A PlayStation phone should be Sony’s answer to Xbox game streaming - Android

Mobile gaming is better than ever, the PS5 is coming, and cloud gaming is here. It's time for a PlayStation phone.

Gamers of all varieties have never had it so good. We sit on the cusp of a brand new console generation like no other before it. The PS5 and Xbox Series X are pushing the very concept of hardware-based gaming in new directions, with digital-only consoles, cloud gaming, and subscription services all playing a larger role than ever before.

Meanwhile, hugely popular franchises like Fortnite, Call of Duty, PUBG have all enjoyed significant success on mobile. In fact, there’s an interesting dynamic at play between the upward trends in mobile and console gaming.

Players no longer want to be tied-in to just their big-screen experiences and the future of gaming offers a solution — the ability to continue playing your favorite console title, right there on your smartphone. If there were ever a time for a brand to jump into the mix with a dedicated gaming phone that capitalizes on all of the above, this is it.

Yes, it’s time for a PlayStation phone.

See also: Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X: How they compare

The time is (still) right for a PlayStation phone

Hold on, haven’t we been here before? Yes, absolutely. Two years ago my colleague wrote up a pretty solid pitch for a Sony-made, PlayStation-branded smartphone and spiritual successor to the Xperia Play.

The mobile gaming industry has matured significantly since then, however. A PlayStation phone has always been a potentially viable avenue for Sony’s underperforming smartphone division, but there are several factors at play that make it the perfect time to pull the trigger.

There’s the obvious argument that smartphone gaming is massive — far bigger than the console gaming industry. But it’s not just throwaway casual games that are drawing in the big bucks anymore.

That aforementioned trio of Fortnite, Call of Duty Mobile, and PUBG Mobile command hundreds of millions of downloads and have spawned esports leagues of their own. Indie developers are also embracing smartphone gaming by the droves. Games like Stardew Valley, Dead Souls, Terraria, and Hotline Miami show that smartphones are a natural fit for console-class games when given the proper care and attention.

Mobile gaming has never been bigger or better.

The addition of scalable graphics and settings has shown that these don’t have to be cut-down editions either. Sure, PUBG Mobile will run on a bare-bones smartphone. But move to a high-end phone like the OnePlus 8 Pro, and you can enjoy the game in all its 90Hz glory with HDR and all the trimmings.

This spurt in gaming software has led to an increasing trend of bespoke gaming mobile hardware to match. However, while Asus, Red Magic, Black Shark, and previously Razer have pushed forward on bleeding-edge specs, dedicated modes to boost gaming performance, and innovative features like ultrasonic triggers, these aren’t essential to a smartphone gaming experience.

Related: The best phones for gaming you can get

Nearly all flagship phones today — most recently evidenced with the Galaxy Note 20 series — have gaming tweaks built-in, leaving gaming phones as a niche category. But Sony is in a unique position to deliver a gaming phone with immediate, global brand-name recognition, top-tier hardware, and a fantastic library of games, all in a package that could lead to mainstream success.

The thought of Sony’s traditionally disparate divisions could ever come together to make something like a PlayStation phone happen has always felt like a pipe dream. That all changed recently, and we’ve now seen that the typically siloed Xperia team is open to collaboration.

Lessons learned from the Xperia 1 II

After years of pitful sales and hardware fumbles, Sony finally released a top contender in 2020. The Xperia 1 II was built with input from the team behind the Alpha camera series and it shows in the imaging performance, often the Achilles heel of Sony smartphones.

PlayStation, however, is a significantly bigger and more identifiable brand than Alpha. A PlayStation phone could help the company gain some much-needed eyeballs at a time when the lines between console and mobile gaming are blurrier than ever.

If the recent partnership with the company’s Alpha division is any indication, Sony can certainly build an excellent smartphone that can inculcate the best of Xperia and the best of PlayStation in a single device.

The PlayStation 5’s design is already head-turning in all the right ways. All those curves could very easily transition into the blueprint for a smartphone. An ergonomically curved device that fits great in the hand while sporting that stunning white and black finish with blue accents would be right up my alley.

Controls are another area that Sony would need to focus on. Perfecting ultrasonic triggers would be one option, but if that’s too much of a stretch I’m sure many would take an honest to goodness DualShock-branded controller that would work seamlessly with the phone.

Opinion: The PS5 and Xbox Series X make Nintendo Switch look better than ever

Third-party smartphone controllers are rarely built to great standards, but Microsoft has already teamed up with several brands to make sure its own mobile gaming aspirations aren’t tanked by awful gamepads. Yet while the Xbox-branded Razer Kishi looks the part, it’s still a reskinned controller rather than a true Xbox gamepad. Sony could easily take the lead with in-house peripherals.

Heck, go all out if you want. How about a smartphone that can transform — Nintendo Switch-style — into a portable cloud streaming-based Playstation 5 complete with attachable controllers kitted out with those fancy DualSense haptics and adaptive triggers? Sign me up for that!

Content is key, and Sony has some of the best