The question is very pertinent to your question.

Handheld consoles are, surprisingly enough, still consoles

Really don't get the TVs are dying therefore PS5 will fail thing though. I mean... WTF? Where do you even get something like that?

VideoGameAccountant said:

 
Way to ignore my reply, lol.

First, to Ka-pi, why did Sony do well this generation? If you compare 2016 to 2009 (about 3 years in to their respective generations) both hardward and software sales are DOWN. Every system is doing poorly except the 3DS and the PS4. Almost all the increase in PS4 hardware and software can be explained by the decline in Microsoft's hardware and software. This mean's the PS4's success is due not to some fabulous business maneuver but due to consolidation. Sony would have been in dire straights if Microsoft didn't create a DMR Kinect machine. A lot of people who think Sony is doing so well seem to ignore this fact. Nice downplay. Does that mean that 3DS was only moderately successful for similar reasons? 

As to your comment: Playstation is tethered to the TV with no way out. Patently false. Again, you can connect a console to a monitor or headset and Sony's online services are accessible via multiple devices including mobile and PC. Sony needs to escape the shrinking box (this isn't an issue for Microsoft as they are turning their consoles into entertainment PCs). Fewer and fewer people are buying or watching TV. So any system tethered to a TV will suffer. The Switch is a transition. It can easily become just a mobile console once the bottom falls out. But Sony doesn't have any kind of plan. Sony is basically sticking with the PS4 and hoping it works out. Again, yes they do. PS Now, VR, and Vue are diversifications in preparation for a smaller traditional home console market. If the latter shrinks, the former will expand. For comparison, this would be like having factories in a warring South American country, and instead of getting the hell out, you double down your investment. 

Sony hasn't been able to compete in a handheld space with Nintendo. The PSP lost to the DS and the Vita crashed and burned. However, the market is moving towards mobile gaming Mobile, not handheld console.. Since Sony can't compete, what are their options? Stay on the sinking ship or try to get into portables again? See above.Even if Sony makes a Switch like system, would their core accept that? This would mean the PS5 wouldn't be much stronger than the PS4, which would leave Sony fans very upset. 

Sony is a lot like Sega in the last legs of its console run. Sega was living in a time long gone. They wanted to make arcade games in the home. The Dreamcast is still an awesome system for arcade games. Nevertheless, the market didn't accept it. Now Sony is doing the same thing. They are making "cinematic" games, but the market is moving away from that. The arcades were absorbed by the home console (which started the "war for the living room." ). Now, the home console is being absorbed by the handheld console as performance has hit its peak. Sony wants to keep making cinametic games of Gen 5,6 and 7, but the market is moving away from that. Factually baseless on almost all counts.Even if they do release a Switch clone, will Sony have the right games? Probably not.

Why would your average consumer want a PS4 or a PS5 when they can buy a Switch they can play anywhere? The same reasons you would buy a home console in the past when you could just buy a Game Boy or DS and play anywhere. Why buy a PS4 or PS5 when you don't really need a TV anyway (which is where we are going based on the data). Why buy any gaming system when you don't really need it anyway? This is meaningless. So how does Sony compete? Too many analysis look at the present. "Sony is doing well now so they will do well in the future." Kind of like "The Wii U did bad so the Switch will do bad" And we all know how that turned out.How flawed can your logic get? The PS4 is doing well now and there is no reason yet to prematurely fix what isn't broken. Dramatically altering your strategy in the middle of an already greatly successful one would be throwing the baby out with the bathwater. This isn't "the PS4 did well so the PS5 will do well", this is "the PS4 is doing well so the PS4 will continue doing well if Sony continues giving their fans what they want."

TL;DR - TVs are dying and Sony is tethered to the TV. Nope.Consoles are being absorbed by handheldsNope and Sony has never been able to compete in this space. Sony will struggle to make a Switch clone as their core wont accept a minimal upgrade in power. Sony is like Sega in they are in the wrong generation. You crack me up, man.

First, to Ka-pi, why did Sony do well this generation? If you compare 2016 to 2009 (about 3 years in to their respective generations) both hardward and software sales are DOWN. Every system is doing poorly except the 3DS and the PS4. Almost all the increase in PS4 hardware and software can be explained by the decline in Microsoft's hardware and software. This mean's the PS4's success is due not to some fabulous business maneuver but due to consolidation. Sony would have been in dire straights if Microsoft didn't create a DMR Kinect machine. A lot of people who think Sony is doing so well seem to ignore this fact.

As to your comment: Playstation is tethered to the TV with no way out. Sony needs to escape the shrinking box (this isn't an issue for Microsoft as they are turning their consoles into entertainment PCs). Fewer and fewer people are buying or watching TV. So any system tethered to a TV will suffer. The Switch is a transition. It can easily become just a mobile console once the bottom falls out. But Sony doesn't have any kind of plan. Sony is basically sticking with the PS4 and hoping it works out. For comparison, this would be like having factories in a warring South American country, and instead of getting the hell out, you double down your investment. 

Sony hasn't been able to compete in a handheld space with Nintendo. The PSP lost to the DS and the Vita crashed and burned. However, the market is moving towards mobile gaming. Since Sony can't compete, what are their options? Stay on the sinking ship or try to get into portables again? Even if Sony makes a Switch like system, would their core accept that? This would mean the PS5 wouldn't be much stronger than the PS4, which would leave Sony fans very upset. 

Sony is a lot like Sega in the last legs of its console run. Sega was living in a time long gone. They wanted to make arcade games in the home. The Dreamcast is still an awesome system for arcade games. Nevertheless, the market didn't accept it. Now Sony is doing the same thing. They are making "cinematic" games, but the market is moving away from that. The arcades were absorbed by the home console (which started the "war for the living room." ). Now, the home console is being absorbed by the handheld console as performance has hit its peak. Sony wants to keep making cinametic games of Gen 5,6 and 7, but the market is moving away from that. Even if they do release a Switch clone, will Sony have the right games? Probably not.

Why would your average consumer want a PS4 or a PS5 when they can buy a Switch they can play anywhere? Why buy a PS4 or PS5 when you don't really need a TV anyway (which is where we are going based on the data). So how does Sony compete? Too many analysis look at the present. "Sony is doing well now so they will do well in the future." Kind of like "The Wii U did bad so the Switch will do bad" And we all know how that turned out.

TL;DR - TVs are dying and Sony is tethered to the TV. Consoles are being absorbed by handhelds and Sony has never been able to compete in this space. Sony will struggle to make a Switch clone as their core wont accept a minimal upgrade in power. Sony is like Sega in they are in the wrong generation. 

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