Recently, gaming outlet Kotaku revealed that their developer sources told them Sony is working on an enhanced version of the PS4 known as the PS4.5 (no word if this is an official title or not). This upgraded PS4 is supposed to have 4K support and more powerful hardware. Kotaku seems to think these sources are legitimate and that Sony is actually working on this project. Assuming it’s true, do these PS4.5 rumors suggest that Sony is stalling for time in the face of rapidly advancing technology? Does this news delay or hasten the arrival of the PS5? Let’s discuss! What is the PlayStation 4.5? At face-value, the PS4.5 is supposed to be an enhanced PS4 console with a more powerful graphics processing unit (GPU) that would allow it to play games in 4K resolution and offer more power for PlayStation VR and games in general. Think of it like the “New” 3DS Nintendo did that was more powerful. Of course, in the case of the 3DS, there were games that could only be played on the new system and even multiplatform games suffered on the old hardware. On the one hand, a system like PS4.5 could give Sony the edge they need to stay relevant into the future while they no doubt plan PS5, but introducing another console this early into the cycle that’s more powerful will also fracture the market. Two separate sources have confirmed the existence of such a machine, while several other writers on the Kotaku staff also confirmed with their sources. Odds are looking pretty good that Sony is considering this or downright working on it. The question that come to light are whether it will be an upgrade you can install into your current PS4, or an entirely new console. As it stands, the sources suggest that Sony is still exploring the idea and hasn’t committed to anything. Even so, critics have said that the PS4’s hardware doesn’t have legs for an entire generation, let alone support for virtual reality. This may be Sony’s only chance at staying relevant until the time is right for release PS5. What do Gamers Think? These rumors have caught fire around the web with multiple PS4 outlets reporting on the suspected console upgrade. I went to Facebook to take a look at some of the reactions from gamers. Let’s see what they had to say before I offer my opinion: No, I would be annoyed, we accept a new console I.e ps5 in another 5 years or so is inevitable, but a ps4.5 is an insult to all those who went out and bought the ps4 which as yet has failed to live up to all the hype, Sony are only doing this to make more money and copying Microsoft with their xboxone variations they have announced. – Sean Homar It’s a good idea only if they release a cheap upgrade that can be installed in our own consoles. Otherwise, users – including myself- will be very disappointed. – … Read More
PS5 Begins Rolling Out Before 2020? PlayStation VR is the Missing Link
For the longest time we’ve been under the assumption that the PS5 will release in 2020, but new rumors are making it sound like the PS5 isn’t that far away. In fact, it’s looking like the first signs of the PS5 will start appearing at the end of 2016 when PlayStation VR arrives in October. I know what you’re thinking, what does a virtual reality headset have to do with the PS5? Ladies and gents, it is (or will be) the PS5! I know, your mind just got blown, but I’ve looked at the factors and considered the rumors and it’s all starting to make sense. Read on as we discuss the evidence and signs that the next generation game experience from Sony is coming much sooner than we all thought. 4 Reasons Why PlayStation VR Represents the First Stage of PS5’s Launch Let’s assume that PlayStation VR is the first step in an ongoing rollout leading to the PS5. What would that mean? Are we looking at a VR only console? Will there even be a console? When will Sony stop beating around the bush and call it a PS5? Questions without answers my friends, but the clues are lying in wait. You simply have to look in the right places. Here are four reasons that suggest the PS5 and the PS VR headset are one and the same: 1. PS5 is a Cloud-Based Console We’ve discussed the prospect of a prospect of a cloud-based console on PS5 Gamers before, but the signs have been growing stronger and stronger. It started with PlayStation Now, a cloud streaming service that is best described as Netflix streaming, but for video games. While that service hasn’t exactly taken off, it’s not going anywhere either. It’s paired with a gaming culture that is slowly pushing digital downloads over discs. It’s likely that the PS5, if it is a console, will have an optical drive for the sake of making people happy, but who will use it in that scenario? How often do you download games instead of going out and buying them at launch? When we stop to think about it, we’re