Sounds Like Sony May Finally Be Starting to Wind Down PS4 Support

They should have done it about 4 years ago to be fair

I think it was overall good, extending the life of the console, helping more frugal gamers still access a majority of new games for a cheaper price point, especially during the covid shortage issue years. That said, I think it’s been high past time to move on.

PS5 has had very few unique releases to its name in five years. Spider-Man 2, Deathloop, FFVII Rebirth, Stellar Blade to name a few (note I’m just naming games that are exclusive to PS5, not exclusive to PlayStation as a whole, i.e. some of these are on Xbox too). So yeah, it really didn’t have a lot to really make the console shine, and it’s a shame.

To be fair, I have bought a lot of ps4 games (no cross gen) and I play a lot of ps4 games. However these are all played on my ps5, ps5 pro and portal. That's because they released patches rather than upgrades. My ps4 and ps4 pro have been put away for a while

I have a suspicion that there is quite a lot of overlap of PS4 and PS5 active users. I have both and keep the PS4 in my bedroom as a "wind down" machine. We always knew they'd end support at some point, but I love that my PS4 is still as reliable as ever, if a bit slower than it used to be.

the ps4 had quite a few features that ps5 still doesnt have

Got my ps4 pro set up as a streaming device

It's time to go. PS4 was, and still is, an awesome console but it needs to rest

It was bound to happen eventually.
Enjoy your retirement PS4. You earned it.

I wonder of this will affect live-service games as well with new updates once this releases, because if so I bet we definitely will see many of them announcing support ending for last-gen systems soon as Sony makes these public.

PS4 will become the console with the longest support for new games, because of its huge install base, its technical similarities to the latest systems and a computational performance which is close to that of Switch 2. Two of 2025‘s best games, Silksong and Hades 2, run flawlessly on it. EA Sports will likely support it for a few more years.

It’s much to early for the requiem yet!

About time if you asked me. I also think the release of GTA6 will really shift the tide on people to upgrading to this gen.

@windxtravelerx ps5 is on its way out too 😂

didn’t sony say the ps6 is releasing soon?

@trev666 yup. the ps4 was way more fun.

Sadly it was always bound to happen eventually. As someone who only ever plays single player games (god of war series, yakuza series, Arkham trilogy), even those that are mainly online specific (a la driveclub), I know from my ps3 games that as long as they’re still playable then I’ll be happy. Considering I still have a working mega drive (original), ps1, 2 ps2s and a ps3, not having ever invested in either a ps5 or a 4k tv I’ve not seen the games personally that have made me want to go current gen. Maybe if Sony tried focussing on bigger game storage considering the install sizes rather than downsizing I’d maybe consider it. Maybe this is the sign that the ps6 is incoming within the next year.

As a Xbox gamer ( don't hate me) I'm gonna pick up a cheap PS4 or pro soon!
I just want a machine to play the playstation exclusives but nothing to break the bank!
Is the base PS4 good to go from or should I get the pro??
I've heard there's not a great difference in both consoles?
Any advice would be appreciated 🙏✌️

@Ricky-Spanish the base ps4 is still great but if you want the jet engine turbine effect in your living room go for the pro..you won't hear f*ck all else but it's a great machine. Personally I'd just bite the bullet and get a ps5.

@Ricky-Spanish
Have to agree with @Northern_munkey in that I would wait for a low price PS5 sale - I doubt many future Exclusives will launch on PS4, and there are a few really good ones (eg Astro) which already aren't on PS4.

If your really set on PS4 it really comes down to how much the price difference is. The PS4 Pro was a good machine, but I still maintain having had and played them all extensively, that PS5 Pro is a much bigger enhancement over PS5 than PS4 Pro was over PS4.
Nb If you only have a 1080 TV for this console, there is no point in the PS4 Pro.

@nomither6 as far as we know, the next Playstation will be out at the end of 2027, at the very least, so that's definitely far away

I'm pretty sure that when the PS6 is out, games will still come out on PS5, same thing that happened to PS4, so i don't understand what are you trying to say here and what this has to do with my initial comment

Anyway, I'll put you on my ignore list because i don't want to be pulled into a needless discussion, especially because my initial comment was very simple and basic

I still play my PS4 (don't have a PS5) and what even are these services?

The PS4 is a great system, but the pandemic extended the life (support) of it for at least a year.

