Thursday, June 11th 2020

Sony Showcases Two PlayStation 5 Console Versions, Platform-Exclusive Next Generation Games

Sony today via a livestream finally showcased their hardware design for the next generation of consoles, and let's get one thing right out of the way: the company will be launching two console versions. This is a relatively unexpected twist - unexpected, because if anything, we were expecting two new consoles from Microsoft (remember the Lockhart rumors?), not from Sony. However, the PS5 will be eventually launching in two versions - a mainline console, and an all-digital spinoff.

For now, details are all but absent - the only thing we know for sure is that the digital version of the PS5 won't be carrying a 4K BluRay player. That will undoubtedly reduce the final pricing of the digital version compared to the mainline console. It's unclear whether this console has some sort of streaming integration with a service such as PS Now, offloading games processing to the cloud. If it doesn't, though, and if the only hardware difference between the two versions is the presence of the 4K BluRay player, we're likely talking about a $100/€100 difference - tops. Remember that the Xbox One S, which currently retails for around $250, too possesses a 4K Blu Ray player, so there's only so much that can be recouped from cutting that particular hardware piece. As you might've guessed by now, pricing is still being manifested as if it were a unicorn.

The overall PS5 design is a sleek combination of whites and blues - something that was already teased with the Dual Sense controller reveal. The design is like that of a sleek spacecraft, with organic curves, blue lighting and an Alienware-esque outlook, and is nothing like some expected the console to be in terms of size. It remains to be seen how Sony has managed to dissipate the heat being output by the admittedly powerful hardware inside the console - one would expect not to see a repeat of the roaring jet engine present in the PS4 Pro.

The look also raises the question of whether the console can lay on its side. The relatively thin design likely means the console is taller than the Xbox Series X, which could make it difficult to fit in some entertainment cabinets - whether vertically or horizontally. However, the existence of that black stand and the console's own curved design seem to put a horizontal orientation out of consideration; this could be a very, very relevant detail for some users. Take a peek at the PS5 hardware reveal trailer below.


When it comes to games, Sony showcased some known quantities from their first-party studios. Horizon: Forbidden West promises to expand on the world, gameplay and concepts seen in the original, amazing Horizon: Zero Dawn (which is hitting the PC scene soon enough, mind you). A new Ratchet and Clank game, under the subtitle Rift Apart, was also showcased. There was some Pixar-quality level of detail there, with the newfound power of the new SSD architecture showcasing nanosecond-level environment transitions, and raytracing being very well-represented in real-time reflections.

Gran Turismo 7 was also showcased, with unprecedented, jaw-dropping levels of detail seen on car models, real-time environment reflections being showcased on the cars' sides and hoods, and beautiful lighting. A new, PS5-exclusive Square Enix game in the form of Project Athia is being developed by Luminous Productions, the same developers of Final Fantasy XV, though not much was shown regarding that one. That's just some of the games, and below, are some of the trailers. Check a complete list of the revealed games after the videos, by order of reveal in the livestream.






Games announced on the PlayStation livestream:
  • Grand Theft Auto 5 ("expanded and enhanced" - Rockstar Games/2K) - 2021
  • Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Insomniac Games) - Holiday 2020
  • Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital) - TBA
  • Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Insomniac Games) - TBA
  • Project Athia (Luminous Productions/Square Enix) - TBA
  • Stray (Bluetwelve/Annapurna Interactive) - 2021
  • Returnal (Housemarque/SIE Worldwide Studios) - TBA
  • Sackboy: A Big Adventure (Sumo Digital) - TBA
  • Destruction Allstars (Lucid) - TBA
  • Kena: Bridge of Spirits (Ember Lab) - TBA
  • Goodbye Volcano High (KO_OP Mode) - 2021
  • Oddworld: Soulstorm (Oddworld Inhabitants) - TBA
  • Ghostwire: Tokyo (Tango Gameworks) - 2021
  • Jett: The Far Shore (Superbrothers & Pine Scented) - Holiday 2020
  • Godfall (Counterplay Games/Gearbox) - Holiday 2020
  • Solar Ash (Heart Machine) - 2021
  • Hitman 3 (IO Interactive) - January 2021
  • Astro's Playroom (Japan Studio/Team Asobi) - TBA
  • Little Devil Inside (Neostream) - TBA
  • NBA 2K21 (2K) - Fall 2020
  • BugSnax (Young Horses) - Holiday 2020
  • Demon's Souls Remake (BluePoint Games/Japan Studio) - TBA
  • Deathloop (Arkane Lyon/Bethesda Softworks) - TBA
  • Resident Evil 8: Village (Capcom) - 2021
  • Pragmata (Capcom) - 2022
  • Horizon: Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games) - TBA
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113 Comments on Sony Showcases Two PlayStation 5 Console Versions, Platform-Exclusive Next Generation Games

