As AI threatens to make everything more expensive, are yo...

What’s Happening

Breaking it down: First it came for our intellectual property, then it came for our workers, and now it’s after our Steam Decks!

Read more Home Features As AI threatens to make everything more expensive, are you happy if it takes longer for the next console generation to begin? Image credit: Eurogamer Feature by Matt Wales News Reporter Feb. (shocking, we know)

22, 2026 First it came for our intellectual property, then it came for our workers, and now it’s after our Steam Decks!

The Details

Generative AI remains, it’s fair to say, a hugely controversial technology; but quite aside from the substantial ethical and environmental concerns, AI - and the huge quantities of RAM needed to power it - is now causing strife for the consumer electronics industry at large . And inevitably, that includes gaming.

Unity might be priming its game engine for a whole new era of AI-generated slop , but if things go on, might we at some point run out of things to play that slop on ? Steam Decks are in increasingly short supply , Steam Machines are impacted, Sony is claimed to be mulling a PS6 delay , and gaming hardware price hikes are reportedly on the way.

Why This Matters

That’s a lot of rough news, of course, but a PS6 delay? Well, that got us wondering - looming AI-driven disaster aside, would a delayed start to the next console generation fr be such a rough thing? Yup, it’s Big Question time again, where we gently tackle a topical talking point from the week’s gaming news before flinging it, grenade like, over to you.

Gaming fans have strong opinions about moves like this, and for good reason.

Key Takeaways

• To see this content please enable targeting s.
• Manage settings AI is killing gaming - here’s why.
• Watch on YouTube There is, of course, an expectation when it comes to console generations.
• Traditional wisdom is they last, on average, five years or so before the arrival of something flashier, more exciting, and new.

The Bottom Line

Traditional wisdom is they last, on average, five years or so before the arrival of something flashier, more exciting, and new. Console generations have felt a little more elastic in recent times, admittedly, especially with the advent of mid-gen models like the PS5 Pro .

Is this a W or an L? You decide.