We Now Know When The PS5 Was Supposed To Be Revealed
We still don't have a clear idea of what the PlayStation 5 is going to look like or when it will be released in stores. However, according to a report from VGC, we were originally supposed to know much more within the next month. A source close to Sony claims that the company meant to host a big reveal event for the PlayStation 5 in May, but that plan has since been reevaluated due to complications stemming from the coronavirus outbreak.
This would have put the big reveal right before E3, which was meant to take place this year from June 9 to June 11. However, E3 was also cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak. Sony had already decided not to attend E3 back in January, so it makes sense that the company would have scheduled its big reveal right before some of its competitors would have taken to the E3 stage to show off their upcoming projects.
It has become very clear that Sony's entire original marketing plan seems to have gone out the window. This would account for the sort of piecemeal way things are being revealed for the new system.
A couple of weeks ago, Sony unveiled the design of the new controller for the PlayStation 5, the DualSense. Reactions to the controller were fairly divided, with some people loving the design and others taking it to task for either straying too far from traditional PlayStation aesthetics. One thing that seemed to puzzle everyone was the sheer fact that Sony had revealed the controller for the PlayStation 5 on its own, with fans still seemingly having zero clue as to what the system itself will look like. It all just seemed kind of backwards to many fans. These rumors seem to suggest that the controller reveal was done in a bit of a scramble to compensate for Sony having to rethink its marketing strategy.
This lines up pretty well with recent rumblings regarding the PlayStation. Sources close to the company recently reported that the PS5 may be shipped in limited quantities during its first year. These sources also intimated "was forced to reveal its DualSense PS5 controller in a hurried fashion."
Recent rumors have suggested that Microsoft has some big announcements coming in May as well. Some have speculated that Microsoft is planning to announce its slate of launch titles for the Xbox Series X. We already know some of the games that will be making their way to the new console, which suggests that there are still a few surprises to come. That console is due to be released this holiday season, much like the PlayStation 5.
This would make a lot of sense, considering what we've heard regarding both companies' strategies for unveiling their new systems and announcing release dates for them. Between health concerns surrounding the coronavirus outbreak and the manufacturing costs of these new systems, there's been a feeling that both Sony and Microsoft have adopted a "wait and see" approach to their marketing plans. Neither company seems ready to make a move without having an idea of what the other has up its sleeve.
In other words, we're in a very strange time right now. With everything up in the air, video game companies are having to think outside the box in terms of marketing strategy. This sentiment was seemingly backed up by industry analyst Daniel Ahmad, who shared some of the talk he's heard via Twitter.
"With E3 cancelled, a lot of the planned reveals / announcements have been moved out of that single week," tweeted Ahmad. "Some are now much earlier, others much later. Some still during E3 week [of course]. The first proper next gen console/games showcase is much earlier too."
Ahmad continued, "This is the one time I will actually add a caveat, for the last sentence in this case, as we are living through an unprecedented situation and this is the one time where external factors such as COVID-19 could actually change plans right at the last minute. But we'll see."
It seems that the "wait and see" approach no longer applies exclusively to Microsoft and Sony keeping an eye on one another. At this point, it has become a matter of seeing what the world is going to look like from day to day. Video game companies are in an interesting position when it comes to revealing what they've been working on. Hopefully we'll hear something soon regarding a full PlayStation 5 reveal. Maybe we'll at least get some more info about that weird PS5 robot?