PlayStation could be releasing a brand-new handheld console – and it’s not the PS Portal

THE PlayStation Portal did far better than Sony ever expected, and it could have caused PS to rethink its strategy.

While PlayStation appeared to abandon handheld gaming following the financial failure of the PS Vita, it seems this recent success could be the start of a change.

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Some reliable leakers have claimed that Sony is working with chip manufacturer AMD to create a new Sony handheld system.

Unlike the PS Portal, this would be a standalone console, much like the PlayStation Vita, which launched in 2012.

There are a number of rumours spreading about what the console will be like, but Sony’s partnership with AMD appears to be the only credible one.

There are suggestions that the upcoming Sony handheld will be digital only as many storefronts move to an all-digital marketplace.

Handhelds usually play games from cartridges instead of discs, and these tend to be more expensive to produce.

Some studies suggest that up to 95% of game purchases are now digital.

With major games like Alan Wake 2 and Hellblade 2 going digital only, it’s easy to see that games are trending away from physical media.

There is no evidence from Sony to suggest the upcoming console will be digital only, but market trends predict that it will be.

One of the reasons for the Vita’s financial failure in the West is that Sony priced the console above the market average.

There were also special memory cards for the Vita that could cost as much as Nintendo’s 3DS console.

Hopefully, Sony has learned from these mistakes and will price an upcoming console more competitively like the PS Portal.

There is also speculation that Xbox is considering a handheld console as well, which would pair well with the number of games Microsoft has on PC.

If you want to read more on PlayStation, check out the games free with PS Plus Essential in February.

Written by Georgina Young on behalf of GLHF.