PS5: release date, specs and news for the PlayStation 5

Sony's has officially launched the PS5 and the next-gen console is selling out fast in North America and Europe, including the UK. Stock is extremely scarce right now, so if you're trying to secure the hotly-anticipated hardware, read our guide on where to buy a PS5 and check out our guide to PS5 deals.

PlayStation has always offered more than just games, though. The PS5 hopes to impress with 4K Blu-ray playback, immersive 3D Audio, clever haptic feedback tech and top-notch streaming apps. But how much will the PS5 cost? Will it support Dolby Vision HDR or even 8K? And what will the user PS5 user interface look like?  

The final pieces of the PS5 puzzle have now dropped into place and our own review is imminent. Here's everything we know about the PS5, from the design and spec to 4K games and entertainment apps.

• Read our full, in-depth PS5 review

PS5 stock: the story so far

PS5 pre-orders went live back in September, but stockists promptly sold out. Fast forward to the November PS% release dates and the consoles went on sale in the US, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea on the 12th November and in the UK and rest of Europe on the 19th November. The standard console costs £450 (€500, $500, AU$750), while the PS5 Digital Edition (which lacks a disc drive) is £360 (€400, $400, AU$599).

Needless to say, launch day stock completely sold out with PlayStation boss Jim Ryan forced to admit that "absolutely everything is sold." 

Since the, several major retailers have restocked and Sony has promised more PS5 consoles by the new year. If you're on the hunt, here's the latest tips on where to buy a PS5.

There are actually two versions of the PS5: one with an optical disc drive and a 'Digital Edition' that does without. Both feature a dashboard that's had a "100 per cent overhaul" from the user interface on the PS4. Here's a detailed look at the PS5's sleek user interface, courtesy of Sony. 

Like the 'DualSense' controller, the design of the PS5 consoles are exceptionally stylish. In fact, we'd argue that this could be the most strikingly sculpted games machine ever created. For once, the myriad fanboy-created concepts were too conservative.

New accessories include the Pulse 3D wireless headset, a DualSense Charging Station in which you can dock two controllers at once, and an HD Camera that mimics the look of the console itself. Sony has also taken the time to add a 'Ready for PlayStation 5' logo to its high frame rate-supporting Bravia TVs.

We also now know plenty about the PS5 games line-up, too. Some of the most anticipated PS5 exclusives include Spider Man: Miles Morales and Demon Souls, but there's also Horizon Forbidden West, Call of Duty: Black Ops – Cold War, Gran Turismo 7, Final Fantasy 16, a new God of War game, a rumoured GTA 6 game and yet another entry in the Resident Evil franchise . It's also been reported that the original Metal Gear Solid is being remade exclusively for the PS5.

Sony's March 2020 tech-heavy Road to PS5 event gave us a "deep dive" on the PlayStation 5's architecture, focusing heavily on the inclusion of SSD storage and cast doubt over whether or not the PS5 will support Dolby Atmos (we'll reveal more about that below).

Sony officially confirmed some details, including the official name and rough release date, back in October 2019, and, at CES 2020, Sony confirmed the official PS5 logo. We also know that the PS5 DualShock 5 controller will be called the DualSense controller.

Excited? The PS5 is already hitting stores in North America, Mexico, Canada, Japan, South Korea and Australia. Read on and absorb all of the PlayStation 5 details, and start saving for your next console.

Looking for a new TV to make the most out of your inevitable console purchase next year? Then look no further, for we've found the best TV deals live right now!

With the PS5 in short supply, now is a great time make use of a new PS4. You can find plenty of excellent PS4 deals in both the UK and US.

Where to buy a PS5 in the UK, US and Australia

Keep an eye on the links below to secure your PS5. What little stock was available at launch ran dry almost immediately. You'll need to be logged into the store of your choice and have your wits about you. 

• Amazon: restocking on 3rd Dec – bookmark the page
• Game: restocking on 3rd Dec – sign up for alerts
• Argos: more stock expected "soon" – sign up to receive alerts
• BT: BT customers can order from 8am on 3rd Dec
• EE: EE customers can order from 3rd Dec
• Smyths Toys: out of stock – expected December
• Currys PC World: "working tirelessly to secure more stock" – keep checking
• John Lewis: sold out – check website for stock updates
• Best Buy: sold out – keep refreshing
• Target: restocking on 3rd Dec – keep checking back
• Walmart: restocking at 11am on 3rd Dec– keep checking back
• Amazon AU : currently unavailable – keep checking back
• Sony Store Australia: sold out – sign up for alerts
• JB Hi-Fi: out of stock – check back for further updates

PlayStation 5 release date

Sony confirmed that the PS5 would get not one but two release dates: 12th November in the US, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea, and 19th November in the UK and the rest of the world. 

