Guillemot: PS4 and next Xbox coming soon

It was only a year ago that top-level industry execs were questioning the very viability and future of the console hardware cycle. Now, the move to a new breed of machines is near, it is being claimed.

And these claims come from the very top of leading publisher Ubisoft.

The new transition is going to happen,” CEO Yves Guillemot told Gamasutra. We’re going to have new machines coming soon.”

Talk of successors to both the PS3 and Xbox 360 has accelerated somewhat in the last six months.

Rumours of a dev kit for the next Xbox emerged last month, and despite denials from all involved many remain doggedly insistent that early Xbox 720 IS in the hands of developers.

In addition, Sony has confessed that PS4 development is under way, though has stressed that there’s plenty of life left in PS3 at the moment.

As for when these new devices will emerge, that remains a guessing game with some saying as early as next year and others pinning 2014 as the likely launch date.