No new game consoles from Microsoft or Sony until 2014

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Rumors, Video Games

Get comfortable playing your 6-year-old Xbox 360 or 5-year-old PlayStation 3, gamers, because it doesn't like like Sony or Microsoft plan on releasing new consoles for another three years since the current consoles still have strong sales figures.

"Both MS and Sony are telegraphing to each other that they're delaying, to milk the current [generation] and fill in previous craters better," said an anonymous source, who Kotaku described as an "insider who has worked with the first-party companies like Sony and Microsoft."

Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 in 2005, while Sony unveiled the PS3 in 2006. So based on the traditional five-year lifecycle of gaming consoles, a refresh is due this year.

However, both companies appear to be enjoying strong console sales. Last week, Sony reported that it has sold more than 50 million PlayStation 3 units worldwide since 2006, despite taking a reputation hit with all the PS3 hacker lawsuits. NPD recently called Microsoft's Xbox 360 the best-selling hardware system during the non-holiday months, thanks to the launch of the Kinect motion sensor. Furthermore, in March Microsoft announced that it had sold more than 10 million Kinect sensors since November, earning it a Guinness World Record for fastest-selling consumer electronics device.

Speaking to another "insider," Kotaku reports that Microsoft will likely push out Kinect upgrades rather than release an entirely new console. The source also said Microsoft hasn't decided what will be the "next big thing" in its next-generation console.

Does anybody? In March Nintendo USA president Reggie Fils-Aime ruled out 3D technology as the killer app in its next-generation console.

Meanwhile, there are many compelling signs that Nintendo is announcing its next-generation console this June at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles, suggesting a potential launch in 2012.

This article, written by Sara Yin, originally appeared on PCMag.com and is republished on Gear Live with the permission of Ziff Davis, Inc.