Sony’s Jim Ryan says that there are more exciting PS5 reveals coming soon, but also addressed exclusives and how important they are for next-gen. In a recent interview with BBC, Ryan talked about the role that exclusives will play now that the bridge between platforms seems to be getting smaller. He also discussed why the PS5 looks like something “you would find in the furniture section of a store.”

First things first, the design. When asked why they chose something that the BBC likened to a furniture store, Ryan mentioned “The PlayStation sits in the living area of most homes, and we kind of felt it would be nice to provide a design that would really grace most living areas. That’s what we’ve tried to do. And, you know, we think we’ve been successful in that.”

The design choice was certainly bold and kickstarted a brilliant amount of memes in its honor, but not everyone was sold on this particular aesthetic. Some of that distaste is just the usual discord of not being happy because something is new, while others expressed concern that this system – despite saying to the contrary – might not be designed to be horizontal. Sony revealed post-showcase that it can, in fact, go horizontal safely, but this particular issue is one that gets brought up every generation, especially so after the Xbox 360.

In terms of exclusives, Xbox and Nintendo both have expressed a desire to work together alongside PC clients to bridge the gap between consoles. Xboss Phil Spencer has also mentioned in the past that he has been working hard on bringing Xbox back into the hands of gamers, promising more variety in the genres presented. With so much apparent harmony, the word “exclusives” is starting to change its meaning, and that’s something Ryan mentioned as well in terms of adapting the “quality over quantity” mentality. 

“Exclusive games are obviously one point of difference between our system and others,” said Ryan during the interview. ‘But I really call out the criteria of quality rather than necessarily exclusivity. And when I look at our worldwide studios, it’s really the quality of the work that they produce that counts.”

This focus on meaningful experiences is brought to the next level through faster load times and audio support. Ryan expanded on this, saying “We think 3D audio is a paradigm shift. We think the functionality of the new controller, which again has to be experienced to be fully appreciated, is a paradigm shift. We think the SSD [solid state drive] storage mechanism, and the way that it can actually help you move between worlds in games and eliminate loading times is a paradigm shift.

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“You know, we went to great lengths to show that off with considerable length in The Ratchet and Clank demo. You saw the way that Ratchet was moving from world to world. In previous generations, the character would have needed to walk down a corridor while loading was going on in the background. Now it just happens instantaneously.”

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With our first official look at the PS5 console last week alongside an incredible lineup of games, the next generation of gaming is off to a beautiful start. We, unfortunately, still do not have release information for either major platform, but it looks like both PlayStation and Xbox have learned from previous missteps and are looking to take that knowledge into the future.