What you need to know
- The PlayStation 5 has been in short supply since its launch in late 2020.
- Sony's flagship console has been hard to find thanks to supply chain issues and superconductor shortages caused by the pandemic.
- Sony will reportedly produce roughly one million PS4s to supplement hardware sales in 2022.
Following a year of strong sales, despite supply chain issues and chip shortages caused by the ongoing pandemic, Sony is reportedly looking to produce a million PS4s this year, Bloomberg reports.
Since the PS5 launched in November of 2020, it's been notoriously hard to find. When it first launched, scalpers were selling the coveted device for as much as double its suggested retail price. Its scarcity is unlikely to end anytime soon, as analysts suspect the ongoing shortage will last at least until the end of 2022. Sources told Bloomberg that the Japanese conglomerate would adjust the initial number of a million consoles based on demand.
Previous reporting suggested that Sony would either halt or slow down production of the PS4 near the end of 2021. In a comment to Bloomberg, a spokesperson for Sony confirmed that PS4 production would continue this year and denied that Sony ever had plans to end production, saying the PS4 is, "one of the best-selling consoles ever and there is always crossover between generations." Sony and PlayStation's release calendar has corroborated this, as a majority of PlayStation's first-party games that have come out since the PS5's launch are also playable on their last-gen console, such as the upcoming Horizon Forbidden West. This represents a change from earlier discussions, where games like Horizon Forbidden West were only going to be for current-gen consoles.
These ongoing shortages could also cause issues for the upcoming PS VR2, which Sony announced earlier this month at CES. PlayStation's next-gen VR headset is currently billed to only work with the PS5, meaning that a limited supply of PS5s could hamper the headset's success.
Last gen, ageless library
The PS4 Pro is a powerful console with an incredible library. Anyone interested in gaming owes it to themselves to jump into its library of high-quality exclusives.
