According to insider info (along with some speculation!), Japanese website PC Watch is reporting that Sony is looking to alternatives to the PS3's Cell architecture, which some developers have found to be challenging. One early alternative include Cell and Intel's Larrabee. Wanting a bit more horsepower, Sony has apparently abandoned this plan. Sony was also apparently considering a modified version of the Synergistic Processor Unit, but is now supposedly working on designs that include a mulit-core CPU.

Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are all believed to be exploring new system architecture. And with the exception of a possible Wii HD, PC Watch Impress states that it takes 24 months to produce new consoles, making 2011 difficult for new hardware and 2012 or even as late as 2013 more possible.

However, PC Watch Impress notes that new handhelds will pre-date new home console hardware — so by that assumption, the PSP2 will be released before the PS4.

【後藤弘茂のWeekly海外ニュース】 揺れるSCEの次世代ゲーム機「PlayStation 4」プラン　[PC Watch Impress]

It's one of three concepts he did; including an "Xbox 720" which looks like - I dunno what the hell it looks like. And a "PSP2" that looks like a reading glasses case, until you roll out its OLED screen.

Remember: These are not real. The design isn't created or commissioned or endorsed by Sony or Microsoft. But these may be for sale in the Phillippines, who knows.

Tai Chiem's Gaming Systems of the Future [Core77 via UberGizmo]

What's more, using an upgraded Cell in the PS4 would obviously lower the cost of production with a smaller chip, too. That right there could be a key factor in why Sony could very well be investigating this possibility. What's more, it seems more in line with what Nintendo has successfully done with the GameCube and the Wii. Goto goes on to theorize if the next PlayStation will have 32 cores (compared to the current 8), but Goto doesn't have any concrete information about Sony's plans.

While the original Xbox had trouble trailing the PS2 (and all the PS2 developer kits that were sent out), Sony has been playing catch up against the Xbox 360. So, for example, if Sony wants to get the PS4 out in 2011 before the next Xbox, it will need a shortcut because actual chip development, Goto writes, takes 3 or 4 years.

PLAYSTATION 4は拡張版Cell搭載へ向かう [PC Watch]

It's just a research project today. Our plan is that it will be aimed at the next generation so it is many years away.

Is it me or does it seem like every Blizzard-related interview has either A). Somebody asking with World of Warcraft will hit consoles. B). Somebody saying that WoW won't hit consoles. C). Both.

Well, here we go! Says Blizzard's Itzik Ben Bassat:

We are not going to develop WoW for consoles. WoW was designed for PC and I think it will stay that way. Online console gaming is still in its very early stages, and it needs to be developed further to provide opportunities of a scale which will be interesting to us.

This means that no one can ask Blizzard about console gaming until we get the PS4 or the Xbox 720. Right? Bassat continues:

We have been talking to Microsoft and Sony. Personally I love XBLA — I think Microsoft has done an excellent job developing it and there are lots of exciting things there... With my colleagues at Microsoft I can give my opinion on what I've seen. I'm very impressed, I'm impressed by the people who do it, and the service is very easy, very intuitive. I love it.

Blizzard and Microsoft, BFF. Brian Ashcraft

No Console WoW [Eurogamer]

Now that you've parted with large amounts of cash for a console that doesn't quite have any killer games yet, let's talk PS4. UK developer Evolution Studios boss Martin Kenwright isn't jut thinking about his company's upcoming release, Motorstorm, but TEH FUTURE. Says Kenwright:

I know people are looking at PS3 now, and I'm not being glib, but we're actually looking at PS4. I'm thinking where will it be in five years, how will we get there? What will the marketplace be like, the games, and who'll be buying them?

Oh, yeah? Well not to be glib, but I'm looking at the PS9. Brian Ashcraft

Getting Ready For PS4 [Games Industry]

You heard about that string of promotions at Sony Computer Entertainment earlier? (If not, Ken Kutaragi is now Chairman and Group CEO and Kaz Hirai is now President and Group COO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., with the latter replacing Ken as president.) Is all that organizational reshuffling just a corporate love-in for a job well done, with new titles and responsibilities for everyone involved, or does it signal a major change at Sony?

According to analysts quoted by the Financial Times, it could imply a shift in the company's business. Putting Hirai, primarily focused on the software side of Sony Computer Entertainment in charge, could indicate that Sony is moving away from hardware.

Yuta Sakurai, an analyst at Nomura Holdings, Inc. has a gloomy outlook on Sony's hardware future.

The appointment of Hirai could be the start of a shift from hardware to software. I cannot now imagine a PlayStation 4.

RIP PlayStation 4? I'm no analyst, but my guess is that Sony needed to put someone more charismatic and arguably sane in a role to repair damaged relationships with third parties worldwide. Hell, I'm so confident that we'll see another Sony console, that I'm going to put $50 down on a pre-order tomorrow. Or maybe the day after. Michael McWhertor

Sony sidelines PS3 mastermind Kutaragi
Kaz Hirai Promoted [Kotaku]

Listen to this: Sony exec says discs still have some gas left. Good! Because last we heard, company brass said we wouldn't be using them for our PS4s, but w/e. Sony UK's Ray Maguire says there are "many" years left for the format as games get bigger in size. Maguire enlightens:

What I think will happen is there will be a retail delivery model and then there'll be a supplementary business—which is downloading extra bits and pieces to keep your experience alive, keep it fresh and keep it modified and keep the game going on.

Format wars aside, I personally like discs—buying them, unwrapping them for the first time and stacking them on my shelf. Silly, sure, but I can't be alone, can I? Brian Ashcraft

Discs Ain't Dead [Games Industry]