Shawn Layden, former head of PlayStation, has spoken about the origins of the next-generation console: the PlayStation 5.

We are approaching the first birthday of new generation consoles, and the press and gamers always like to know more details about how these machines have been created and the plans that companies have to get the most out of them. And if, in addition, those details come from someone who is no longer part of the company, we can be more than satisfied to avoid the corresponding institutional discourse that the main protagonists of the same must follow.

This is the case of Shawn Layden, former director of Sony PlayStation, who has made several headlines in a talk with the What’s Up PlayStation podcast. We already saw how he got wet on the question of whether console exclusives will ever get a simultaneous release on PC at some point. Still, he has also talked about the origins of the PS5, confirming that they started working on its development the day after the launch for PS4.

“You start working on your next-generation platform the day after the current one is released,” he says. ” The development of PS5 goes back a long time .” Specifically, eight years ago, since PlayStation 4 hit the market at the end of 2013, becoming one of the biggest successes of the Japanese brand at the hardware level.

“You always have to be ahead. Years ago, I worked as a personal assistant for Akio Morita, and one of the things he always told me was that you had to make your product obsolete. If you don’t make it obsolete, someone will do it for you.” explains Layden.

“From the moment you launch a product, you have a team behind, out of all the spotlights, that gets to work on the next version. You cannot stop enjoying the success of your most current product. You always have to be building against that idea,” he concludes.

These statements have come in a complex context for Sony. Although its new generation console is being a success in terms of impact and sales, the shortage of components caused by the pandemic does not seem to be reduced in the coming months, so not all players will be able to enjoy PS5 short term.

This is something that worries Jim Ryan. The CEO of SIE is frustrated that he cannot reach the public number he wishes and dreams of bringing the PlayStation experience to hundreds of millions of gamers worldwide. Intentions that have raised the suspicion that we could be much closer than we think to enjoy a greater openness of the company regarding its exclusive titles.

Source: What’s Up