This sets up a battle royale between the PS5 and new Xbox Series X in time for Christmas 2020 and the holiday season. Pre-coronavirus, Sony planned to reach sales of six millions units by March 2021. Then in early 2020, the company said it had doubled PlayStation 5 production and was aiming to have 10 million units in circulation by that same March date now.

In September 2020, sources told Bloomberg that Sony had struggled with production issues and dropped its PS5 production estimate from 11 million units to 7 million. Could we see a PS5 shortage this Christmas? Stock is certainly in short supply right now, but keep an eye on our PS5 Black Friday deals round-up and you might get lucky.

Games consoles themselves generally sell for very small, if any, profit, and Sony will be looking to the content and services to help recoup costs. The more PS5s the company has out there, the faster that can happen.

• Today's best Xbox Series X pre-order deals
• Our pick of the best gaming headsets for every budget

PlayStation 5 price and availability

One of the biggest questions in tech – how much does the PS5 cost? – has been answered. Sony has announced that the PS5 price will be £449 ($499, €499) while the PS5 Digital Edition of the console will go on sale for £359 ($399, €399) in November.

Most retailers sold out pre-orders within hours, though we've seen UK retailers such as Game, Currys and  JD Williams release new PS5 stock periodically. That's now all but dried up. You can find out where to buy a PS5 using our handy guide and also have one eye on the best PS5 deals.

The good news is that we've seen multiple retailers restocking as recently as the 3rd December. Walmart, Target and Best Buy are good bets for buyers in the US, though quantities are limited, so you need to be quick. 

In the UK, Game, Argos, BT and Amazon restocked at the start of December. Although that batch has now sold out, we expect at least one more big restock before Christmas.

• PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition: which next-gen console is best for you?

As for games, it looks like the new normal could be $70 (£65/$100 AUD) for PS5 games after games publisher 2K announced that its sports sim NBA 2K21 would cost just that. That's a $10 rise on the standard $60 game price.  

That $60 rate came in with the original Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 about 15 years ago. So perhaps this relatively small hike is well overdue and a lot more generous than it could have been.

The good news for you and your bank balance is that many retailers have already begun discounting PS5 games. We've also spotted a number of PS4 titles that include free digital copies of the PS5 game. Check out our best PS5 deals page for full details. 

PlayStation 5 design: what does the PS5 look like?

To our eyes, the PS5 looks even better than anyone predicted. The utilitarian looks of the Xbox Series X have been eschewed in favour of something altogether bolder, more sculpted and more sci-fi. The design of the PS5 will could age quickly, but at the moment, we're impressed.

Sony recently invited a select group of Japanese YouTubers to go hands-on with the PS5. Their first impressions? That the PS5 is big (39 x 26 x 14cm) but blessed with elegant curves. You can watch one of the first PS5 hands-on videos here, courtesy of respected Japanese games publication Famitsu.

Sony also posted its own teardown of the console, giving us a detailed look at the outside and inside of the device. You can watch the whole seven-minute video below. As well as seeing the console in the hands of one of its creators, you'll see the cooling fan, dust catchers, 4K Blu-ray drive and chipset, and hear how Sony spent two years working on perfecting the cooling mechanism using liquid metal. A must for spec fans.

So far, Sony has chosen to show the PS5 almost exclusively in its vertical orientation (it can also be positioned horizontally), where its white shell has the look of a high-collared catsuit with an opening that plunges down further than some might consider decent and creates a 'V' to denote that this is the fifth-generation PlayStation console.

That high, wide collar is separated from the black body of the machine by finned gaps that allow hot air to escape. Rather than hide this functional part of the design, Sony has chosen to highlight it with some lovely blue lighting. This is form and function working as one. According to Japanese news outlet 4gamer, the cooling system is near-silent, so there shouldn't be too much whirring during long sessions. 

