Sony hopes PlayStation 5 will become a long-term cash cow

Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 5 video game console went on sale Thursday, a key test of the Japanese company’s ability to sustain its biggest growth engine during a coronavirus-era gaming boom.

The new PlayStation is Sony’s most important gadget since the Walkman, and it goes headtohead with Microsoft Corp.’s next- generation Xbox over the holidays. The PlayStation 5 is anchored by the new Spider-Man game. Both consoles have chalked up solid sales since initial orders started in September, straining supplies.

The $500 PS5 — a version without an optical drive goes for $100 less — marks a watershed moment for a company once synonymous with Walkman music players and Trinitron TVs. It’s the first proper, new Sony console since 2013. Its predecessor, the PS4, sold 113 million units and transformed gaming into the most important part of Sony’s business.

Bloomberg reviewed the product over two weeks and found the most impressive aspect of the gadget wasn’t the eye- catching design or powerful innards but the controller, which added an entirely new dimension to play. It can, among other things, deliver a subtle range of vibrations that simulate different tactile sensations.

The PS5 won’t be easy to find in stores this year. Sony asked retailers to limit initial sales to customers with pre-orders. Black-market PS5 resale values have already soared as high as $ 871, beating the Xbox, according to researchers. The bigger test comes next year, when Microsoft and Sony will try to reach beyond early adopters.

“As a core of the group, Sony must make the PlayStation 5 a success,” said Atsushi Osanai, a professor at Waseda Business School. “It’s the unit’s responsibility to become a cash cow for the sake of all the stakeholders.”

Sony has a lot riding on the console — even more so than the last one — in part because virus lockdowns introduced millions to console gaming on large-screen displays.

That has deepened Sony’s reliance on gaming, particularly as the pandemic hammers its movie and smartphone sensor business.