Playstation 5

It is 2018, PlayStation is top dog in the console war and we have witnessed a huge surge in computer performance enhancements over the last year. From VR tech to GPU and CPU performance, Sony’s PlayStation has tried to push the limits with there PS4 Pro which is barely 2 years ago. It promised better graphics and FPS rates at a steady 60, optimal for gaming. People lapped it up and spent more money on the PS4 originally cost. The console had a piece of AMD downclocked GPU hardware upgrade. I didn’t notice the 400e difference! It was a bold move 2 years after the original PS4 and 1 year on from the Slim PS4, an expensive move for the consumer who basically wanted to get the most out of VR (Which to me seems like a flop but its still hanging around persistently). And now we have had a huge leak revealing a PlayStation 5!?

Whats all the commotion?

It all started with an old name in the console ‘leak’ arena: Semiaccurate

These guys said there would be a Playstation “evolution” for the PS4, a ps4.1, 4.2, and 4.3, Not a revolutionary console. Everyone laughed at them back in 2013 as everyone else expecting the revolutionary once-off console, but look and behold what we have today, 3 versions of the same console.

So Semiaccurate is somewhat reliable when it comes to console predictions and they have struck again saying Sony will release a PlayStation 5 or “NEXT”. Semiaccurate claims that the next PlayStation will use AMD’s 8-core custom Zen processor, as well as AMD’s next-generation Navi GPU. Its suspected a 2018 release could happen, or at least an announcement at E3. As for a release, that is more than likely for 2019. Most of all this information points to sony “forcing” their VR upon the market as it seems a lot of the hardware/ software upgrades are focused on VR performance and let us not forget our recent 100 euro drop on the VR headset price.

Either way, we will have a ‘next’ next Gen console before 2020 and more development on Virtual Reality gameplay, if we like it or not.

A big problem

Understandably, some people are not happy, And I am one of them!

I have been a PlayStation fan since I was 8, I have a huge collection of PS games from 1 straight through to 3 but not 4!

Developers have made it known how notorious Sony is for being difficult to deal with when it comes to publishing games for the PS4. This did not seem to be the case on previous consoles, I mean there are 2569 PlayStation 1 games, more than 3,874 game titles for the PS2 since launch and there are currently 1436 games on PS3. As for the PS4, There are currently 1760 games on this list. This is more than PS3 granted, but the majority of the difference is made up by online PSN indie titles.

I worshipped Sony for all the awesome games they would publish, you could tell they had the game developers back. I could not keep up with the number of games, it left me in a position where I still find gems even today for my PS2 and PS3. You could say quality over quantity for PS4 but at the price for a single game now it easier to feel hard done by with the lack of ‘face melting’ exclusives. Let’s face it, there is not as much quality as previous older consoles and the recent trend in remastering PS3 and PS1 games testifies to the ability of quantity and quality the previous gen’s had. Sony had the mix right before but something has gone astray as of late.

I feel the PS4 has not touched near its full potential yet! Far Cry 5’s graphics and the complexity of upcoming games such as God of War.

So why do we need a PlayStation 5!

Greed

Well, we don’t!

Sony coins the slogan “for the players” yet it started the PS4 out by charging for online gaming. I say this to make a point, this was the first glimpse of greed I saw Sony forcibly pushed into its community.

I was outraged and felt betrayed, after all, it was the bragging rights over Xbox for the duration of the PS3. Are we seeing another half  evolution of a cosole we already know just to grab our pockets? Will VR be mandatory and a subscription service apply? Or is it all simply to justify the expensive R&D gone into the VR? Maybe I’m overthinking but as they say: ‘fool me once’!

Truth

The truth is the PS4 has loads more to offer!

If your talking upgrades then we want a gaming console that has backward compatability, not forced to rebuy on PSN. We want a console that is on the border of a PC, one which is upgradable and cross-platform. After all, we are a gaming community, we want to play on fun free terms, we do not want to pay for online gaming with our friends.

After all its “for the players” so let us play together without restriction.