Every few years or so, a new iteration of a product comes along that sets the stage for what’s to come in development, distribution and features of technology. One of the most common examples of this is seen with the devices known today as home consoles.

The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 were launched around seven to eight years ago by their respective companies with the goal of overhauling what home entertainment is capable of. Now, in 2013, both consoles hardly resemble, physically and in software, what their first versions did long ago. The hardware is relatively the same, but the utilization of it brought on by developers has changed drastically over the years. As Microsoft and Sony got to know their consoles better and better, the player base saw development teams following the same studious path. Developers learned what the systems were truly capable of, and the consoles’ adaptability lend greatly to their longer-than-average life cycles.

Yet with game developers having better technology than the current generation can support (such as the brand new Unreal Engine 4), the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are nearing the end of their spotlight campaign. Seven-year-old hardware is practically ancient in technology terms, and the age is showing with the consoles. Having maxed out the potential of what is currently offered, a next generation of home console entertainment is right around the corner.

The time of year (or really, time of decade) is here where the gaming market sees all the rumors and secrets of what is to come with the new consoles. Much as it did before the current consoles were announced, the anticipation in the air has leant to an infinite amount of speculation on just what Microsoft and Sony have cooking.

In the past year, gamers were teased with leaked info as often as every week. Whether it was a pixelated photo of the Xbox “Durango” development kit or a report on the PlayStation 4’s sharing functions, there were almost more rumors circulating than anyone could ponder about.

Rumors and reports coming from the media indicate that the next consoles are very likely to be released this year, and they are practically guaranteed to at least be announced by (or at) E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) 2013 in June. Recently, big news has come from PlayStation as to what they have planned for this year.

In a video released Jan. 31, Sony’s PlayStation YouTube channel teased an event held for Feb. 20, with the company later saying to news outlets that it resembles “The future of PlayStation.” The 45-second video shows nothing more than moving PlayStation logos, but features designs and sound effects that may signify advanced technology.

Regardless of what the video contains, the announced date has brought much speculation to light, the primary of which is that this is indeed the reveal of the PlayStation 4. Save Sony’s comment earlier this year that they would let Microsoft spill the beans first, an announcement date prior to E3 may benefit Sony with being the first out of the gate. When the Xbox 360 released a full year before the Play Station 3, the sale numbers proved that it was a wise choice by Microsoft despite the upheaval of the community when their consoles were getting the infamous “Red Ring of Death.”

Gaming coverage networks and gamers alike have expressed their thoughts on what this announcement could mean, as well as on what we’ve learned so far. One ISU student, Wallace Davis, is the president of the university’s Game Developer’s Club and had much to say regarding the consoles’ current situation.

Davis believes that the Play Station 4 will be revealed in late February. “I think the time for unveiling consoles at E3 is passed, except that Nintendo might continue the tradition,” he said.

In regards to Sony’s claim that they would wait for Microsoft before showing anything new, and then scheduling the event anyway, Davis said that he doesn’t think console sales are dependent on reveal dates. “I think Sony probably realized that their market doesn’t overlap with Microsoft’s market that much and aren’t concerned too much with competition,” Davis said. “I’m very excited to see how Microsoft will respond after seeing what Sony is going to be bringing to the table.”

Console launches are a tedious and complicated task for manufacturers like Microsoft and SONY. Available countries, launch titles, press events, launch dates, showcase events, shipping and more are just at the beginning of the list of tasks that the companies have to make sure they accomplish smoothly. A serious consequence of negligence towards these issues can result in a launch that may significantly harm the reputation of the console. The overheating error of the original 360 is an example of this, as Microsoft pushed too fast for their console to come out before Christmas and ended up making a significant hardware malfunction.

As far as the next generation goes, Davis agrees with the community’s release date assumptions. “I think we’ll see the Play Station 4 out for Christmas and an Xbox out early next year. I hope Microsoft doesn’t rush their product out to release around the same time as Sony because it could create a lot of problems like their first generation of Xbox 360’s,” he said.

The Wall Street Journal says that they have reliable sources saying that the Play Station 4 will indeed be revealed at the event later this month. They also hint at Sony’s attempting to make the console more social-friendly for users, allowing them to connect more with their consoles.

When the media reached out for comment on what we’ve heard or inferred so far, Microsoft and Sony replied with the usual variation of “We don’t comment on rumors and speculation.” However, given this upcoming event, and the Game Developer’s Conference in March and E3 in June, all rumors should soon be settled depending on the level of depth the consoles’ reveals will go into.