A hard-working Redditor called GREBO7 has produced an image comparing the PS5 for size with every recent PlayStation and Xbox console, so you can see how it compares. Spoiler alert: it's massive.

For what it's worth, while the PS5 is much taller than the Xbox Series X (and every other console on the list, for that matter), it is also slimmer, even with the disc drive. The PlayStation 5 Digital Edition is slimmer still, and its slenderness and symmetry make it undeniably the better looking of the two consoles, with the standard version's disc drive looking a little awkward, particularly when they're stood side-by-side. You might even assume that the Digital Edition was designed first, with the disc drive reluctantly added afterwards.

The design includes two slim slots or buttons (they could also be lights but neither was illuminated during the reveal) towards the bottom of the console's front, plus a standard USB-A socket and a USB-C further up. The rear of the machine houses two more USB-A ports, plus those for LAN, HDMI and power.

• Why Variable Refresh Rate could level up your gaming experience

Crucially, the final PS5 design is vastly different from that of the many leaks we've seen in the last few months. On 13th August, a patent was registered as a Sony electronic device and listed Sony technical director Yusuhiro Ootori as its designer. And below, thanks to LetsGoDigital, is a coloured in and graphically rendered version of the the black and white sketch that accompanied the patent.

To call that wide of the mark would be an understatement: this huge, flying V console was almost certainly a developer machine, or a concept for one, and was probably never considered as the final design.

Fancy sprucing up your PS5? One third-party retailer is already offering custom faceplates in five colours (via GamesRadar). 

Here's the official PS5 logo

Sony started its CES 2020 press conference with a segment on the forthcoming PS5 and while no new specs were released or images shown, Sony did confirm the official PS5 logo. 

The design... won't shock you. It stays in line with previous PlayStation logos, keeping it simple with white lines on a black background.

• Grab the best PS4 and PS4 Pro deals ahead of Black Friday

Will the PlayStation 5 have a 4K Blu-ray drive?

Yes, the PS5 will play 4K Blu-rays. Cerny initially only confirmed the PS5 will have an optical disc drive, but we now have confirmation that the disc drive of the standard PlayStation 5 will indeed play 4K Blu-rays.

It was disappointing that the PlayStation 4 didn't include a 4K Blu-ray drive, so we're glad to see Sony supporting the 4K disc format in the new console. Both the Xbox One S and X come with 4K disc drives which gives them extra appeal over the PS4 for home cinema enthusiasts. But the PS5 will bring the Ultra HD Blu-ray fight to Xbox.

Of course, if you're not interested in playing 4K Blu-rays (or buying disc-based versions of games) you can go for the disc drive-less PlayStation 5 Digital Edition instead. 

Sony recently revealed that Netflix, Disney Plus, Apple TV, Spotify, Twitch and YouTube will all be available on the PS5 from day one. Amazon Prime Video, MyCanal, Hulu and Peacock are set to follow. There are no big surprises there, but Apple TV is a welcome addition (Apple TV is not currently available on Xbox consoles but Microsoft is said to be working on it). 

• Feast your eyes on best gaming TVs

Will the PlayStation 5 support 8K video?

Here's the good news: the PS5 does support 8K – it even says so on the box. Now here's the bad news: Sony is yet to enable the feature in the console's settings. As it stands, the PS5 tops out at 4K resolution", according to Digital Foundry.  

What's more, although the PS5 supports the HDMI 2.1 interface there appears to be no way to take advantage of Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) or Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) support. Instead, users must "manually engage game mode for the lowest possible latency." 

Microsoft's new console is similarly limited to 4K, as we discovered in our Xbox Series X review. It does, though, support VRR and ALLM out of the box.

So when will the PS5 be let off the leash? Sony hasn't said when it plans to activate the PS5's 8K functionality but even with an AMD Ryzen chip,  a GPU from the Radeon Navi-family and 825GB of SSD storage, some analysts aren't convinced Sony's machine would have the grunt for true, native 8K gaming.

It may be possible with simpler games when upscaling but we already know that Gran Turismo 7, for example, will not be in 8K. The game's creator, Kazunori Yamauchi, said: "I think, display resolution-wise, 4K resolution is enough." 

With 8K TVs still far from mainstream, it seems that Sony is focussing on the fact that the selected PS5 games will support 4K gaming at 120Hz. They include: Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition, DIRT 5, Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege.

