PS5 Digest: The Latest News

The ghost of Sony PlayStation 5 is haunting the gaming community since it’s been just hinted at. The current generation of consoles is still here, but not for long. The developers linger with new epic projects (unless they are Hideo Kojima), and gamers aren’t eager to spend their money on games in anticipation of something bigger to come.

PlayStation 5 is rising; though it’s beyond the horizon yet, some light rays from it are already here. What will it bring? The official information is brief and unsure, but there are leaks and common sense, so we can contemplate and conclude.

Sony PlayStation 5 Officially Confirmed

It has a name, therefore it exists. As you already know, the name of the next console by Sony is predictably PlayStation 5 (Sony PS5, for short). And the Japanese company is working on it closely; the release date, nevertheless, is not set yet. The details are leaking slowly, partly official, partly not. It’s been confirmed that the console will hit the market in the late 2020, and probably it won’t be in December, so by the winter holidays the new console would already be reviewed and equipped with new games (that was a speculation, though).

The plan Sony has prepared is probably the following. In the early months of 2020, the console is officially revealed, with its final (or almost final) design, specs, and all the gimmicks. The developers may get all this info a bit earlier (probably some are already informed), so they could produce new games for it to reveal all its might. The public PS5 announcement may happen at E3 2020: there is no better event for such a revelation. Along with PS5, there will probably be an Xbox Project Scarlett introduction, so the two will compete severely.

What will the games for PS5 be? It’s too early to guess. There will probably be action games, RPGs, arcades, and family projects. Read more on this at the end of the article.

Sony PlayStation 5 Hardware

There isn’t much known on the hardware used in PS5; maybe it’s not even finally confirmed within the company. But it’s for sure that the console will support 8K resolution, and its loading times will be shorter. The video card will be capable of hardware ray tracing, and that promises the new level of realism in 3D games.

To provide both speed and high capacity, the console will be equipped with an extremely fast SSD by Samsung instead of the traditional HDD. For example, a game like Monster Hunter will launch in under 10 seconds from this SSD; of course, other components around, like CPU and GPU, will also be faster than those of PS4. And still, it impresses.

Samsung didn’t explicitly confirm that its new SSD will be used in PlayStation 5; but when the company holds a presentation in Tokyo and reveals that the technology is planned to use for the 9Gen consoles – can it be that Xbox has it, and PlayStation doesn’t? The partnership between the Japanese and the Korean giants is wide and deep, and probably it concerns consoles as well. The company is known as competent at developing and producing memory chips, and the idea of having storage by the industry leader in PS5 is logical and inspiring.

As for the capacity, it’s not been announced yet. Probably there will be options.

Sony PlayStation 5 Appearance

Of course, it’s too early to judge on what hasn’t been confirmed. We haven’t seen official pictures of PS5 so far; still, there are leaks. The development kit that was shown on one of the pictures looked quite surprising. It’s rather like a piece of kitchenware than the most advanced gaming console in the world; or something even more retro than PlayStation Classic, with 1980s’ design elements. It does resemble the image from Sony’s previous patents too, as follows from Wired’s latest materials. At least, the key elements like a V-shaped dip and lots of buttons are common for the patent and the leaked image.

Still, even if it’s a real picture, Sony fans don’t have to start over it. The mission of the development kit is to house all the components to have them working as an ensemble, and not to show the final design as a mockup. The leak confirms that this prototype isn’t meant to represent the final design of the commercially available items. The ports will probably migrate to the back, while the hardware knobs and switches will be replaced by software controls available from the gamepad.

By the way, on the gamepad. Let’s call it DualShock 5, for we have no better name. It’s also known from a patent and some hints from Sony that the new gamepad will share most elements with its predecessor. There are a few changes, though, including smaller size and no lightbar at all. The thumbsticks are closer to each other, with space between them a bit tighter. The 3.5 socket is moved a bit, and the USB port (this time it may be USB-C) is too. Maybe this time, the gamepad will be Wi-Fi-enabled, but this is still to be seen.

Sony PlayStation 5 Release Date: When Does PlayStation 5 Start Selling?

When is PS5 coming out? There is no certain calendar date so far. Yet Sony has confirmed that the new console will become available in the latter months of 2020. Probably it will be November, so the device is surely available by the Christmas period, and the most devoted fans get their packs before the others. As soon as we learn more, we’ll share it, as well as the announced PS5 price.

The Games for PlayStation 5

If you have a large library of PS4 games, don’t even think you’ll have to purchase them again. As Mark Cerny, the PS5 system architect, confirmed, all the PS4 games will be compatible with PS5 as well. Exceptions are possible, as it may turn out later, but none of them was mentioned. As for PSVR experience, there hasn’t been said anything on it specifically.

So there won’t be any reason to wait if you want to start playing your newly bought console right from the day one. On the other hand, if you only think now of buying a console, there is no reason to opt for PS4 (unless you want it right now), because PS5 will have the entire catalogue of the current console.

