Should The Next Generation Of Consoles Include iGaming Options?

After years of waiting, the time has almost arrived. The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are on the horizon and will be released this year.

There is a lot of speculation about the direction these new consoles will head in, as it will give a huge indication about the future of gaming.

A big question is whether Sony and Microsoft will take note of the huge developments in the wider gaming scene since the release of the current console generation in 2013. In the seven years which have passed, the iGaming industry has grown exponentially, also helping bring back to popularity classic games such as online bingo. We think that now may be the time for the consoles to embrace a subgenre they have never included.

Online Bingo Has Boomed in the Last Five Years Thanks to iGaming

When the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 were released in May and November of 2013 respectively, the online casino industry was already well established and flourishing. The creators of the popular consoles had the option to include access to iGaming at that point but opted not to. However, the industry has grown so much since that it is now much harder for them to ignore.

One offshoot of the gaming industry which has risen to prominence, in particular, is the online bingo sector. It has been successful thanks to the fact that it has provided new ways to play traditional bingo games online, along with numerous casino-related options like slots to suit modern players. This has been met with immense success, and the bingo industry has exploded because of it.

All this has happened in the short space of time since the release of the last generation of consoles. Back then, Sony and Microsoft couldn’t have known how big bingo would become, and they couldn’t have foreseen how it would be massively boosted by incorporating other iGaming staples. Now, the tech companies may feel it is time for consoles to embrace this type of gaming as well in order to attract a wider demographic.

Online Gaming is Expected to be a Big Aspect of Next Gen

The next generation of consoles is already expected to have a heavy focus on online gaming. There has been speculation that players may be able to purchase a monthly subscription to access a games library. This would be a subscription model inspired by Netflix, which has totally changed the way people get their entertainment. Microsoft has already made public its desire to create a “Netflix for games” and has been trialing the concept of Project xCloud for some time.

If the new consoles do feature vast online games libraries, it would make sense for them to also include iGaming options. Slot games at online casinos and bingo sites are already displayed across sprawling pages which give players a multitude of choices, and this could easily be transported to consoles.

Throughout their rich history, PlayStation and Xbox have steered clear from the inclusion of iGaming. However, Sony and Microsoft will have seen the way it has boosted different niches of the gaming world such as bingo, and may be tempted to use it as a way to attract more players as well.