Of course, it's worth noting that you'll need a compatible TV to be able to enjoy the high frame rates and resolution potential of the PS5. While the current choice isn't as vast as you might think, many new TVs do support 4K/120fps over HDMI. (This resolution and frame rate pairing is actually an HDMI 2.1 feature, although just because a TV supports HDMI 2.1 doesn't necessarily mean it supports 4K/120fps, and vice versa.) These compatible TVs include LG's 2020 OLED TV range, most of Samsung's 2020 QLED TVs. Sony has also recently launched a 'Ready for PlayStation 5' logo for its Bravia TVs to help make sure you're buying the right one.

As for HDR, both the PS4 and PS4 Pro are already HDR-enabled, supporting the HDR10 format, and there’s no reason to believe that this would be any different for the PS5. 

The latest news on this subject is that the the PS5 does support HDR10 but seems to lack support for both Dolby Vision video and Dolby Atmos sound. Although Sony hasn't ruled out either format, they are conspicuously absent from Sony's official PS5 FAQs page, which speaks volumes in our opinion.

Of course, the PS5 does have its own solution to 3D audio, powered by the bespoke Tempest Engine, but this requires the use of headphones and, to the best of our knowledge, only works with games.

As for the Xbox Series X, it does support Dolby Vision via streaming services and is due to get it for specific games in 2021, but doesn't currently support it for Blu-rays. 

PS5 audio: will the PS5 support Dolby Atmos?

Whereas the Xbox Series X supports Dolby Vision via streaming services and is due to get it for specific games in 2021, Sony has decided to go its own way. 

Look up the question "which audio formats does PS5 support?" on Sony's official FAQs page and you'll spot a number of formats listed. Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio are front and centre, but there's there's no mention of Dolby Atmos or DTS:X.

Has Sony chosen not to list the formats? Is it simply an oversight? It seems unlikely, especially as the the formats that Sony does list max out at either 5.1 or 7.1 channels. For now, it appears that the PS5 does not support Atmos and DTS:X.

On a more positive note, PlayStation’s lead architect and console producer, Mark Cerny, has promised that the PS5 will herald a new ‘gold standard’ in audio, but this will be delivered using Sony's own technology.

The PS5 will output native 3D audio using a newly-designed 'Tempest 3D AudioTech' with Cerny stating that he wanted to include processing for far more than the 32 objects he claimed Dolby Atmos is limited to (Dolby has since refuted that claim).

If you want to experience 3D audio on the new PS5 or PS5 Digital Edition, you'll need to invest in a pair of Pulse 3D headphones (£90/$99/€99). As it stands, and to the best of our knowledge, Sony's Tempest tech only works with games rather than video streams or Blu-rays discs. If so, that gives makes the Xbox Series X the better machine for playing movies.

Itching to experience 3D Audio? A handful of top developers recently revealed how they're putting the tech to good use. According to Returnal director, Harry Krueger, "in a fast-paced action game with lots of verticality, [3D Audio] can help with the player’s situational awareness, and make it more intuitive for players to pinpoint the locations of nearby enemies".

Could the PS5 also be compatible with Sony's own 360 Reality Audio format? It seems highly likely.

For now, it looks like gamers who want to extract the most immersive possible audio experience from their PS5 are limited to Sony's Tempest-compatible Pulse 3D headphones. 

The Japanese tech giant has bold plans for Tempest, though. According to PlayStation boss Mark Cerny: "We’re in the process of working on virtual surround sound through speakers that are built into TVs. Although TV speaker virtual surround sound won’t be available on launch day for PS5, it’s still a feature we are extremely excited about, and our engineers are hard at work on bringing it to PS5 in the future."

PlayStation 5: DualSense controller

With each new PlayStation comes a new DualShock controller, except this time it doesn't. Sony has gone to the next level and created the DualSense controller to partner the PS5. You can get a good look at the controller, including its LEDs, in this Japanese hands-on video.

It's a sleek and modern-looking design with a two-tone finish instead of the standard single hue of the DualShocks. Sony has promised that the new controller "will captivate more of your senses as you interact with the virtual worlds in PS5 games. The features of DualSense, along with PS5’s Tempest 3D AudioTech, will deliver a new feeling of immersion to players."

That added immersion is set to come across primarily through a more evolved sense of touch. Haptics have replaced the rumble technology to create a broader range of more realistic feedback. Players will now get more nuanced sensations such as the slow grittiness of driving a car through mud.