But the games available now have been developed for PS4 architecture, and PS5 will perform way better. Will the games benefit from it, in terms of FPS or resolution? Well, it would be magic to play Horizon Zero Dawn at 60 FPS! And what about Days Gone? Death Stranding? God of War in 4K at 60 FPS?

And the answer is probably yes. We already know about the faster SSD, and there will be other improvements. So performance improvements will affect anything about games. If anything goes wrong now with development kits, the developers have time to fix that.

Will PlayStation 5 Have Boost Mode?

It took a Pro edition for PlayStation 4 to get Boost Mode that increases the performance of games at 1080p, with supersampling and overall improvements. Will PS5 have anything similar from the start, so games for PS4 can reveal their potential with the new hardware? Or will it take special updates and patches from the developers of the games? Maybe Sony has some generic technology in its sleeve that makes any game look and perform better on PS5; though you never know.

PlayStation 5 Specs and Performance

It’s probably the most interesting part of it, and the one we know the most about. As Mark Cerny specifies, the 9gen console will feature new hardware that provides much better experience.

Along with the aforementioned Samsung SSD, the new console will feature an AMD Ryzen CPU assisted by a Navi GPU also by AMD. Its specs include hardware ray tracing, and that puts PS5 into the champion league from the start. The capabilities also include 8K graphics. We don’t know yet how it will perform in “real” 8K, and whether it’s just upscaling. As for more traditional 4K, the console will handle it at 120 FPS well. Of course, this framerate should be supported by the display.

The current version of PSVR is supported, so if you decide to upgrade, the headset is here to stay. There is no plan to introduce the new one so far. And it’s just one of the evidences of how smooth the transition will be. The online games will be playable in cross-generational mode, too.

PlayStation 5 and the Cloud Gaming

It was one of the most surprising announces of the gaming industry in 2019 to have Microsoft and Sony work together in a cloud streaming project. Rivals in console-making, Sony and Microsoft have formed an alliance, with Microsoft having its great cloud Azure platform, and Sony rich in content.

The companies agree that this partnership will be mutually useful, and we all understand that they mean rivaling Google Stadia and Nvidia GeForce Now together. Google offers its cloud console that starts for most users in February 2020, and Microsoft and Sony prepare their reply. So far, Sony has its PlayStation Now subscription, and it will stay here after the PS5 console is out.

Peripherals for PlayStation 5

Is there going to be a PS5 exclusive set of peripherals? We already know that at least PSVR is already planned to retain its compatibility. We also haven’t heard any rumors about new peripheral generation to be released. That generally means that the new games will be compatible with the previous generation peripherals. But there are questions to raise. For example: what about VR experiences made for PS5, with its increased performance? Won’t the old PSVR become the bottleneck for the innovations? If so, the 4 million owners will have to upgrade or settle for the old sort of experience.

Along with PSVR, there are at least PlayStation Camera and Move controllers. They form a solid environment along with PSVE headset. So it’s logical to assume they will also remain compatible with PS5. This solution will be great, as all the users who own these have already got used to the mechanics. But if not, Sony representatives will make it clear officially, as the console is officially revealed.

Being among the leaders in virtual reality introduction all over the world, Sony will do its best to keep the position. So we expect it to handle the current situation gently. Probably there will be new VR tools and accessories, but they will be introduced later as the VR itself evolves into something bigger. The upgraded hardware of PS5 may provide the performance necessary for that.

Games for PlayStation 5: Announces and Guesses

Well, it seems too early to speculate on the new titles, since there hasn’t been any official announcements of a new title or denial for an old one. Still, we have some information that leads us to highly probable conclusions.

Sony will probably release a sequel for one of its best titles – Marvel’s Spider-Man. Its mechanics had a strong impact, and now, with Insomniac Games owned by Sony, and PS5 soon to be released, the sequel is logical (given that the first installment ended with an insolent cliffhanger). Insomniac Games will probably make new installments of Ratchet and Clank, and (we hope) the fourth Resistance.

Horizon Zero Dawn will probably get a sequel for PS5, and chances are it’s already in production. It’s the sort of game with a big story and impressive visuals, the sort that will make the most use of ray-tracing and 8K resolution. This big title is not to be abandoned as long as Sony owns the Guerrilla Games.

The sequels of Naughty Dog and The Last of Us will also be there, as well as those of other adventures. Another title that will probably be reworked for PlayStation 5 is Death Stranding by Hideo Kojima. While the version for PS4 is incredibly acclaimed for its visuals and gameplay, the new console may inspire the creator to issue the enhanced edition (if it’s not in production yet).

Sports simulators like FIFA, NBA 2K, or Pro Evolution Soccer may finally offer a really upgraded experience instead of just updated rosters. The same goes out to series like Call of Duty, Doom, or Mortal Kombat, living for decades and demonstrating dramatical evolution in visuals. The developers won’t miss the chance to exploit the increased graphical power of the new console.

And what do you expect from the new console? Maybe you’re dreaming of Grand Theft Auto VI? Or the entire Final Fantasy series remade? Or you’ll be good with well transferred PS4 games? Share your thoughts and hopes about the upcoming console. We’d like to talk more about it too.