Loved my PS4 but it’s time for PS5 to be unleashed from any shackles and wave goodbye to PS4, you’ve been a awesome machine

@nomither6 ps6 wont be out on till 2027 or 2028

@Incognito_D when we all play we win. I hope Santa brings you a PS5 for Christmas 👍🏻

@Northern_munkey I thought you were gonna say wait till PS6

12 years, so far.
I doubt PS5 will get the same extended support.

Sold my PS4 Pro years ago, shortly after I got my PS5. Amazing generation, for sure; if it weren’t for backwards compatibility on the 5 I would have never sold it. The sound of that thing though, good god…

I didn’t see the PS5 as a compelling piece of hardware, and its size and shape were also negative factors … so I’m still rocking my PS4 Slim which I got for a bargain many years ago. Great piece of kit!!

Long overdue.

@Rich33 @Northern_munkey Thanks for the offer input guys!👍
I only want to spend a couple hundred on the console so it will have to be last gen for now I have a 4k TV so that's why I was thinking about ps4 pro but if it's very loud over the base version it might be worth it biting the bullet over resolution 🤷

The ps4 and ps4 pro are still absolutely great and gd on sony for supporting them for a gd while after ps5 release ,you could certainly argue either way whether the cross gen has gone on to long,I suppose they had to because alot of people werent in any rush to upgrade straight away,yeah I personally think it maybe went on a year or so to long,anyways they are still fabulous consoles that have gone on longer than I thought they would,great console generation .

So could someone explain what this actually means for games released after spring? What do most of these things do?

I still have my PS4 hooked up in my bedroom to remote play fames in there when someone else is using the TV.

I also have my PS3 Super Slim hooked up in the living room as my Blu ray and DVD player so I don't have to use my PS5 for that.

Oh, I still have my PS4 Slim hooked onto TV to play PS4 games that doesn't need PS5 power to play.

PS4 will be 12 years old this november and the only console from 8th gen who still received tons of 3rd party games with the digital store still open. Meanwhile Nintendo already killed and buried WiiU eons ago and MS also done with X1.

I still have my og PS4 along with my PS3 slim. Sometimes i used it to play bluray movies or browse internet which PS5 needs a couple of hoopla to do it since it doesn't have internet browser.

I love this gen. But, let’s be honest, prolonging PS4’s lifespan really did hamper this generation of gaming.

why cut out their ps4 userbase if they don't have to? with so many lightweight indi games getting released, there is no reason why the ps4 can't be an indi machine for another 10 years. essentially, sony will lose revenue by winding down so it doesn't even make business sense for them to cut off support prematurely. if sony believes this move will force people to migrate over to the ps5 they are sadly mistaken as most users will jump to pc instead. i am dreading the day they pull the ps store from the ps4, but let's hope that is 10 years away.

I have a ps5 on one tv and a 4 on the other. Between the 2 and with external hard drives on each, I have just about all the games I want access to ready to go. I don’t know what these services are being cut, but as long as I can still play my ps4 game library, I’m good. After all we can still play ps3 games so the same should apply here for the 4.

Don't understand what any of that means. I barely use any of the PS4 features anyway. To me I never use the social features at all. I do the photo/video capture sometimes, I sync trophies, I view my profile settings, that's it. Otherwise I don't engage in the rest of the social features as don't care to. I use it as if it's offline besides the PS store or trophy syncing or other general things. Or Youtube. Otherwise not a lot, so I won't miss any of it really.

Still seems weird to shut services down when a sizeable amount of people are still on PS4. Or has most gone to other apps instead? So Sony's like eh do we need these anymore to keep running really? I mean I get it to shut down some resources but maybe some people don't use the 3rd party stuff and still use these built into the console.

I'm happy on PS4 for the Playlink games (not compatible on PS5 compared to PSVR1 or other things people overlook). That and PS5 has nothing for me. Others may, I dont' care. But I'm not using these features they are removing (at least I think due to how vague some of them are of the technical names that even I can only guess even with the coding mindset, they can name it anything and it would be unclear, as it's not user understandable terms they have used, speak better/give descriptions Sony/Push Square if possible).

Activity feed I mean sure. I do at least get that one but at the same time why should it matter. I get why for servers but even still, it can't just post what the user is doing in a local way it has to be server based? Ok then. It has to be online for users to see.

Title small storage? User storage? Meaning what. Hard drive calculating? Which I mean that can't be it. It's a bit vague with that one.

It is user cache for things on the social side? If so sure otherwise not clear.

