A PlayStation Phone would be Sony’s perfect answer to Xbox game streaming service

Gamers of all sectors have never faced such a brilliant prospect. We are about to welcome a whole new generation of consoles, unlike any other. The PS5 and Xbox Series X are expected to lead the hardware-based gaming concept in new directions, with consoles that only support digital games, cloud games, and paid services. plays a bigger role than ever before.

Meanwhile, hugely popular brands like Fortnite, Call of Duty, and PUBG are all enjoying huge mobile success. In fact, there is an interesting connection between emerging trends in both the mobile and console gaming markets.

Today’s gamers no longer want to be locked into big-screen experiences, and the future of gaming offers them a solution: the ability to keep playing their favorite games right on your smartphone. . This is an extremely suitable time for a dedicated gaming phone capable of taking advantage of all of the above advantages.

It’s time for PlayStation Phone.

The timing couldn’t be more suitable

Have we ever seen such a phone? It’s correct. Nine years ago, Sony released a gaming smartphone called Xperia Play, and the results were not as they expected.

However, the mobile gaming industry has matured significantly since then. A PlayStation Phone has long been seen as a potential, completely feasible product that could bring success to Sony’s struggling smartphone segment. But there are many factors that contribute to making now the perfect time for Sony to “pull the trigger”.

You’ve probably heard that the smartphone gaming industry is massive – much bigger than the console game industry. But today’s mobile games are not limited to casual games with all kinds of tricks to attract gamers money.

The aforementioned trio – Fortnite, Call of Duty Mobile, and PUBG Mobile – garnered hundreds of millions of downloads and brought with them their own esports tournaments. Independent developers are also jumping into the smartphone game race with titles like Stardew Valley, Dead Souls, Terraria, and Hotline Miami, showing that smartphones can absolutely be fertile ground for console-level titles if be cared for and properly developed.

The graphics and flexible settings of these games also show that mobile games are not necessarily stripped-down versions, with lots of component cuts being cut. PUBG Mobile is sure to run on a smartphone with minimal configuration, but if you own a high-end phone, you will be able to enjoy this game at 90Hz refresh rate and HDR graphics, with many brands. Other attractive applications.

The boom in game software has led to a new trend, with manufacturers racing to roll out the right gaming mobile hardware. However, while Asus, Red Magic, Black Shark, and before that Razer, all focus on terrible configuration and specialized modes to enhance game performance. Innovative features like ultrasonic fingerprinting aren’t an essential part of a smartphone gaming experience.

Nearly every flagship phone these days – typically the Galaxy Note 20 series – has gaming-specific tweaks built in, making the already small, dedicated gaming phone market smaller. But Sony is in a unique position that can make its gaming phone even more appealing: global brand recognition, top-notch hardware, and a great library of games, all. packed into a pocket-sized device, with a very high probability of success.

There have been many people who thought that the separate parts of Sony that could work together to create something like the PlayStation Phone was like a myth. Lately this mindset has changed, and we are starting to see the self-contained team of Xperia now opening the door to all collaborations.

Lessons from Xperia 1 II

After years of sluggish sales and disappointing hardware, Sony has finally launched a flagship product in 2020. The Xperia 1 II was developed with the participation of the team behind the Alpha camera series, And that is evident in the imaging performance that is the Achilles heel of Sony smartphones.

However, PlayStation is a significantly larger brand, and also much more recognizable, compared to Alpha. A PlayStation Phone could help the company get the attention it needs from the public at a time when the line between console and mobile games is blurring like never before.

If the company’s recent collaboration with Alpha division is a testament, then Sony can certainly create an excellent smartphone with the essence of Xperia and PlayStation wrapped up in a single device.

The design of the PlayStation 5 can be said to be very creative, attracting the attention of gamers. Its smooth curves can completely be carried over into a smartphone. An ergonomically curved device that can fit comfortably in the palm of your hand, in white and black colors and a few blue lines should suit many people.

