by The Verge -- indicating that the PlayStation 4 will cost around 40,000 Yen, or about $430/£270/€320.

Putting this into context: PS3 cost approximately 60,000 Yen (nearly $650) in Japan when it

launched in late 2006, and as we all know very well, it was released domestically with

an outrageous sticker price of $600 at that time.

So is this rumored price point good news? Yes, if it’s true. A 40,000 Yen price point

in Japan indicates that PlayStation 4 may launch in the west at around $400, or $200

less than PS3 cost in 2006.

However, this is all speculation; we hope to have plenty of hard facts following Sony’s

event in New York City on February 20, which IGN will attend.

The newspaper report also indicates that the PlayStation 4 will launch in Japan and the

US in 2013 and that the DualShock 4 – or whatever it will be called – is “roughly

the same shape” as the DualShock 3 currently used with the PlayStation 3. No mention of

Europe indicates that the console might not launch there until 2014.

We’ve reached out to Sony for official comment on Asahi Shimbun’s story, and will update

when we hear back. Until then, stay tuned to IGN.