#101
hat
Enthusiast
Well, backups are certainly good, but not always possible. At least, not easily. For older console games, it's very easy to at least grab an emulator and find the ISOs. But on original hardware, for PS1 games, fort example, you're fighting the death of optical media and the drive that reads them. It's not totally unserviceable, but it is an obstacle. My point was that bad things can happen whether you have a physical copy or a digital copy. Neither one is totally safe, but there's also a way to work around obstacles that do exist in either situation.

FWIW, I do believe having the option to use physical copies is better than not having it. I'm not for one or against the other, but rather for both together.
Posted on Reply
#102
Valantar
hatDid you miss this part?
That works very poorly on a console, given that DRM is typically implemented on a system/kernel level and hacks are ever more rare (and ever easier to patch out thanks to consoles now being always online). Emulators are practical, but a poor overall replacement for playing on actual hardware. And good luck emulating modern X86-based consoles on any hardware launched in the coming 30-40 years - that's not going to happen.

To change, this needs publishers and platform holders to actually treat their customers with some respect, which is unlikely to happen. If owners of semi-abandoned platforms started deactivating DRM protections on them and allowing users to permanently download and archive their collections of games, that would be the best solution by far - but that won't happen, sadly. They would rather piss off millions of people if even 1% of them re-buy the games on a newer platform. Capitalism at its finest.
rvalenciaMy "GPU design house" statement is made with Sony's partner selection context and this topic is about Sony's PS5.

videocardz.com/newz/intel-xe-dg1-still-slower-than-radeon-rx-560-and-geforce-gtx-1050-ti
Intel DG1 is slower than RX 560 and GTX 1050 Ti which exceeds PS4. Intel is slowly building it's GPU design team.
Even by that metric, Apple needs to be included too - the GPU in their A12X iPad Pro SoC has raw compute power comparable to current-gen entry-level consoles (though of course raw FLOPS doesn't necessarily translate to gaming performance, but that's another matter), and all within a <10W power envelope. Intel reportedly needs ~75W to reach the same performance level. We have no idea how well Apple's design would scale up (particularly with dedicated VRAM), but it nonetheless delivers outstanding compute and graphics power for its class. As for the context of Sony's partner selection - Intel sure wasn't an option there, and likely will never be, nor is Nvidia really as they have much more lucrative markets to focus on (datacenter and HPC) rather than the relatively slim margins and major effort required for a semi-custom console project. Nvidia is present in consoles only through Nintendo adopting their already existing (and at that point already old) SoC for the Switch - but again, there weren't really any alternatives there either. And there's nothing indicating that Nvidia wants to develop a new consumer-facing SoC for a Switch follow-up - they haven't done anything like that for anyone in a long time, and all of their consumer-facing SoC development is cancelled. Even with the success of the Switch I doubt that's enough to get Nvidia to design a new SoC for Nintendo (though I'd be glad to be proven wrong here). Nvidia is by no means a flexible or accommodating company; they make what they think is best.
Posted on Reply
#103
Turmania
Heart says PlayStation, brain says Xbox,wallet says nintendo....
Posted on Reply
#104
hat
Enthusiast
ValantarThat works very poorly on a console, given that DRM is typically implemented on a system/kernel level and hacks are ever more rare (and ever easier to patch out thanks to consoles now being always online). Emulators are practical, but a poor overall replacement for playing on actual hardware. And good luck emulating modern X86-based consoles on any hardware launched in the coming 30-40 years - that's not going to happen.
I believe I've already pointed that out, in the post directly above yours. Admittedly, not from the angle you're coming from, but I do mention that it's not always easy to back up games on console. At least with Playstation, there's always a way. Mod chips, softmods,or jailbreaks that don't always work on current firmware, which can also be defeated by a hardware flasher or something. Of course, it's not easy, and it's definitely not as easy as it should be, but it can be done...
ValantarTo change, this needs publishers and platform holders to actually treat their customers with some respect, which is unlikely to happen. If owners of semi-abandoned platforms started deactivating DRM protections on them and allowing users to permanently download and archive their collections of games, that would be the best solution by far - but that won't happen, sadly. They would rather piss off millions of people if even 1% of them re-buy the games on a newer platform. Capitalism at its finest.
Huh, wait, what? Treat customers with respect? Now, there's a revolutionary idea... :peace:
Posted on Reply
#105
lexluthermiester
TurmaniaHeart says PlayStation, brain says Xbox,wallet says nintendo....
Go with your wallet. You'll enjoy yourself more.
Posted on Reply
#106
Lionheart
Looks awesome to me, I don't know why you ego feeding cry babies dislike it so much.
Posted on Reply
#107
Shatun_Bear
I like the super sleek and futuristic design, I just hope there are some exclusives at launch that wow me.
Posted on Reply
#108
ARF
Ratchet & Clank is a series that prides itself on exploration of exotic worlds and bringing you to places you've never been before, and that's something that we're really striving for and that PS5 has really allowed with just increased horsepower. The number of objects in the world and the things to explore, the enemies around, the effects, everything is more, more, more.