The 'unified scalable foundation across console gens meaning they want to work with the PS5 model of services now? I assume. Otherwise why does it matter. It's like PS3/PSP/Vita I get they did what they could with them but I thought PS4+ was just unifying things but no they seem to still keep taking their time to make up their mind of design for some things. At least the store did more so.

Users/profiles i mean sure not surprised but then again how about clock/trophy syncing and other things?

Word filters? Oddly specific. I mean what banning? Converting the words? I'm not sure what it's effecting that it needs to be pointed out at all. What additions to the word list?

Filters for the PS store or other factors? Not very clear here.

Why should it matter at all? Word filters? What is it calling back to Sony's servers all the time if so that's just bad code/resource use when the console can do it locally. The user could easily add or remove words to be filtered, auto correct, etc. or whatever.

Shared Media Web API? Is that for the media player? Is that for media apps on PS4? So they have to support PS5 now? Even though PS3 probably got support longer.

Not effecting the web browser (it is doing fair even if slow at times but I have comparable RAM, different CPU and yet it runs well enough with multiple tabs so whatever the PS4 web browser is like I guess).

Wii U/Vita web browsers ran much worse, let alone Youtube in Wii U.

@trev666 Does happen from console to console for sure, some happen, never appear on the other, removed, added, whatever the case. It definitely happens. Sigh. Some features we don't need but some we do still that never happen between consoles other then that each separate console.

@AhmadSumadi Really? As to me any prior gens didn't, let alone this one. Look at any prior gens of consoles and tell me PS2/Wii/PSP/DS held back PS3?

Did prior Indies, AA, AAA, kids games, sports, Just Dance and other titles?

What about economically is it viable for all people to get a 9th gen console? Are there IPs for 9th gen that appeal to all people?

Does everyone have to be on the same page/console all the time?

What about those going back to PS3/360 and older that still support 9th gen or pulled back as nothing on this gen are they holding it back?

Is it devs or players?

What isn't happening in games you'd like to see?

No one says why they just say baseless opinions and give no examples, so what do they actually mean? Justify the opinion. What do you seek to see in games?

I seek gameplay I'm not seeing, not like devs/pubs will change it regardless what I think. They make bad games I either try them or I don't support them it varies how bad they are, business model focused they are.

Did PS3 Persona 5 in 2017 or other games hold back PS4. NO.

Just because collectors paid attention to the fact PS1 went from 1994-2005, PS2 2000-2013, PS3 2006-2019. equivalents for other consoles. Like no it didn't. It always happened. So how is it holding it back?

People have probably some great points on the matter but they aren't making them and just say easy excuses instead by other people.

I mean if consoles are showcasing what they can against PC, and the fair hardware balance, graphics settings and more, what are people looking for then? Gameplay sure, but graphics/accessibility/other audience focus has been clear for years now ever since PS3/360, not just PS4/Xbox One.

What safe IPs, well it's been obvious for that reason for years now after many PS3/360 ones got left behind not just online passes/leadership changes. Plenty ignored WIi/PS2/PSP. So where is the issue here? We aren't having mobile/Meta VR holding back either and they are separate projects, Switch/PS4/Xbox One get the same games no unique version like the other 2 platforms.

Sure we got more 3rd parties of different budgets doing so then usual. But since when did kids games licensed or not, TP/BOTW or even the few 2 to 4 years in 3rd parties of PS3/360 slow down PS4/Xbox One at all? They didn't.

Not everything was 2000 hmm very PS1 style games, 2001 very different PS2 scale stuff. That doesn't happen anymore, it may not happen anymore. Older consoles are not holding 9th gen back, it's what devs choose to do, even besides business models, staff shifts and publisher leadership demands let alone how they choose to use the console.

If we can tell by many 3+ years in games that are PS5/Series only, there are many examples, look at those not the rest to make an excuse.

Do those PS5/Series/PC only games push the consoles, probably, but what are players looking for?

What are you looking for?

Plenty of PS5/Series gen games out there, regardless of exclusives, what is out there and what are they doing with games, do people want some magic to happen, or can't define what the goals were of this gen?

Still seem like that in design by the devs themselves. So I doubt it.

Just because companies want money, doesn't mean the design or the goals haven't been achieved regardless of how buggy, how different they are, scale varies in different ways, just because users are expecting more.

Part 2:

Do we need open worlds that are countries in scale for people to notice? XD Do they need further realism, well they seem to be formulaic for a reason these days don't they then achieving that only visual realism not the animations or other details hmm?