The L2 and R2 trigger buttons feature adaptive, programmable resistance so that players can feel more or less tension through certain actions. If you're a PS4 user, it's worth noting that 'X' will be the PS5's confirmation button, rather than 'O'.

DualSense is, of course, wireless. So far, there are no official details on how long you get from a single charge but Sony has stressed that it's tried to maintain a strong battery life. 

Thanks to this teardown video by YouTuber Tronicsfix we now know that the PS5's DualSense controller will have a much larger capacity battery than the current PS4 DualShock controller (1,560mAh vs 1000mAh).

That large jump in capacity will drive the PS5 controller's beefier haptic motors and adaptive triggers. That said, our feeling is that battery technology has improved so much in the last few years that it would be a surprise if the PS5 controller didn't last longer than its predecessor.

The PS5 controller also has a built-in microphone array and speaker, which means players can chat to their friends without the need for a gaming headset, and the 'Share' button has been replaced by a new 'Create' button. It's to "create epic gameplay content to share with the world" according to Sony. More details on what that entails are promised closer to launch.

To fit these new components, the style and shape of the new controller has been tweaked. The angle of the hand triggers has been changed and the grip updated too. The aim is to make the DualSense still feel light and small. The light bar has also shifted to the sides of the touchpad from its position on top of the DualShock 4, which is a rather pleasing aesthetic if nothing else.

It's not all change, though. The same teardown video also reveals that the PS5 controller will sport the same analog joysticks found on the current DualShock 4 controller.

If, for whatever reason, you can't stand the thing, then the PlayStation 5 should be backwards compatible with the PS4 controller.

PlayStation 5: SSD storage

According to Cerny's March 2020 PS5 update, an internal SSD was the most requested feature by game developers and, as expected, that's exactly what the PS5 will deliver. According to Cerny, compared to an HDD, it offers 100x faster load speeds which means no load screens, ultra fast streaming and ultra fast boot speeds too.

In real terms, streaming is apparently so fast that a game can load all the graphics and textures behind an online player faster than the player can run around. In a recent hands-on demo, Japanese gamers reported that players could restart after dying in the "blink of an eye". 

As Brian Horton, creative director of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, recently commented, the PS5's "near-instant" loading times will allow game developers to create ultra-detailed 4K scenes – without fear of keeping users waiting. 

Ari Arnbjörnsson, working on third-person sci-fi shooter Returnal, has even questioned the point of splitting PS5 games into levels: "What does it mean for developers when everything can be loaded from the disk that fast? Will we even need the concept of 'levels' anymore?” 

Just a few days ago, Sony showed off the PS5's "instant loading" capability in this preview of the console user experience. The new Control Center features "Activity cards" that allow users to dive in an out of levels and challenges with a single press of the PlayStation button on the PS5's DualSense controller. If the video is accurate, there appears to be almost no menu lag. 

The PS5's SSD is a custom unit with a capacity of 825GB. That's big, but not absolutely huge, especially when you consider how much space next-gen games are likely to take up. (And the fact that PS5 will reserve around 20 per cent of the 825GB internal for operating functions, leaving around 664GB usable for software).

Thankfully, you can expand the console's storage, although doing so is a little complicated and won't be cheap.

You can connect an external hard drive via USB, but it seems likely that such a drive won't be fast enough to handle PS5 games. In which case, there are a couple of potential uses for an external USB hard drive that we can think of: to store PS4 games, and as a backup for the PS5 games you aren't currently playing but don't want to delete. The latter use would negate the need to re-download a game from the internet, potentially making it much quicker to get back into the action.

You can also expand the internal SSD storage. We know, thanks to Digital Foundry, that you are going to have to get a particularly fast, PlayStation-approved, PCIe 4.0-based drive – a standard SSD won't necessarily have the speed to play PS5 games.

In late October, Marlon Gaming Nation (@GamesAndWario) tweeted a photo that reportedly shows Walmart will charge $115 (£90, AU$160) for a third-party 500GB PS5 SSD. Presumably, the 1TB SSD upgrade would cost around $200.

At least we're talking about SSDs that are (or at least will become) of an industry standard and aren't bespoke for PlayStation: a patent that leaked on 5th November 2019 showed sketches of a mystery cartridge that many believed was an expandable SSD storage module for the PS5, but that appears now to not be the case. That's probably a good thing, as it means prices will be defined by the market as a whole and not by Sony.