being conditioned to prefer digital content and furthermore we’re being taught to prefer things like streaming over downloads. And why not? It’s more convenient, except when the internet goes down. Still, the world is embracing the change faster than we ourselves realize. Is it some grand conspiracy theory, or is this truly what we want? The answer is still up in the air, and that’s why Sony is taking this route. It’s clear, judging by PlayStation Now, that Sony likes the idea of a streaming game service. They wouldn’t have invested so much time into it otherwise. Sony is good about testing the waters before they push out a new product. They still have their flops, but mostly the gradual introduction of new hardware like PlayStation VR and new services like PS Now gives them the opportunity to test the waters. … Read More
The Destiny of VR vs TV’s Battle: Only One Survives
Virtual reality lived and died over twenty years ago. Simply put, thing like the Virtual Boy didn’t cut it. Now, after Oculus Rift was swiftly Purchased by Facebook for $2 billion dollars, suddenly virtual reality is making a comeback. Everyone and their grandmother is bringing out a VR headset, which begs the question: “Will virtual reality replace television?” The answer, as you can imagine, is complicated. Should VR succeed, it was most certainly take over. Then again, there’s always the chance it will flop. Let’s take a look at both sides of the coin and decide which device will rule your living room. Goodbye 60-inch, Hello VR Headset! There’s most certainly a crowd that believes televisions will become a relic. Among them is the founder (and recently made very rich) owner of Oculus Rift: Palmer Luckey. While the price of his headset is astoundingly high, the fact that it has Facebook backing it up means it will have massive mainstream exposure. Then you have Sony who is going all in on PlayStation VR which is a similar headset for the PS4. On top of that, Microsoft is slowly but surely perfecting their HoloLens augmented reality headset. Sprinkle in the HTC Vive which is being sponsored by Steam/Valve, and you have yourself a growing market of devices ready to do battle with one another. Palmer Luckey, in an interview with Maximum PC said some interesting things on the subject: “Why in the world would you buy a 60-inch TV that, even if it were dirt cheap for that, it’s still going to cost a lot to ship it and make it from raw materials. A VR headset is going to be much better and much cheaper and you can take it anywhere.” Luckey has some points, but his claims are clearly based on his infatuation with VR seeing as how he started a company about it. Like many other radical claims, the quote was met with plenty of scorn and a few attacks at Luckey himself. People tend to react drastically to major changes like this. Palmer Luckey isn’t the first person to make a bold claim about his industry is going take over, and he won’t be the last. For someone who is just entering the industry, a major win like Facebook purchasing you is bound to go to your head, and it also adds a huge amount of pressure to convince the people you interact with that your product is the one and only option for the future. Realistically, the future Palmer Luckey envisions won’t be here anytime soon. Nothing in the gaming/electronics industry is drastic. Sure, you have plenty of upgrades and iterations, but its very rare that a technology is swept under the rug overnight. It’s a gradual change, with HD-DVDs being the exception (sorry, but does anyone actually remember those?). The issue that people have is they are comparing the Oculus Rift launch model with, say, a 4K TV that just hit the market. To put … Read More
PS5 to Release in 2020 With Two Versions and VR Portability
In the gaming industry, it’s not uncommon for consoles to release with several versions either at the beginning of the cycle, or later in its lifespan. Now that gaming has become as huge and mainstream as, say, smartphones, rumors are speculating that the PS5 will take a hint from the major cell phone companies and release two versions of the console at different price points, and with different features, to reach a wider audience. One version of the PS5 will be a core setup with only the most basic of features and capabilities. The other version will offer a more robust setup for hardcore gamers. For both versions of the console, an option will also be present to make the option portable via a virtual reality headset similar to the upcoming PlayStation VR. Join me as we look at the two widely different versions of the PS5 and how VR will replace the traditional handheld system like the 3DS or the PlayStation Vita. PS5 Version One: The Core Experience The PlayStation 4 is already outselling the Xbox