When is the PS6 release date? The PS6 may be a long way away, but there’s already been plenty of chatter – some of it even coming from official sources – surrounding the potential time frame in which Sony’s next-generation console will launch.
For those of you who have been able to snag Sony’s current gen console – the PS5 – there’ll be hopes that the next hardware release will continue the backwards compatibility trend, so the best PS5 games will carry over. Additionally, we can expect both hefty spec upgrades, as well as competition from the next gen Xbox release date, which should arrive around the same time. Here’s everything we know about the PS6 so far.
PS6 release date rumors
The PS6 release date is currently expected to arrive in 2028. This is according to court documents – reviewed by IGN – from the ongoing legal battle between the FTC and Microsoft over the acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
With both the PS4 and PS5 landing in November, we can confidently speculate that the PS6 will arrive in November 2028, should that be the magic year.
2028 certainly seems a little late by Sony’s traditional mainline console release cadence. The PS3 launched in November 2006, the PS4 in November 2013, and the PS5 in November 2020, leaving seven years between each.
The PS5 launched in both disc and digital formats, and in a singular colorway – albeit with interchangeable panels on the sides. We can certainly imagine that the trend of releasing two versions will continue, but the likelihood of one of them coming with a physical disc drive seems low as gamers turn to physical copies of games less and less.
PS6 possible specs
While the next generation Xbox will perhaps be looking to its extensive library of high quality Xbox Game Pass games, we expect Sony to continue pushing the needle with its first-party titles and offering plenty of jaw-dropping experiences around the console’s launch to drive sales. As such, the PS6 is going to need the power to facilitate the games of the future.
The PS6 is expected to get a solid specs upgrade from the PS5, and it’ll most likely have some form of AMD chipset at its heart. With the PS5 boasting both a custom Zen 2 CPU and RDNA 2 GPU, we can imagine the PS6 will follow a similar cadence, and utilize hardware of a similar generation relative to its release date. For reference, Zen 2 dropped in Summer 2019, while RDNA 2 arrived around the same time as the PS5 in November 2020.
Whether or not Sony will opt to upgrade the 16 GB RAM modules to a heftier 32 GB remains to be seen. The memory capacity of current gen consoles is certainly sufficient, though we can definitely see those requirements gradually increase over time, as we’ve already shifted from 8 GB to 16 GB between the PS4 and PS5.
In terms of storage, we would hope to see an increase from the PS5’s 1 TB M.2 module to something with greater capacity, reducing the reliance on extra storage solutions we currently have with PS5 SSDs. Should storage prices stay as low as they are right now, then being able to store a few extra games on our systems without having to shell out for extra space would be eagerly welcomed.
PS6 price speculation
Based on the expected PS6 specs and pricing of current consoles, The Loadout believes the PS6 price will be around $499.99 / £479.99. While the PS6 could be priced in excess of $500, Sony would risk losing ground to Microsoft’s offering – we fully expect the next gen Xbox to sit around the $350 mark.
Sony could always offer players a cheaper, less-powerful version of the PS6, just as Microsoft has done this generation with the Series X and S. However, Sony had no interest in doing that with the PS5, so what they’ll do next generation is currently up for debate.
PS6 potential features
We expect the PS6 to once again target 4K 60 FPS gameplay, with 120 FPS support at 1440p. Although 4K 120 FPS would be great to see, with an increasing number of TVs supporting 4K 120 Hz, we can imagine the demands of future games will be too taxing on Sony’s hardware to consistently achieve this standard.
Our eyes are also on the second generation of the DualSense controller – should Sony continue with that naming convention. Here we’d expect to see improved battery life, alongside some of the modularity boasted by the DualSense Edge.
Of course, there’s a long time to go until the prospective PS6 launch. As such, there’s likely to be new and exciting advancements on the feature front between now and then.
And that’s all we have on the PS6 release date for now. Until we get to hear more about, or get our mitts on, the PS6, be sure to check out the upcoming PS5 games while you wait. It’s going to be a long one, so make sure you don’t get bored in the meantime.