PS5 accessories

As well as revealing the design of the PS5 console itself, Sony used its June PlayStation event to reveal a number of PS5 accessories.

The most interesting of the bunch is undoubtedly the Pulse 3D headset (£89, $99, AU$160), which we expect Sony to push as the primary way to enjoy the PS5's new 3D audio. In design terms, it doesn't look dissimilar to the current Platinum Wireless Headset, albeit with much more matte white on show. Given how good Sony's last couple of gaming headsets have been, we've got high hopes for this new model.

Sony's also made a reassuringly big deal of its new Media Remote, which looks designed to make using the PS5 as a 4K Blu-ray player and video streamer all the more intuitive.

We've also now seen the DualSense Charging Station (for docking and charging two controllers at once) and HD Camera, and yet more accessories will surely be announced closer to launch.

We've also just started seeing third-party PS5 accessories arriving. The Audeze Penrose wireless gaming headsets have PS5 and Xbox Series X in mind. Both headsets feature the US firm's highly regarded 100mm planar magnetic drivers, in addition to a detachable 'broadcast quality' boom mic for chat and streaming. Audeze says the mic is capable of reducing an impressive 20dB of background noise, so you should be able to clearly hear fellow gamers sling insults at each other.

One thing the PS5 won't have is a classic digital optical audio port (as seen on the PS4 and PS4 Pro). That tallies with Microsoft's decision to drop the port on the Xbox Series X.

While Sony hasn't officially confirmed the news, gaming headset manufacturer Astro let the cat out of the bag during a press briefing. The company also confirmed that it will offer an HDMI-to-optical splitter for the PS5, which should allow 4K passthrough for video without causing any additional lag.

Several of the most popular accessories – including the Pulse 3D headset - are currently sold out in both the UK and the US. But here's where to buy a PS5, as well the best retailers for PS5 accessories. 

Will the PS5 be PSVR compatible?

Most definitely. Comments from Mark Cerny point towards an even bigger VR push from Sony with the PS5. VR technology is set to be hard designed into the build of the GPU. He didn’t mention whether there would be a PlayStation VR2 headset launched to go with the PS5, though.

Given PSVR is not as strong on resolution as other headsets such as the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive it could make sense to launch a suitably powerful and impressive next-generation headset with the new console.

One interesting twist is Sony may be working on a 3D hologram accessory for the PS5 for multiplayer games. A light emitter with an eye tracker could project an image directly to the user's retina to give the impression of a hologram floating in mid-air. Exactly what images Sony has in mind is another thing but you may want to reconsider multiplayer gaming in your pants.

Which PlayStation 5 games have been announced?

GamesRadar reports that PS5 games now available to pre-order through the updated PS Store. Here are the first raft of games that are coming to PS5:

Astro’s Playroom (Japan Studio) 

Demon’s Souls (Bluepoint Games / Japan Studio)

Destruction All Stars (Lucid Games / XDEV)

Gran Turismo 7 (Polyphony Digital)

Horizon Forbidden West (Guerrilla Games)

Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales (Insomniac Games)

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (Insomniac Games)

Returnal (Housemarque / XDEV)

Sackboy A Big Adventure (Sumo Digital / XDEV)

Bugsnax (Young Horses)

Deathloop (Bethesda)

Ghostwire (Tokyo (Bethesda)

Godfall (Gearbox Publishing / Counterplay Games)   

Goodbye Volcano High (KO-OP)

Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online (Rockstar Games)

Hitman 3 (IO Interactive)

JETT : The Far Shore (Superbrothers)

Kena: Bridge of the Spirits (Ember Lab)

Little Devil Inside (Neostream Interactive)

NBA 2K21 (2K, Visual Concepts)

Oddworld Soulstorm (Oddworld Inhabitants™)

Pragmata (Capcom)

Project Athia (Square Enix/Luminous Productions)

Resident Evil Village (Capcom)

Solar Ash (Annapurna Interactive / Heart Machine)

Stray (Annapurna / Blue Twelve Studio)

Tribes of Midgard (Gearbox Publishing / Norsfell)

The Pathless (Annapurna Interactive / Giant Squid)

These games are all either exclusive to PS5 or will arrive on PS5 before any other console. Astro's Playroom will come bundled with the PS5. 

