The ‘PlayStation 5’ (PS5 for short), is Sony‘s up and coming console generation. The new console generation is rumored to be bigger and better than its predecessor the ‘PlayStation 4’ (PS4/PS4Pro). Gamers and gaming news sources had heard from Mark Cerny, the man in charge of the architecture for this console generation, that Sony has been working on the ‘PS4’s successor for quite some time and expect to improve the hardware of the console. However, with Sony deciding to skip this year E3 2019, we have been left in the dark as to what exactly is going on with Sony‘s new project. This goes against their rival company, Microsoft, whose Vice-President of Gaming, Phil Spencer, proudly stated at the E3 Microsoft Press Conference what exactly was happening with their new console generation, titled: ‘Project Scarlett’. Though, this does not mean that Sony/PlayStation’ fans are entirely clueless as to information about the ‘PS5’. Thanks to an article from techradar.com, we have a list of confirmed specs for the ‘PS5’, as well as rumors being speculated by fans.
PS5 Specs
This quote is going to sound like a bunch of technical mumbo-gumbo (because it is); however, it will help in the understanding of what will be inside the ‘PS5’. Inside the ‘PS5’, confirmed so far, will be “a bespoke 8-core AMD chipset based on third-generation Ryzen architecture, with a GPU taking the best bits of the Radeon Navi GPU family; a built-for-purpose SSD storage system; 3D audio; backward compatibility with PS4 games and PSVR hardware; 8K TV support”, thank you techradar.com.
What the 8-core AMD chipset allows is improved visuals in gaming. Specifically, this targets the consoles ability to improve the “lighting” of games, creating greater immersion for the player. 8K TV support improves gaming textures. This includes smaller/detail textures, as well as the broader textures (such as a game over-world/hub-world). This is a vast improvement since the best consoles, ‘PS4Pro’ and ‘Xbox One X’, can only run in 4K, at peak performance. The 8K support needs the bigger SSD drive because for the games to run more complex graphics/visuals, the game has to be able to load at a faster rate. With the new SSD, games are estimated to load 19 times faster than the current console generation.
The audio is also a big target for Sony. The 3D audio, that is included within the console, is meant to target the player’s immersion with the game; this audio experience can be improved if the player is wearing headphones. With a vast improvement to audio in the new Sony console, this can create greater cutscene dialogue, in-game battle sound effects, music soundtracks, even the sound of the background will be improved.
Sony has also expressed the importance of improving its own game streaming service, ‘PlayStation Now’. This service allows gamers to stream games from the ‘PS4, PS3, and PS2’ directly to their ‘PS4’. With a better SSD, this will allow games to stream at a faster rate, as well as higher graphical rate. This will make the ‘PSNow’ experience, certainly, better for consumers.
Rumors
Like with most new and exciting upcoming events/releases there are always rumors. Some turn out to be true, while most turn out to be false. One such rumor is that Sony‘s ‘PS5’ will be able to be backward compatible with not only ‘PS4’ games (already confirmed with ‘PSVR’ tech) but also ‘PS1, 2 and 3’ games. This would make the ‘PS5’s library of games date all the way back to the glory days of the mid-’90s. While the backward compatibility for all of these console generation games would be amazing (there’s a lot of great games for these consoles), the amount of tech that would be needed within the ‘PS5’ would be too great. Add in the fact that the console would most likely have to sacrifice some of the tech within it already to make room for the backward compatibility tech. Maybe in digital form players could enjoy some of the classic games through ‘PSNow or PSStore’.
People are also speculating about the consoles release date. With Microsoft‘s ‘Project Scarlett’ being released at the end of 2020, people believe that the ‘PS5’ will be released in a similar time frame; however, that is not necessarily the case. Sony Interactive CEO, John Kodera, revealed to the Wall Street Journal that the ‘PS5’ wasn’t going to be released until 2021. So Sony fans will have to be a little patient for the release.
PS5 Games
Sony‘s ‘PS4’ was, and still is, a massive success. Released back in 2013 the ‘PS4’ is a console that has held a massive library of “Triple A” exclusives. Either from first-party developers or from third-party developers, the ‘PS4’ had a plethora of successful releases. These titles include FromSoftware‘s ‘Bloodborne’, Santa Monica Studios‘ ‘God of War’, Marvel‘s ‘Spider-Man’, and Guerrilla Games‘ ‘Horizon Zero Dawn’. How could Sony continue this recipe for success? Well, they can, just by simply recognizing that they have that recipe.
In a report from Metro, Sony will be marketing their new console to the ‘hardcore gamers who obsess over the latest features’. Sony‘s CEO, Kenichiro Yoshida, fully recognizes that the majority of the ‘PS4’s success was due to the companies desire to give the hardcore gamer what they wanted. Simply put, the hardcore gamer desired the best that the gaming world had to offer, and Sony was more than happy to deliver. So to make the next console a success, Yoshida simply wishes for the company to focus on first-party development and to build good working relations with other third-party developers; which can lead to exclusive or timed exclusive deals with third-party developers. However, Sony does not seem to be focused on its relations with indie game developers because they are games that ‘are available on smartphones’.
So from what is being reported, it seems that Sony‘s ‘PS5’ is gearing up to be quite the system. With a focus on higher graphical rendering, faster load times, and easier streaming capability the console is turning into a beast. Add in the fact that the company wishes to focus on “Triple A” to ensure success, seems to be a win-win situation for Sony fans and the company itself. Unfortunately, the release of 2021 is a little bit of wait for us to get our hands on this system.