One by 2:1. It’s clear that there are a healthy amount of gamers who love the PlayStation brand. The problem is that past consoles have come out as price points upwards of $600. When the PS4 released at $400, the average gamer saw a next generation console within reach. Meanwhile, the Xbox One comes out at $500 and, well, we all know how that ended. Even so, it still sold, just not quite as well as PS4. Turning our perspective for a moment, let’s take a look at the smartphone industry. There’s never a single version of a phone. At launch there may be one, but soon they’ll introduce another, and another. In the case of the iPhone, there’s almost always two versions at launch. So, let’s fast forward to 2020. The PS5 is coming out and Sony is offering two options to reach the most gamers possible. The first is one called the The Core Experience. This version of the console contains all of the hardware needed to run the games (and connect to the cloud). It will have a massive hard drive upwards of 5 Terabytes or more. This is just the storage space for standard hard drives. What’s more likely is that the Pro version of the PS5 will feature a Solid State Drive (SSD) that is quickly outpacing the hard drive technology we have. Nobuo Hayasaka, a managing executive director at Toshiba and chief engineer of its Semiconductor & Storage Company spoke at the SEMI Members Day in Tokyo on August 20, 2015. During this time, he made the bold comment that SSD drives would reach a capacity of 128 terabytes in 2018. By the time the PS5 releases in 2020, this type of storage could be included in a more premium system package. The console will come with the new controller and all of the equipment needed to play your games in 4K resolution. It will probably retail … Read More
Ex Criterion Game Dev Predicts ‘Interactive’ and ‘Believeable’ Worlds For PS5
It seems game developers are already thinking about the PS5. Paul Ross, the former Criterion tech director, recently spoke with EDGE about the next-generation consoles and he had a lot of interesting things to say about what he thought would define the PS5, and how his studio, Three Fields Entertainment, is preparing for this future in their debut game: “Dangerous Golf” With each generation of consoles, the graphics become more powerful, the games get bigger, and the standards go up. Over the past few consoles, things have made strides forward, but not leaps and bounds. The difference between the PlayStation and the PS2, for example, was far more pronounced than the difference between the PS3 and the PS4. Let’s find how Paul’s predictions line up with our own. PS4 to PS5: The Leap We’ve Been Waiting For? It’s becoming more and more clear the PS5 will represent the quantum leap we’ve been waiting for. Growing technology and the introduction of new innovations like PlayStation VR have triggered a lot of predictions among ourselves and PlayStation fans. It seems that developers have also been looking to the future. After leaving Criterion in 2014 to co-found Three Fields Entertainment, Paul Ross recalled during his interview that he sat at his desk “thinking, OK, what does a PlayStation 5 game look like? What does an Xbox Two game look like? And how can we start to build for that future now?” A Screenshot from Dangerous Golf During his thoughts, he touched upon something we’ve yet to discuss here on PS5 Gamers, and it’s amazing how it was always there, but a gamer like me would never think of it. It’s the physics engines. Paul says quote: “Physics engines haven’t changed since I did the physics on TrickStyle for the Dreamcast. They’re all about rigid bodies and solid objects. This is a real paradigm shift because it’s about simulating physics at a molecular level. It’s been a really hard problem to solve for quite a while.” He’s right. Our physics engines have done their best to simulate things like liquid, light, and solid objects, but we still need monster PC machines just to get cloth and hair right? Physics are way behind the ball, and that’s not anyone’s fault. It simply means that new tech and stronger processing power can bring us worlds and not only look real, but feel real as well. Paul puts it perfectly when he says: “So what does a PS5 game look like? With PS4 we’ve seen some fidelity put into the worlds, but PS5’s going to be about more dynamic worlds, far more interactive worlds that are more believable in the way they behave.” We can make it look pretty amazing, but we still haven’t nailed down the feel of the real world in terms of physics. This missing piece is crucial to creating a world that is indistinguishable from the real thing. Three Fields Entertainment’s Debut Title: Dangerous Golf I was skeptical when I heard that Paul’s … Read More
Will the PS4 Be Sony’s Last Console?
Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter is one of those people who you either love or hate. He makes a lot of bold statements about the game industry and about games in general. Some people clench their fists when he makes a sweeping claim about a game’s sales when it’s not even out yet, but others will take what he says to heart. Now he’s talking about the PS5, so of course we had to lend an ear. He’s predicting the fall of consoles, which is nothing new, but what he’s predicting will replace them is another story entirely. Let’s take a look at his predictions and how Sony has reacted to them. This should be fun. Pachter: “Growth Will Require Leaving Traditional Consoles Behind” Michael Pachter took the stage during DICE Europe in 2015 and claimed that the consoles have hit a wall in terms of their growth. In his words: “The console installed base is as big as it’s ever going to get.” He believes that this generation will not surpass any previous ones, and a generation after that would do the same. No more growth, period. Here are his predictions for this generation: The Wii U is going to sell 20 million units compared to 100 million for the Wii The PlayStation 4 is going to sell 120 million or 130 million The Xbox One will sell 100 to 110 million Xbox 360 and PS3 combined sold 270 million, this time around the total will be 260 million Pachter says that the surge of new gamers playing on their smartphones and on casual consoles like the Wii opens up a huge avenue for more people to play Sony and Microsoft’s games, but these experiences are out of reach since they don’t own a console to play them on. He clarifies by saying quote “This is the last real console cycle. I don’t mean that Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo will go bankrupt and shut down, they will not. Each of them will make another console, some people will buy them, and the next console cycle will be to this console cycle what the 3DS is to the DS (15 million per year compared to 26 million per year for the DS).” All-in-all, pachter’s stance is thus: “So when I say that this console cycle is the last console cycle, the reason is that console games shouldn’t require a console. And I’m not talking about the cloud.” No Consoles? No Cloud? Explain! Pachter argues that games only need a CPU, a GPU, storage, and a controller. As smartphones and set-top hardware become more powerful, all of these thing will be present in devices besides the consoles. By the time the PS5 is supposed to release, Pachter says that “you’re going to have a CPU/GPU in your house that is connected to your television.” He is of course referring to devices like the Roku box, Amazon Fire TV, or Apple TV which allow you to purchase and play apps on your television. … Read More
Will the PS5 Have a Disc Drive? How do Cartridges Sound?
There are certain things in life that we’ve always come to expect: the sky is blue, the sun rises in the east, space is big, and games always come in a physical form. Whether it’s a cartridge or a disc, games have always been something we can hold in our hands and put on a shelf. The prospect of that going away is terrifying for many of us. Change isn’t something that gamers really like. Look at the Xbox One for example. They tried to turn it into an online-only console and we all know how that ended. Case and point, taking away an optical drive or removing the option entirely is something that may not go over well with gamers in the grand scheme of things. Is it truly possible that the PS5 will ditch discs altogether, or will we still have the option between digital and physical like we know and love? It’s time to start asking the hard questions, so let’s discuss the elephant in the room. Will the PS5 have an optical disc drive? A New Patent Points to…Cartridges? In the beginning of gaming, games were delivered to us on cartridges. True old school gamers will remember the old method of blowing into the bottom of it when the games didn’t start (which isn’t a good idea, by the way). Things transitioned over to discs for the most part, but consoles like the Nintendo Switch still use a different format. When it comes to portable systems, discs aren’t the best idea because they’re bound to get jostled or shaken during the course of play. This can lead to skips in the data and damage to the disc itself. So, if we think about the PS5 as a portable/console hybrid, then it would make sense for the format to change. We also need to talk about the fact that games are far too big these days for Blu-ray discs to hold. Red Dead Redemption 2, for example, comes on two discs when you buy it. One disc to install the game, and one to play it. There’s also this quote from PlayStation boss John Kodera, who mentioned this during an investor meeting in May 2018: “Rather than