A recent Sony advert posted on YouTube confirms that Gran Turismo 7, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Returnal are all expected to launch in the first half of 2021, while Horizon Forbidden West is due to hit stores in the second half of 2021.

We are also aware of plenty of other games that are on the way, including Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Cyberpunk 2077, Outriders, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum, FIFA 21,  Madden 21, Quantum Error, Cris Tales, Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One, Dustborn, Metal: Hellsinger, Chivalry 2, Paradise Lost, Dirt 5, WRC 9, Chorus, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, and Observer: System Redux, Bioshock, Battlefield 6, Call of Duty Warzone.  

According to Gamesindustry.biz, Ubisoft is planning to launch Watch Dogs Legion, Rainbow Six Quarantine and Gods & Monsters on PS5. It's also been reported that the original version of Metal Gear Solid is being remade and will be exclusive to the PS5.

That's already enough to get our teeth into and we're expecting plenty more besides. There's even talk of a PS5-enhanced version of The Last of Us: Part 2 in development, and the still-far-off The Elder Scrolls 6 will almost certainly one day make it to the PlayStation 5.

PS5 games: will the PS5 be backwards compatible?

‘Incredibly powerful’: that’s how Sony has described the backwards compatibility of the PS5. That's potentially good news for PS4 owners who don’t wish to upgrade just yet but still want to play online with their friends that do.

The PS5's backwards compatibility will not cover every PS4 game but, in a blog post, PlayStation's Hideaki Nishino stated that "we believe that the overwhelming majority of the 4,000+ PS4 titles will be playable on PS5".

It seems that games are being made backwards compatible on a title-by-title basis, with the upshot that PS4 games that do run on the PS5 will do so with "higher or more stable frame rates and potentially higher resolutions".

According to VGC, PS4 games will have their loading times "drastically improved" ahead of their arrival on PS5. The website claims PlayStation 4's The Last of Us: Remastered previously took over a minute to load but takes just 14 seconds on PS5. VGC also reports that Until Dawn could appear without an loading screens at all. 

There's bad news for PS3 owners, though. The PS5 will not support games from the PS3 or its predecessors, according to Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan.

That likely won't come as a huge surprise to gamers. Back in August, French games studio Ubisoft posted a comment on its support site that claimed backwards compatibility would be enabled for "supported PlayStation 4 titles" but would "not be possible for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 or PlayStation games".

It's also worth noting that PS3, PSP and PS Vita games are no longer available in the updated version of the PS Store, which is currently being rolled out around the world.

Lastly, Sony has told PlayStation 4 game developers that any new titles submitted for certification after 13th July must also be compatible with PlayStation 5.

PlayStation 5 gaming

It's believed Sony will increase its focus on the subscription-based PlayStation Now cloud gaming platform and its Remote Play feature too.

Microsoft and Sony recently announced that they're working together on cloud computing technologies, which will almost certainly give a boost to PlayStation Now. To date, the platform has been incomplete as far as top gaming titles go and there have been issues with lag and disconnects.

Sony also filed a patent back in 2014 for a service where PlayStation games on the platform could be streamed to user devices other than the console itself – something to rival the Google Stadia and Microsoft xCloud platforms.

Sony is looking to 5G technology to help out while gaming on the move with Remote Play. The service currently allows players to stream games from their consoles to other devices such as tablets, mobiles and the handheld PS Vita. However, this might be bundled in as part of an all-new online platform.

Another interesting part of the connectivity proposal is that it could link players up to a voice assistant. Rumours are that Sony is working on a service which can provide in-game help including whereabouts of game objects as well as hints and tips. If applied with the proper contextual cues, it should be far more efficient than a separate internet search. "Ok, PlayStation. Give me the cheat codes!"

As for 4K gaming, an anonymous tipster recently suggested that the PS5 might 'struggle' to run 4K games at 60fps. The same leaker also claimed that the PS5 could be saddled with 'fake' 4K games, featuring scenes that the console would have to upscale from a lower resolution to native 4K resolution.

However, TeamKill Media, the game developer behind PS5 first-person shooter Quantum Error quickly shot down those rumours. The US-based outfit tweeted that the cosmic-horror corridor shooter is "currently running at 4K 65-70 FPS unoptimized" on PS5, before adding, "We will be hitting our goal of 4K 60FPS."

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