The PlayStation 5 Is Likely Years Away, So You Might As Well Grab a PS4 Slim

The PS4 Slim.

The PlayStation 4 debuted in late 2013, and in the four years since has thoroughly quashed all debates about whether it or Microsoft’s XBox One was the superior console. The PS4 came out of the gate with a better all-around performing system, and over time has sold more, released better exclusives, and given rise to a larger online player community. If you’re in the market for a console and uninterested in what Nintendo is doing with its Switch, the PS4 is an easy choice — especially with an Amazon Prime Day deal on the PS4 Slim bundle, which includes the unit and two games, Uncharted 4 and The Last of Us Remastered (plus a bonus subscription to the Amazon-owned digital comic book library Comixology, because why not?), for $230, down from the usual $300.

The discount comes at a particularly good time, since you can make the purchase knowing the console won’t be rendered obsolete anytime soon. One prominent industry analyst recently estimated that we won’t see a PlayStation 5 released until 2019 (and I’d bet on it being more like 2020, which would match the seven years between the PS3 and PS4). If you jump in now, you’ll have at least another two years of good gaming before the PS4 is slowly phased out.

You’d also be getting in during a sweet spot in the current generation of consoles. The PS4 has a tremendous backlog to work through: the sublimely insane Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, the ultra-punishing Bloodborne from Dark Souls’ creator From Software, the delightfully bonkers Persona 5, or the robo-dino killing fun of Horizon: Zero Dawn. (This is without delving into Sony’s very good catalogue of smaller indie titles, including mini-masterpieces like Inside, Hollow Knight, and The Witness.) Sales on older PS4 games are frequent, and used ones can be picked up for relatively cheap.

And while you could shell out $400 for the PlayStation Pro, it’s only worthwhile if you have a 4K TV and really, really care about things like anti-aliasing or high-quality shadow textures. (For those who like this price, care about 4K, and are willing to forgo some of the PS4’s exclusives, the 4K-enabled XBox One S is also having a Prime Day sale with three games included for $240.) For everyone else, a Slim at a slimmed-down price is the way to go.

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