separating portable gaming from consoles, it’s necessary to continue thinking of portable gaming as one method to deliver more gaming experiences.” There’s also this South Korean patent filing that was made public recently. In this patent, Sony describes an “electronic game cartridge.”This was first revealed by TechTastic. It was later revealed that this design is intended for the existing Sony Toio, a robotics toy crowdfunded by First Flight, which produces concepts from Sony employees. Even so, this concept could also apply to the PS5. This is purely speculation on my part, but my prediction would be that Sony could achieve something using a combination of discs and cartridges. For those who buy the physical copy, your game will still be on some sort of high-capacity disc, but when you want … Read More
AMD Planning to Bring 5X Performance on PS5
A large part of the console war is the struggle for power. We love to argue about which system is going to be more powerful. Take the arguments for this current generation for example. The debate over Xbox games being 900p and the PS5 games being 1080p threw tons of fuel onto an already raging fire. It doesn’t matter if you’re a PC gamer or a console gamer. Either way, you’re going to want the most power possible. Deep down we’re all lovers of great graphics and gameplay. So, if someone is promising more power than we’ve ever seen in a console, it turns some heads. Power is the name of the game, and from the looks of it, we’re in for quite the treat when the PS5 releases. AMD, the manufacturers of the current consoles APU chipsets, has come out with some bold claims about when the new consoles will be here, and what kind of power they’ll be sporting. How does Five Times the Power Sound? No one manufacturer has been chosen to supply chipsets for the next generation of consoles, but AMD is pretty confident they will be the ones to do so, seeing as how they’ve been the go-to company for some time now. AMD is developing a new type of architecture called GCN that they believe will be able to put out five times the performance and watts of the current generation. The idea is to make massively more powerful chipsets that still use the same amount of power. As if that wasn’t shocking enough, they also believe they’ll be providing these chips to console makers by 2018, which puts the PS5’s release somewhere in that time frame. The PS4 is currently enjoying massive sales and sports the most powerful graphics hardware currently in a console. This new technology that AMD is working on opens up the possibility for a more powerful PS4, a PS4.5 so to speak. The PS4’s X86 architecture makes it much easier to offer an upgrade than the PS3 which was entirely different with its cell processor architecture. Don’t get too excited though. AMD doesn’t have plans to start making new APU’s until 2018 so it’s not likely that we’ll see a more powerful PS4, but the possibility of one with more energy efficiency and less heat output (i.e a “slim” PS4) is definitely on the table. AMD Predicts a VR-Focused Future AMD has also said that they’ll be shifting a good portion of their focus to VR or virtual reality. This lines up perfectly with the development of PlayStation VR (previously Project Morpheus). Of course, the current generation of consoles aren’t powerful enough to power virtual reality with the level of graphics we expect. Sony is working wonders with their PlayStation VR tech demos, but we won’t be seeing The Order: 1886 on VR this generation. An example is that the PS4 would need to be three times as powerful to run an Oculus Rift with 2160 x 1200 resolution … Read More
PS5 Order Guide, Where and How to Order the PS5
Guide to where you can BUY the PS5 We have put together a guide of where you can purchase the PS5. For those unlucky souls who did not get a pre-order or release date order it has been extremely frustrating for so many Playstation gamers worldwide, even now. You WILL absolutely get your chance to own a PS5 and we will help you do it. Keep checking the links below daily. We will post updates as they become available. If you do get lucky, let us know when and where in the comments below! Updates: While we wish we could be everywhere at once, we sadly cannot. However! There are some helpful folks on Twitter that will often send out alerts before new PS5 stock becomes available. Following them and their on notifications for when they tweet is a great way to boost your chances of scoring a PlayStation 5 this year, especially as we move into the holidays. Here are the folks we recommend you follow: @PS5StockAlerts @GYXdeals @PS5Drop @Warior64 PS5 Inventory is coming in across multiple retailers weekly, specifically with Playstation.com but it really depends retailer by retailer. Global Semiconductor Chip Shortages are also affecting PS5 production. Amazon.com Restocking Intermittently – Sells Out Fast Selling Console, Games, AccessoriesConsole | Digital | Dualsense | Pulse 3D Playstation.