It has been one hell of a ride with the PlayStation 4. It's been over a decade since the console was released, and millions of players are still using it. However, like the generations before it, Sony might finally be leaving the PS4 in the past.
The End of a Console Generation
The PS4 is among the best-selling consoles with 117.2 million units sold. Even now, it still has about 49 million active users, according to Sony's estimate. Still, the entertainment giant has to allocate its resources to new things, and the support for the PS4 will eventually have to end.
Based on the recent game releases, that might've already begun. Newer video game titles are now exclusive to the PS5, which signifies that Sony is already moving on and is no longer considering the 2013 console in its releases.
As reported by Kotaku reported, the last major cross-generation release was for God of War Ragnarök, which was at the end of 2022. Even the Burning Shores DLC for Horizon Forbidden West was only released for PS5 even though the base game was available for the PS4.
Still, that doesn't mean that Sony is done releasing games for the PS4, considering that the company never explicitly said so. PlayStation co-CEO Hermen Hulst said that they are "evaluating it on a case-by-case basis."
With all the players still actively using the last-gen console, Hulst added that they "certainly don't want to forget the millions of active players on PS4," and that they "want to ensure there are great games for them as well."
Even if Sony and other studios release PS4 versions of newer games, players might find that the hardware can no longer keep up with the heavier games. The specs of the PS5 are matched by the recent releases well enough, and since the PS4 has weaker specs, it might lead to lag or overheating.
Is the PS4 Being Discontinued?
The last we heard about the production of the PS4 units was back in 2022, wherein Sony said that the last-gen console was still in production. Given that it was one of the best-selling consoles ever, and the PS5 was still scarce back then, it made sense.
If you want to buy a brand new PS4, it might be difficult for you to find one. Sony used to sell the units directly from its website back in 2022, but the page for it is no longer available, meaning that the company might finally be on its way to phase the unit out.
Even then, the company only allowed buyers to purchase one unit since there was still a high demand for it, as mentioned in The Verge. You'll have better luck finding a second-hand PS4 console, and you might be better off purchasing a used PS5 instead.
Sony is not completely abandoning the platform. In fact, the company just released an update for the PS4 this March, which is meant to improve system software for performance and stability. Even the PS3 got an update earlier this year, so PS4 units are still years away from being outdated.