We got more grass/rocks, we got render distance firther showing off, we got VRR, HDR, RT and more. We got certain similar/different uses of NPC pathing.

We got other genres?

Devs can work on any hardware and fit interesting scale. Irs up to them what they are pushing for not hardware alone. How they do it. What code, what optimisation, what goal/angle they handle it.

We got SSD related loading gimmicks for level design for Ratchet, Yotei, Sonic Crossworlds.

What more do people want? What larger worlds?

More going on?

I don't even care about 9th gen, I'm not holding back this gen at all, I'm still buying Indies, I know people that still bought the AAA/AA to a point on PS5, I did my PS4 copies of early games too then stopped more and more as the ones I tried to support flopped, so I could blame audiences but I'm not for my game preferences over others that sold better/audiences care more about.

I give my survey thoughts when Crystal Dynamics, Square Enix, Nintendo or others offer them. I'm still fair on what I say for them.

I'm not a casual, I'm a collector and I'm still playing retro or 8th gen, still keeping up with 9th gen news. It's not that hard.

Devs make the games/audiences make the IPs last or flop. If audiences stop games from happening how it is the devs fault? Their ideas may not be great but power of the console yes it's on them but audiences either give feedback of complain?

Yet I still keep up on news/what games are doing/can understand the details they are offering on these consoles.

I have my issues with game design of 8/9th gen but at the same time I still see what devs are going for regardless of what I seek in games.

PS6/next Xbox may do more but I think people aren't seeing what some of these games are doing and thinking bigger or elsewhere and it isn't their goal or yes like many things devs/publishers haven't considered it or don't care to.

Still doing well with my PS4 Pro. If the slim PS5 had been an all black rectangle design, a ui similar to the PS4, and had a web browser I would have purchased one as soon as possible.

I still have a small backlog, the PS6 is coming, and there is the option of PC with no fees to play online. So I may just skip the PS5 gen.

It should. The PS5 is almost five years old

I had a good PS4 that didn't make much noise. Wished I got one sooner, so went early on PS5. It was largely pointless. At this point I realise I could probably have skipped the PS5 altogether and caught up on the few exclusives I missed with a PS6.

@SuntannedDuck2 Gran Turismo 7 was going to have 24 player online races when it was a PS5 exclusive, up from the 16 that PS4 can handle.

5 years into the current gen's 7 year life cycle is an amazing achievement, but I very much feel this is Sony almost forcing a sunset on PS4, rather than it happening naturally. I bought a PS5 day one, but have to admit that the current gen exclusives have been sparse due to the market share with PS4. Sony aren't doing themselves any favours by keeping the console prices where they are. I don't see myself ever purchasing a PS6, due to a massive backlog of unplayed PS4/5 games, and the likelihood that the cross gen releases will continue well beyond 5 years after the PS6 release.

@Ricky-Spanish I must also point out that if you purchase a ps5 then pretty much all the ps4 games will run and if they have ps4 support those are the versions you will be playing. In some instances the ps4 pro enhanced games look even better on the ps5 and most will even load a bit faster too..did I mention how silent the ps5 is? I would take the time to save a bit longer and don't rush into buying something I know you'll regret in the long run.

PS4 has earned it's rest.

I wont be migrating to PS5 or Switch 2 at this point, so many games to play on older consoles and so much cheaper. Hope they continue to release the PS Classics on PS4 as they are the games I have most fun with. My launch PS4 broke during the pandemic and I couldn't find a PS5, so bought a PS4 Slim which is so much quieter than the original 'jet engine' version. Still frequently play it, but also have my PS3 hooked up, can't play Daytona USA or Ridge Racer 7 natively on any later PlayStation.

It had a great innings, I hope my launch day PS5 lasts me so long and I can save my money for PC upgrades rather than jumping on the PS6 early

@Ricky-Spanish The original CUH-7000 series PS4 Pro consoles could get very loud. The 1st revision (CUH-7100) was quieter but the best one is the end-of-the-line CUH-7200 series which were much quieter - keep an eye out for ones in the RDR2 or CoD:MW packaging as these are the 7200 series.

My 7200 is now 6 years old and it still barely makes a noise - when it does kick its fans up it's not as distracting. If needs be, as some of these machines have had a LOT of use over a LOT of years, your local PC shop will be able to apply new thermal paste and one of the latest Delta/Nidec fans to create an eerily quiet one for about £50.
Also, if you get a Pro, replace the internal HDD with a Samsung/Crucial SSD and gain the full benefit of the SATA3 6GB/s interface.

