Shuhei Yoshida Advises Nintendo And Sony Delaying Next Generation Hardware As Long As Possible
"...[They're] already happy"
"ColonelFancy" Mike Lind
9/30/20262 min read
The former President of Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan offered a fairly valid point of view to Nintendo and PlayStation on what should be done to thrive in video games' future. The veteran businessman and CEO was a part of an interview with The VergeCast where he shared insight on a handful of topics about the industry, ranging from A.I., Microsoft's restructuring, and the hot topic of digital distribution.
The discussion came to pricing for next gen hardware, and Yoshida suggested Nintendo and PlayStation should hold off releasing any future game consoles and run with the current generation for as long as possible. He provides three major reasons
CONTENT PLAYERBASE
"While Sony and Nintendo have sold [high enough numbers in their] current generation, right? So because of the cost of goods, they might be looking [into] pushing back the launch of next gen," Yoshida observes. "And I think they should try to keep the current generation as long as possible, because I think people are happy using PS5 and Switch 2.
COST
"People have a finite budget and I feel like PC and consoles, the components are very specific to these devices have increased the price way more than all the other forms of entertainment," he continues. "I. for myself, I have a gaming PC for work that I purchased five years ago. That was pretty good. And while I was thinking to replace my gaming PC, this price hike happened, so I was late to replace it.
PEOPLE AREN'T THIRSTY FOR MORE POWER
Lastly, he states that the arms race among the major platforms serves no consumer in the grand scheme of things.
"I don't think lots of people are asking for more power," the former SIE CEO states. "I don't think developers are [saying] 'We need better hardware!'. So I think that means [for] the current generation, Sony and Nintendo are going to do pretty well for many years to come still."
Yoshida's points are very astute. Both Nintendo and PlayStation are leading the market share for video game console platforms, it's tough to envision what is necessary beyond what the platforms have already established.
In an age where memory shortages are affecting the entire planet's technological landscape, less can definitely mean more. The same also applies with the increasing costs of software and hardware. The Xbox Series consoles and PlayStation 5 are six years old, and both platforms have only INCREASED in price, rather than going down. What's the value?
Adam Boyes (left) and Yoshida (right) recreating their 2013 game-sharing video at the 2026 Tokyo Game Show
The Nintendo Switch 2 saw its first price hike at the beginning of September, leaving it the more affordable of the three. But a price hike nonetheless. The industry really has video game fans in a precarious situation. The drive to make things "bigger" isn't necessarily a strive to make things better. Looking at inflated development costs, the closure of multiple studios, and the massive number of layoffs from Sony and Microsoft (the latter which doesn't seem to have anything resembling a real plan for moving forward), it's tough to see things solving themselves on the mainline front.
SOURCE CITED: The Vergecast