Sony’s New PlayStation 5 Ad Has One Glaring Omission
by Erik Kain
Sony released a new one minute spot for the PlayStation 5 Monday morning.
Titled ‘The Edge’ it features a young man on a fishing boat who is suddenly in the midst of a giant flotilla of ships and planes and submarines from numerous different eras, all sailing toward what appears to be some type of barrier in the middle of the ocean.
As they get closer it turns out to be the edge of the world, waterfalls pouring off into space. The young man looks around at the other voyagers and then charges ahead. The ships burst through the barrier and float off into space.
“Play Has No Limits” appears across the screen and then PlayStation.
Here’s the new ad:
What’s curious about this spot is what it doesn’t mention. Not once does it actually say PS5 or PlayStation 5. Nor does it show any upcoming games (though there may be hints to some games in the flotilla).
I suppose this could simply be an ad for PlayStation rather than for the PS5 specifically, but that’s odd as well. After all, the PS5 is the hot new item coming out in just a couple months. You’d think any new PlayStation ad would contain the number 5.
This could be a bit of braggadocio from Sony also. The company could be showing off a little, using marketing like this the same way one might swagger down the street. “See, we’re so confident that the PS5 is going to be a hit we don’t even need to mention it in our commercials.”
And Sony does have a reason to be confident. Despite the bargain pricing for the Xbox Series S—I can’t imagine that even the all-digital PS5 will sell for as low as $299—Sony still has a big lead in the exclusives department. This won’t change any time soon thanks to the fact that Microsoft will release all the Xbox Series X/S exclusives on PC and Xbox One as well, at least for the next couple of years.
Still, I prefer this PlayStation 5 ad. It really showcases the actual games. It gets me excited about playing actual, tangible releases coming out in the not-so-distant future.
It’s cool to see a bunch of ships float off the edge of the world and everything, but it’s not a game. It’s just a metaphor.