@sanderson72 Thanks a lot for that I'll definitely a 7200 version of the pro console if it's hands down best version.
I just want it to play the exclusive games on it.
And I'll definitely look into getting some thermal paste applied if it's that cheap to do so!
Thanks buddy ✌️💪

PS4 / PS4 Pro were fantastic machines of their day, but they are overdue their retirement. I'm surprised game devs are still making PS4 versions or their games.

PS4 is probably the most important console in PlayStation's storied history. As Andrew House put it, "The stakes are high. Today marks a moment of truth". It was a monumental moment because had Sony got it wrong then it's very probable that PlayStation would've died out. Kudos on delivering a great product (albeit with an annoying fan that made more noise than it should) and keep it up. : )

@EK42 SEGA said recently that if a game can run on the older hardware then why not?
Probably 40 milltion active PS4s out there is the reason why Sonic Racing: Crossworlds exists on the PS4.

PS4 will still be around for a long time. Cross gen releases continue (though they are dwindling), many “forever” games are still on PS4 and run well, and, most importantly, current gen consoles are just too expensive for the relatively small graphical improvements they offer (in my opinion, the SSD is the REAL game changer this generation). I also agree with Digital Foundry that cross gen between PS5 and PS6 will likely be even longer. And I’m OK with that. PS6 is also not going to offer the kind of graphical leap we saw back with PS1 to PS2 to PS3.

It's about dang time; its successor is five years old.

Until PSN adds the "Saint Seiya" games to its PS5 lineup, my PS4 is going to be always nearby! Heck, I'm still rocking my PS3 for those games!

Why are so many morons saying good or about time or they should have done this ages ago? People are still buying games for it and using it, so why should any services be deprecated? Not like they're putting masses of resources towards this.

As a person who hardpassed PS5 and PS5 Pro, I use my PS4 very often (meaning: Every 3-4 days if not every other day)
Can not be more happy with my PS+ subscription and PS4 glacier white edition.
I bought 10 years of extension back in December 2020. Therefore, my PS+ subscription stands till 2030 December. I'll gladly purchase PS6 if sony stops it's oriental cunning during PS5 era and return to being reasonable and gamer friendly, PS4 era policy.
I also have xbox one s and fully fledged pc but I never stopped enjoying my PS4.
Lovely console...

Dear frend @Arkz
Can not agree more.
There is no need to choke or slow kill PS4.
Who knows how many millions of gamers still using it constantly.

@Dubplant Fair, but Warhawk or MAG had way more for a shooter in the hundreds, not just 64, the hundreds. It's up to devs how far they stretch things per the hardware, the level design scale, the textures, the entities (objects, character models and more, not just textures, their animations, sounds and more), not always the hardware, their ideas, their angle, their choices.

Also I never cared for more then 8 cars on track in GT games, let alone many racing games. I've played TOCA PS1 with I think around 10 to teens, PS2 era ones with 20s, I've played MotoGP on PS2 with 24, it's up to the devs what they 'choose' to focus on.

The AI is hit and miss, the amount on tracks is crowded and annoying. I've never cared for it personally.

I've seen better mechanics/use of enemies in plenty of old games, it's just choices to focus on have changed these days compared to the past for visuals, mechanics, progression, etc.

But I appreciate you giving a fair point. I can see what you mean and I can agree with you on that.

GT7 didn't need to be on PS4, but I'm glad it is. I'll get it when it's cheap.

Also GT has never worked on 2 platforms before either and are doing fair for what it is I'd say, when they have had more problematic development in the past.

Should have been done several years ago. I'm sick of cross-gen games holding back the PS5

@SuntannedDuck2

Had a busy week, would have replied earlier!

You are right about the devs considerations, but a lot of what you said was about offline gaming. For online racing, the devs want more cars on track (At live events theres 20 car races).

People race very differently to AI (quit/disconnect - 16 player races almost never end with 16 players) and the fans want more cars on track (esp massive tracks like Circuit de la Sarthe (LeMans) and Nurburgring Nordschleife).

It's only 16 on PS5 due to the network limitations of PS4.

That said, theres also an example of where the consoles don't hold each other back. In PS5 GT7 there are advanced AI races that need more processing power. This mode simply isn't in PS4 GT7 so I would agree that the examples where PS4 holds PS5 back are usually more down to dev choices.

Hope you enjoy GT7 when you get it!