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking Faster Now Selling Console, Games, Accessories NewEgg.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console Bundles, Games, Accessories eBay.com In Stock / Expensive! – Only buy from 100% Feedback sellers Selling Console, Games, Accessories OfferUp.com In Stock / Expensive! – !Scammer Alert! Only buy in person or from 100% / TruYou verified sellers Selling Console, Games, Accessories Walmart.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking more than others Selling Console, Games, Accessories Costco.com Physical Stores will have before Xmas (Keep calling store) Selling One Console Bundle BestBuy.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories Gamestop.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories Target.com Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories SamsClub.com Sells Out Fast- Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories B&H Photo Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories Antonline Sells Out Fast – Restocking Intermittently Selling Console, Games, Accessories Game Over, your subscription could not be saved. Please try again. Success, rock on Playstation Gamer. Shhhh don't tell your XBox friends. PS5 Newsletter Subscribe & don’t miss the latest PS5 News! Enter your email address to subscribe Provide your email address to subscribe. For e.g abc@xyz.com SUBSCRIBE Were you able to order? Have a tip!? Let us know! Get the latest Order updates by signing up for our PS5 Newsletter on this page. When something big changes, we will let you know. Don’t be left out like thousands of gamers were when the PS4 pre orders ran out. Bookmark this page and check back daily. Interested in how PS5 shortages got so bad? Check out our full coverage on the semiconductor chip shortage. • Don’t be … Read More
10 Gaming Trends Today that are Influencing the Future
The PS5 is coming, but what form it will take continues to be an object of discussion. To truly predict the future, we would need a time machine, but I think we can all agree that trends can easily lead to standards. Looking at what the industry is doing as a whole gives us a unique and exciting opportunity to see where everyone’s heads are at. This kind of knowledge translates to predictions that we can use. So, without further delay, let’s take a look at ten big trends in the gaming industry right now, and what they mean for the next generation of consoles. Using 10 Trends to Predict the PS5 Keep in mind that these trends can suggest a number of things about the PS5. In some cases, it could affect how we’ll play games on the PS5, or it could affect the types of games we’ll see on the new console. In each case, these trends cause ripples in the gaming industry that lead to other effects. We can’t rule any of them out. Let’s take a look, shall we? 1. Virtual/Augmented Reality Much like how Microsoft and Sony fought the Blu-ray and HD-DVD wars of old, the two are at it again. Sony has PlayStation VR (previous known as Project Morpheus), and Microsoft has the HoloLens. Both are devices you wear on your head that change the game entirely. In the case of PlayStation VR we’re looking at total immersion in another world. You see the game all around you, and you can look in any direction you like as if you were standing there. With the HoloLens, the world in front of you changes or molds to the game’s needs. What does this say for the future? Well, it shows that controllers may not be the gold standard for how we play games in the future. It shows that we may be using other devices (like a headset) to control our games. Whether or not that headset transports us to another world, or augments our own, remains to be seen. 2. Games Come to Life With the rise of things like Skylanders, Disney Infinity, and now Lego Dimensions, it’s clear that games are extending beyond just a disc. We’re seeing toys that interact with the games more so than ever. It’s a 3 billion dollar industry now and still counting. Something that makes this much money isn’t going anywhere. On top of this, we’re also seeing cross-media experiments. Take the Defiance game for example. While the show has since been canceled, the online game ran parallel to the show while it was running. Projects like these that bridge the gap between television and games are starting to emerge as well. From a business standpoint, this increases brand exposure. From a gaming standpoint, it brings the games out into our daily lives and incorporates them into our world. Don’t be surprised if you start interacting with your movies or television in shows on the PS5, or … Read More