Could Sony be developing a competitor to Nintendo's Switch? Given the immense success of the handheld console, which has set sales records, other companies are definitely taking notice. Meanwhile, Sony has seen great sales with its PlayStation 5 but only offers the PS Portal for portability. This device allows remote play by connecting to the home console via the cloud, lacking the same convenience as the Switch.
According to Bloomberg, five and a half years after the discontinuation of the PS Vita, Sony is reportedly working on a new portable console. The news source cites several well-informed insiders and suggests that the company wishes to extend the PlayStation brand to a new audience while competing with Nintendo in the hybrid console arena.
To achieve this, Sony would leverage the development work on the PS Portal, launched in 2023. Initially, it was planned for the device to run games locally, similar to the Steam Deck, but the focus shifted to cloud gaming, requiring a PlayStation 5 to run games remotely. Recently, however, Sony has enabled access to cloud games via the PS Plus Premium subscription from the PS Portal without the need to turn on the PS5 remotely. Bloomberg did not provide further details or release dates, but urgency is needed as the PlayStation 5 is approaching the end of its life cycle in April 2024, and Nintendo is expected to announce its next console in 2025, which will maintain backward compatibility with Switch games.