This is what we're trying to do, build worlds that feel real and are bringing you in. You're exploring these brand new spaces. This is something that we never could have done on previous generations.

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a game that utilizes dimensions and dimensional rifts. That would not have been possible without the solid-state drive of the PlayStation 5. The SSD is screamingly fast. It allows us to build worlds and project players from one place to another in near instantaneous speeds. It is an unbelievable game-changer in terms of we can now do gameplay where you're in one world and the next moment you're in another.

We're loading up levels and that happens so quickly and in the action that you don't even imagine that this is something we couldn't do before, because it feels so natural. Long gone are loading screens. Now it's all about bringing exciting new adventures.
wccftech.com/insomniac-ps5-ssd-is-screamingly-fast-and-a-game-changer-dualsense-controller-makes-weapons-feel-more-powerful/
Posted on Reply
#109
Spencer LeBlanc
ValantarYes, but as an adult, have you built models based on those drawings and featured them prominently in your living room? I didn't think so ;)


I guess if you meld that with this, you do indeed have something looking like the PS5 :D

I can absolutely enjoy some over the top designs, but this just goes way beyond that and plants both feet + its ass directly in a heaping pile of "tacky". The design style is squarely mid-2000s, the shiny white plastic will look poor in real life compared to renders, the flowy shape will stand out next to anything and thus just emphasize the size of this thing, and the blue LED just screams "hey, I'm 13 years old!" There are many possible points on the axis between "bland and boring" and "over-the-top tacky", yet this seems to have aimed squarely for the latter pole. I don't think the XSX is the best design ever either, but at least it has some subtlety to it.


All consoles have plastic housings. Anything else is far too expensive. Plastic shell, steel inner cage to ensure rigidity and RF compliance.
There is a difference between, plastic, and cheap plastic though.
Posted on Reply
#110
Valantar
Spencer LeBlancThere is a difference between, plastic, and cheap plastic though.
Yes, but any plastic outside of exotic and expensive ones (which definitely aren't going to be used in a mass-produced and cost-sensitive/sold-at-a-loss console) will be flexible and weak when used in a design like this with large unsupported overhangs. No doubt there will be structural elements on the backs of the panels where they can't be seen to make them more rigid (honeycomb patterning or some such), but there clearly isn't on the visible overhangs, which means they will be weak no matter what. I'm willing to bet we'll be seeing quite a few PS5s on the used market in a few years with cracked or broken top corners. It's a clear weak point. Not that it will matter for functionality (as stated in the previous post, the steel housing is what holds it together, the plastic is for aesthetics), but it won't be a durable design. (There is of course also the issue that plastic has near zero scratch resistance (I've caused scratches in shiny plastic by wiping dust off it with a dry microfibre cloth) which will mean that not only won't the design look as clean in real life as it does in renders, it will inevitably degrade further with time (unless you are one of those disturbing people who leaves the plastic wrapping on their electronics).) Also, I never said "cheap plastic" did I?
Posted on Reply
#112
AsRock
TPU addict
HAHA, more Marvel crap. now they made Spider Man black haha, Like OMG can they just not make a new hero up and stop doing this retarded shit.


Anyways i will wait thanks, see how it goes and see if they replace it 6-12 months later and all so see what games are worth playing.
Posted on Reply
#113
Super XP
lexluthermiesterMe neither.

Also, the digital only version can suck it...


Yeah, really needs red.
Would love to see Black & Red.
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