconfirmed.
It’s only natural to expect the introduction of a more powerful Pro model to help ignite fan interest in the PlayStation as a platform once again, sans the usual fanfare surrounding first-party exclusives.
But as analysts like Serkan Toto and George Jijiashvili have pointed out, Sony is banking on one of the best-selling video game franchises in the world to help carry much of the load. It’s also in line with previous leaks of a potential GTA 6 and PS5 Pro bundle after Sony allegedly secured marketing rights for the game.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is viewed as a pivotal release for the video game industry, promising to invigorate the market and drive hardware sales. With its release expected to be sometime in 2025 (more likely around the holiday season), many gamers, including casual audiences, are already preparing for its arrival by buying the necessary hardware upgrades like bigger TVs, among others.
Introducing the PS5 Pro during the holidays this year positions it to take advantage of the usually spending-friendly season as gamers look for the best way to experience the next GTA title even if it isn’t coming out for at least a year by then.
With FOMO kicking in for existing owners and younger gamers asking for a PS5 Pro as part of their Christmas wishlist, the upgraded console will have zero problems selling without the risk of cannibalizing the base model’s sales. More importantly, Sony will have bought its first-party studios a year’s worth of development time with minimal marketing expenses incurred. Finally, as a bonus, it will get ahead of the curve by hitting storeshelves before the next Nintendo console comes out in early 2025.
If nothing else, this would help solve PlayStation’s problems with narrowing profit margins and maintaining financial health – a particularly problematic area Sony is targeting with multiplatform releases and an intensified focus on lesser-known and low-cost projects.
