Sony’s Playstation line has been a huge seller around the world – but those hoping to see the PlayStation 5 at some point soon may be leaving disappointed.

CGTN’s Phil Lavelle reports.

Despite rumors that Sony may use one of the biggest weeks in the gaming calendar to make a big announcement, it’s kept tight-lipped on any potential successor to the PS4.

“They do have a lot of gaming to be getting on with but there’s a lot of gaming that can still be done on the PS4. It’s got a lot of life left in it. There’s a lot to hold gamers over between now and when the PS5 comes out,” video games journalist Matt Cabral said.

The PlayStation 4 was released back in 2013 – that’s a long time in tech terms, where many products are upgraded on a yearly basis. But, explains Cabral, there has been some movement.

“It is a long time but Sony.. what they do is keep their really passionate fans happy. They did release in 2016 the PS4 Pro, which was sort of an upgrade on that last system so they did an iterative upgrade on the PS4 with a more powerful system for the fans who really wanted something new and wanted invest something extra for the absolute best version of the PlayStation,” he said.

This is a hugely competitive industry. It’s unlikely Sony will want to give out any information until the last moment, for fear of giving a head start to rivals like Microsoft (The X Box line is the PlayStation’s main competitor.)

But according to the Wall Street Journal, Sony has dropped a couple of hints, telling its reporter that the PS4 is now entering “the final phase of its life cycle” and adding that movement can be expected in 2021.

Journalist Jason Fanelli explains the traditional console that relies on games being loaded by DVD or paid downloads may also have its days numbered.

“Ubisoft’s CEO came out recently and said that he thinks there will be one more cycle before streaming games becomes the future – kinda like how Netflix streams movies. I need to see that in action first – maybe that’s what the next-gen console will be – incorporating that, where they don’t sell you games anymore, you don’t download games anymore.. you can play and stream as you would a TV show,” Fanelli said.

Until then, the fans will be kept guessing. Many say it’s the anticipation that makes it worthwhile and keeps events like E3 as the places to be.