When should we expect launch prices and dates for the new consoles of 2020?

As August turns into September, Sony and Microsoft will continue their marketing for new high-end gaming consoles promised at the end of the year. But with just 90 days to go until Thanksgiving, audiences in general are still waiting for both companies to reveal key details about the price and specific launch dates for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.

Although this situation has not been mentioned in recent history, it is unusual. And if we do not receive announcements at the end of September about public price and launch date, we would be in a largely unknown area for modern console versions.

A wait above average

As shown in the figures above and the graph below, console makers have generally given the public more warning about their launch plans than they set this year. In the 12 console launches since 2000, the all-important price and release date announcements came an average of 128 days before the actual console launch, or a median of about 153 days (before the launch in North America).

Assuming early November launches for the PS5 and Xbox Series X, that would mean we should have expected this information on average in June or early July.

This console cycle looks even weirder when you separate recent launches of consoles by company. This is because Nintendo is bringing the overall average by keeping its launch plans generally as close to their chest as possible. The price and release date for the Switch, for example, were just 50 days before the March 2017 launch of the system was announced, the shortest turnaround in the last two decades.

(We ignore console launches from the ’90s and earlier, because the largely pre-Internet media environment of the time was different enough to make modern comparisons a bit cumbersome. Still, Sega’s surprisingly early launch of Saturn the same day as availability and pricing was announced at E3 1995 deserves at least special mention here.)

For Sony and Microsoft, however, it is practically unheard of to leave important launch details secret for less than three months. The only exception is the PS4 Pro, which was fully unveiled to the press and the public just 64 days before its launch in November 2016. As the PS5 launches for Black Friday, Sony is taking time to avoid setting a new business record with this year’s announcement timing.

What is stopping it?

So why is the timing of console marketing for 2020 not adjusted to historical standards? The lack of a physical electronic Entertainment Expo this year may have something to do with it. Microsoft and Sony use overwhelming E3 press conferences in May or June to fully uncover the details of upcoming launches in October or November, to maximize public attention.

Without a centralized press conference this year, both companies have been left a bit left with technical presentations remotely and sizzle reel trailers in place. The coronavirus pandemic also means that no company could host demo events where the pre-launch press could get practical time with new hardware, and complicated marketing plans and schemes.

There may also be a bit of a game of hin going this year with price announcements. Neither Sony nor Microsoft want to announce a launch price for their console to be immediately interrupted by the competition. The unveiling of a $ 400 PS4, which came hours after a $ 500 Xbox One unveiling in June 2013, shows how effective that kind of price difference can be. And with reports suggesting that new consoles could sell for $ 500 or more at launch this year, neither Sony nor Microsoft want to be seen as the priceless choice in a pandemic-driven recession.

The other possibility, of course, is that Sony and Microsoft will not actually launch their late 2020 console targets. Both companies have public confidence that they can still launch this year, despite pandemic developments in the global supply chain. Sony even started registering early customer interest for PS5 pre-orders for the PS5, suggesting that the release of launch details is closer.

Still, delay in console launches is not unknown; the Nintendo 64 famously jumped from a planned launch of Christmas 1995 to a goal of April 1996 before finally hopping on the North American shelves in North America in September 1996. And Sony has already reportedly slashed its PS5 production plans due to expected reduction in consumer spending this year.

With delay for next-generation high-profile console games like Halo Infinite, Deathloop, en Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines 2, pushing the new consoles into next year is perhaps not the worst idea.

However, as Sony and Microsoft release new consoles this year, both companies are running out of time to tell when they will be available and how much they will cost consumers. If those announcements do not come before the end of September, we really have to ask ourselves what is happening behind the scenes.

List image of Barone Firenze | Shutterstock.com