Control is another factor that Sony needs to focus on. Perfecting the ultrasonic triggers would be an option, but if that’s a bit of an overkill then that’s okay, as just the divine DualShock handle works well with this phone is a plus. grownup.

Third-party controllers for smartphones are rarely of good quality, but Microsoft has partnered with multiple brands to ensure its mobile gaming experience is not negatively affected by gamepads. bad. Even so, while the Xbox-certified Razer Kishi controller meets all of the stringent standards, it’s still a patchwork controller, not an actual Xbox gamepad. Sony can easily outrank it with its “own” components.

And why not create a little more? What about a smartphone that transforms – Nintendo Switch style – into a compact PlayStation 5 for cloud gaming, comes with detachable controller handles with DualSense vibrators and flexible triggers? “Shut up and take my money!”

Content is key, and Sony has a ton of top-notch content in its hands

Hardware is only part of the equation. Sony has a coveted library of first-party content that can be turned into smartphone game content. The company has tried it once before with PlayStation Mobile, but its framework and scope are very limited, leading to mediocre titles, nothing that stands out.

The perfect modern PlayStation Phone, however, is not merely an Android gaming machine with proprietary content that is usually mid-tier. Sony needs to make it the home of the PS5 experience wherever you are.

Between Google Stadia and Microsoft xCloud, cloud gaming is a reality, and Sony needs to show that it can compete. Sony’s cloud service, PS Now, was overhauled last year, but at its current stage – only works on consoles and PCs, and has a fairly mediocre game library – it leaves the door open for Microsoft’s Game Pass / xCloud combo dominates the market.

While Stadia and GeForce Now are expanding across platforms, Microsoft’s cloud ambitions are primarily aimed at mobile. Their goal was simple: play Xbox games on mobile. What they don’t have is a device to promote that service. Microsoft just returned to the mobile market with the Surface Duo, but gaming isn’t the main focus of this dual-screen device. Instead Microsoft is busy working with Samsung on commercial marketing deals, and Razer, 8BitDo, and a few other accessory partners.

Like xCloud, it would be great if Sony’s cloud streaming service is available to every Android phone (iOS too, but right now that doesn’t seem impossible). This does not mean that Sony cannot gather the most talented people from the PlayStation and mobile divisions to create a hybrid phone with a handheld game console, thereby serving as a platform for developing streaming services. game by yourself.

Imagine this: a Sony-made mobile hardware capable of running PS5 games via the cloud and the best games for Android, and it also supports vibration feedback. great with DualSense. Sony may even bundle the handset with a PS5 console to boost sales. Who needs a new Sony handheld console when they can buy a PlayStation Phone?

Speaking of handsets, Sony could easily bring both the PSP game library and PS Vita to the new platform. At least PSP titles can easily be emulated on Android. Even mid-range phones should have no problem running those titles at high frame rates. PS Vita is more complicated, but the platform has some really cool titles like Persona 4 Golden and Gravity Rush. If you can’t bring these titles to PlayStation Phone in native format, then Sony still has a solution: PS Now.

Sadly, we still don’t know for sure what the future of PS Now and Sony’s general cloud gaming ambitions will be, but an overhaul would be more perfect going with a PlayStation Phone and giving Its foundation is a necessary powerful weapon in the context of the battle cloud game has really begun.

And don’t forget Sony also has Remote Play. Some people still use PS Vita to stream PS4 games when unable to sit in front of the big screen. Although the PS Vita 3G promises to bring a great mobile PS4 experience, the results are not as expected. Even so, today’s hardware has certainly made huge strides compared to before. Sony may have given up on its mobile gaming strategy, but a 5G phone could fill the void for those who are still interested in remote streaming instead of cloud services.

The Xperia Play was well ahead of its time, and PS Vita had features that could revolutionize, but in the end, both were unable to attract users. With the PS5 coming soon, and the dawn of the cloud game coming, is now the perfect time for a PlayStation Phone to succeed in a war that Sony’s previous efforts have both both mobile games and game consoles failed?

Reference: AndroidAuthority