As we get closer and closer to 2020, we find out more and more about the next crop of console gaming systems. Today we finally got our first in-depth look at some features for Sony’s PlayStation 5. And the best news? Sony confirms the console will launch just in time for the holidays in 2020.
That news came this morning in an article from WIRED magazine and was confirmed in a blog post from Sony CEO Jim Ryan. The console will feature an original controller that breaks the mold by using the latest haptic technology and adaptive triggers. The PS5’s GPU also enables powerful graphics acceleration capabilities and an SSD that revolutionizes game downloads. All updates come as a major surprise since Sony has remained uncharacteristically quiet over the last year.
Sony even skipped E3 this year for the first time since the game show’s creation. Before today’s announcement, all we knew was the PS5 would use a similar CPU and GPU as Microsoft’s Project Scarlett (the next-gen for Xbox). Also, like Scarlett, the PS5 would move from a hard drive to an SSD. But now Sony has started to talk specifics.
In Sony’s PlayStation blog, CEO Jim Ryan chose to hone in on the new updates coming to the PS5 controllers. Ryan believes the latest innovations coming to the next-gen controller will revolutionize gameplay. For perhaps the first time, players will get the opportunity to feel how they play. This will be possible due to two innovations. First, the latest haptic tech will replace the old rumble system and give players a broader range of feedback: crashing a car will feel drastically different than walking through grass. Second, trigger buttons are being revamped to provide more responsive levels of resistance.
“Developers can now program the resistance of the triggers so that you feel the tactile sensation of drawing a bow and arrow or accelerating an off-road vehicle through rocky terrain,” Ryan said.
Another massive advantage comes from the SSD. By using an SSD instead of a spinning hard drive, Sony has the chance to revolutionize game storage and use. The PS5 could allow gamers to download portions of the game. Imagine, for example, being able to download games in parts or downloading a single-player campaign instead of the multiplayer aspect of a new game.
“Rather than treating games like a big block of data,” designer Mark Cerny said, “we’re allowing finer-grained access to the data.”
Cerny also clarified another innovation that he only hinted at before. We have known for a while now that the PS5 will be able to support ray-tracing, which enables advanced and complicated lighting and sound effects for 3D environments. We did not know, however, whether this would be a software or hardware-level fix.
Here’s the answer to that question: “There is ray-tracing acceleration in the GPU hardware,” Cerny said.
The last aspect of the new console Sony wants to hone in on is the improved user interface. Sony will revamp the UI system entirely. The new console will integrate windows on the home screen that tell gamers what’s available in each game they own. For multiplayer games, that information would display what servers are open and who’s online. For singleplayer games, according to Cerny, the home screen will show what quests and rewards are currently available in the game. Now you won’t even need to boot up to check-in.
Besides all of the new details, there were two other points confirmed by Sony. First, the “PlayStation 5” will officially be titled the PlayStation 5. Second, you will be able to purchase it next year, just in time for the holidays.
