There’s no denying that the PS3 and Xbox 360 are getting a little long in the tooth, but even though the next-gen consoles are right around the corner, it seems like there’s still some life left for the 360 (which is nearly 8 years old at this point,) and PS3.
EA executive Patrick Söderlund says that his company plans to create PS3 and Xbox 360 games for at least another two years. “”The consumers tell us when we can move on,” Söderlund told CVG. “It’s always this way in the first wave where the majority of sales will still be on the old consoles, that’s just how it is, because there’s not enough installed base on the new machines yet.”
“Historically the first year out most titles have been cross gen…Then the second year there’s less and less, but in year three you’ll probably see everything apart from maybe one or two games in the industry on [next gen]. So I think it will take about 18 to 24 months to get to full gen 4.”
The next-gen line-ups for both the Xbox One and the PS4 certainly back up Söderlund comments: titles like Assassin’s Creed 4, Titanfall, Destiny, and EA’s own Need for Speed Rivals, Battlefield 4, and the latest FIFA are all scheduled to be “cross gen” releases, coming out for both current and next gen consoles. Of course, this isn’t exactly surprising — the PS2 continued to receive regular releases well past the release of the 360 and PS3 — but the amount of so-called “cross gen” titles or last-gen ports appears to be especially prevalent in the line-ups for all of the new systems this generation. I can’t wait to get my hands on the new consoles, but at the same time, it’s good to know that there’ll be reasons to hold onto my PS3 and 360, at least for a few more years.