Sony is reportedly set to return to the handheld console market with a new portable PlayStation that plays PS5 games on the go.
Bloomberg reports that this unannounced handheld console is in the works now, although won’t be released for some time and may end up coming to nothing. Sony declined to comment.
Sony wants to expand the market for PlayStation games, Bloomberg's sources said, with a handheld console that plays PS5 games. If the console does make it to market, Sony will be taking on Nintendo's unannounced Switch successor and a handheld Xbox, which Microsoft gaming chief Phil Spencer recently confirmed was in the works but years away.
"Sony’s portable device is likely years away from launch and the company could still decide against bringing it to market, the people said, asking not to be named discussing private plans," Bloomberg said.
A true portable PlayStation would be a successor device to the PlayStation Portal, which Sony released in 2023 as a PS5 streaming accessory. Last week, Sony updated the PlayStation Portal to allow PlayStation Plus Premium subscribers to utilize cloud technology to stream their games on the go — even if they don’t have a PS5. According to Bloomberg, Sony originally intended for the PlayStation Portal to work as a standalone device, similar to Valve’s Steam Deck.
Sony of course has a history with portable PlayStation consoles. Its PlayStation Portable (PSP) launched first in December 2004 as a Nintendo DS competitor, and played games on the Universal Media Disc (UMD) format. The PlayStation Vita followed in December 2011, and aimed at competing with the Nintendo 3DS. Both handhelds were eventually discontinued, and Sony went on to focus on home consoles starting with the PS4 in 2013.
The report comes hot on the heels of Sony’s release of its $700 mid-gen console refresh, the PS5 Pro. Sales of the PS5 itself have fallen as the console enters the second half of its lifecycle. Sony has yet to announce the PS6, but if the company follows the same gap between the release of the PS4 and the PS5, then the PS6 will be released in 2027.
In the shorter term, Sony has made an offer to buy Kadokawa Corporation, whose subsidiary FromSoftware is behind smash hit Elden Ring, the Dark Souls and Armored Core games, and PlayStation exclusive Bloodborne. Kadokawa CEO Takeshi Natsuno has insisted no decision has been made.
Sony’s gaming business has already suffered significant layoffs this year and the closure of multiple studios, including Concord developer Firewalk. In February, it announced a round of layoffs affecting 900 staff, or about 8% of its global PlayStation workforce. The layoffs impacted a number of PlayStation studios, including Insomniac, Naughty Dog, Guerrilla, and Firesprite, but PlayStation's London studio was hit hardest with a notice of closure. Since then, Sony-owned Bungie has also suffered devastating cuts as Destiny 2 struggles to find commercial success.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
