Sony is currently planning a new version of the
PS4 with increased graphical power and games running at 4K resolution,
developer sources told Kotaku.
We don’t know whether current PS4 owners will be able to upgrade or
if they’ll have to buy an entirely new device to benefit from this power
boost, but from what we hear, Sony has started briefing developers.
Based on conversations with developers who have spoken with Sony,
this ‘PS4.5’ will include an upgraded GPU both to support high-end 4K
resolution for games and add more processing power that can enhance the
games supported by PlayStation VR, the headset Sony will launch this
fall. It’s unclear if ‘PS4.5’ is an official name or just a nickname
that developers have been using. One developer jokingly called it the
‘PS4K’ while telling me about the device.
In layman’s terms, 4K resolution is around four times the pixel size
of 1080p, which is the current standard for games on PlayStation 4 and
competing consoles. The current PS4 can output 4K photos and videos, but
cannot support 4K resolutions for games. With this upgrade, it would.
Besides resolution, developers would have an opportunity to push more
effects and other graphical tweaks to make their games look better,
thanks to the new GPU.
A more powerful PS4 would also allow the machine to be more
competitive with PCs in the world of virtual reality. With a higher-end
GPU, the PS4 could more easily match up against the more expensive
Oculus Rift and HTC Vive virtual reality headsets, which are designed to
work with powerful PCs.
When contacted yesterday about this report, Sony declined to comment.
“We can’t comment on rumors or speculation,” a spokesperson said in an
e-mail.
The circle of people who knew about this upgraded PS4 was small until
recently. I first heard about the device from one trusted source, then
two.
Kotaku’s Jason Schreier and Stephen Totilo were also able
to independently verify the existence of these hardware plans with their
own developer sources, although some of the details have been vague;
one source told us that the device felt “exploratory” and that it may
not even be released this year.
We’ve also heard that at this week’s Game Developers Conference in
San Francisco, Sony held meetings with developers about the hardware and
how it would work. As we were chasing down this story, coincidentally,
Kotaku UK
EIC Keza MacDonald overheard some developers casually talking about the
machine while on line at GDC. They mentioned the name ‘PS4.5’ and
discussed its increased horsepower, mentioning both 4K resolution and
PlayStation VR.
Our sources aren’t sure when this upgraded machine will ship to
consumers, nor how much it will cost. The PS4’s price dropped from $400
to $350 last fall, and one source indicated that this new ‘PS4.5’ could
let Sony keep selling PS4 hardware at a higher profit margin for $400.
There are still lots of big questions surrounding the device. Will
Sony allow people to trade in their existing PS4s to buy the new
machine? How will developers cope with releasing games on multiple types
of hardware? Could some games
only support PS4.5, as is the
case with the New Nintendo 3DS? When this PS4 goes on sale, will Sony
continue to sell old PS4 hardware at a lower price? How can Sony manage
all this without fragmenting the market?
Right now, we don’t have the answer to those questions.
The PS4.5 may not be alone, either.
I’ve heard whispers about an upgraded Xbox One for a while now, and
Microsoft has been public about the possibility. At a press briefing
earlier this month, Xbox head Phil Spencer hinted to journalists that
his company has been exploring the possibility of evolving hardware. “We
look at these other ecosystems out there like mobile, tablet and PC,”
Spencer told the assembled press, as reported by
Polygon,
“and we see that they have a very continuous evolution cycle in
hardware, whereas between console generations most of the evolution is
making it cheaper and potentially making it smaller.”
Spencer later walked back those comments while speaking on the
Major Nelson podcast,
pouring some water on the idea of a customizable, PC-like Xbox. “Am I
going to break open my console and start upgrading individual pieces of
my console? That’s not our plan,” he said. “There is something special
about what happens with a console. You buy an appliance-like device; you
plug it into your TV; it works when you plug it in. It’s not like I’m
going to ship a screwdriver set with every console that comes out.”
Plans are always changing, and some of the details we’ve heard are
fuzzy, but one thing has become clear: Sony is exploring the possibility
of releasing a more powerful console way before the PlayStation 5. With
both Sony and Microsoft possibly entering new territory, and Nintendo’s
NX on the way, this should be an exciting year for gaming hardware no
matter what comes next.
Source :
Kotaku
