Sony recently revealed fresh PlayStation 5 details, including that it will, in fact, be called PlayStation 5, it has a holiday 2020 release window, it will have a controller with haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, it includes a 4K Blu-ray drive that can read 100GB optical discs, and much more.

Though we've learned quite a bit about PS5, there's still a decent amount of confusion around this next-gen hardware. To combat this, we've gathered several questions across the internet, and have done our best to answer many of the most common ones using the information Sony has decided to share, and our own industry knowledge.

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What's PS5's price?

"So I'm thinking Xbox and PS5 are $500. I feel like they'll aim just a tad higher than they did last generation launch. To better future proof the systems." - Adavanter, IGN commenter

"Any pricing info?" - u/Dolphins_96

"Price?" - @YannickElManss5

Obviously price is going to be one of the biggest determining factors in purchasing a new console. Especially at the launch of a new console generation, price can be make-or-break in not just what fans choose to purchase at launch but in swaying the momentum a console’s sales can carry through going forward.

Unfortunately, we don’t know anything about the PS5’s price at this point. Lead architect for the system Mark Cerny said earlier this year that the price would be “appealing to gamers in light of its advanced feature set,” which… doesn’t really tell us much.

But, it’s worth looking back at history to get some sense of what price we may be looking at. The PS4 in 2013 launched at $399, undercutting the Xbox One’s $499 launch price that same year, while the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X took on those same prices during their respective launches.

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Sony and launch prices are also a sore subject for the company — the PS3 $500 and $600 launch price points, along with comments about taking on a second job to pay for them — set the PS3 back at launch sales-wise and never really allowed it to recover until late in its life.

We’re likely in for a staring contest, as Sony and Microsoft wait to see who blinks first on price. Given the discussions of lightning-fast solid state drives, support of ray tracing and 8K, and much more jargon that, to an uniniated consumer might not mean much, I’d wager we’re looking at either a $399 or $499 price point. I’m leaning toward the higher price based on Cerny’s comments, but if Sony really wants to get PS5’s into homes, $399 is a great sweet spot. Consoles are traditionally sold at a loss when they launch, and so if Sony is really looking to push the console into as many homes as quickly as possible, they may be willing to take a larger loss upfront to power a stronger generation in the long run.

When is PS5's release date?

"Does holiday means December like Christmas or summer holidays?" - @Yousef12573614

"Holidays meaning end of the year, right?" - Mama_says_dont_go_to_work, IGN commenter

"For fellow europeans, what [does] next holiday actually mean? Next Q4 2020?" - u/tomaszko

"Before the Black Friday?" - @Enyawbruce

Holiday 2020 is, essentially, a lax way of saying Q4 2020 (October through December). While any of those months is fair game, the safest bet would be the first couple of weeks in November.

November is the same month the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One launched. It absolutely makes sense for Sony to push for an early November date, getting the console into stores ahead of Christmas is an obvious choice, but Sony (and likely Microsoft) will want new systems on store shelves in time for Black Friday shopping.

In store and online retailers do everything they can to push items the week of Black Friday (and even the week after), and having a nice, shiny new console to display on Amazon’s homepage or a Best Buy in-store kiosk is key to getting a wider, more casual buyer’s interest.

Given that history has dictated November as a prime month, I expect we’ll see it then, but likely not get a proper launch date until early next year.

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Will PS5 be backward compatible?

"do you think they'll give us backwards compatibility?" - ranma1/2, IGN commenter

"Did they confirm that PS5 will have Backwards Compatibility?" - delta169, IGN commenter

"Is there any specific info regarding Backwards [Compatibility]?" - u/phantomlordpt

"Will it be 'Backwards Compatible?' I have too much sunk into my PS4 just to have it not [work] with my PS5." - @asmanimator

"How will backwards compatibility work? Will my copy of Cyberpunk 2077 work at launch? Or will I have to buy a PS5 version?" - Miranda Sanchez, IGN

Sony confirmed PS5 will have backward compatibility with PS4 games when it first unveiled its next-gen ambitions earlier this year. The company didn’t quite give specifics, so it’s unclear whether there might be exceptions, but expect to be able to play major PS4 games, particularly exclusives, on your PS5.

The PS5 will also be backward compatible with PlayStation VR software and current PSVR headsets, so if you have or have been considering a PSVR (and you should!), know that you’ll be able to play it on your PS5 in 2020 and beyond.

As for past consoles, I don’t expect Sony to suddenly make prior PlayStation libraries backward compatible, especially with the known architecture differences of the PS3. In lieu of that, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Sony continue to push its PlayStation Now streaming service, which includes PS2 and PS3 games, as well as a large library of PS4 games.

So yes, most likely you’ll be able to use your copy of Cyberpunk 2077 on the PS5’s launch date. But there’s nothing to stop CD Projekt Red from releasing a next-gen only version down the line.

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Which games will be on PS5?

"You guys think Ghost of Tsushima will be a launch title?" - Kain.Highwind, IGN commenter

"I really hope Sony is continuing development time for The Last of Us 2 for the PS5. That’s the version I want to play." - Lex429, IGN commenter

"Killzone 5?" - @Godspeed2

"Demon souls remake from bluepoint studios?" - u/Ahmad-



OK, let’s start from the top — Sony has reconfirmed in the past that Ghost of Tsushima is still on the way for PS4, and of course The Last of Us Part 2 has a release date for a PS4 launch. And, given backward compatibility, I’d expect both of those games to play and look better on your PS5.

That said, I wouldn’t be shocked if “PS5 enhanced” versions of those games came out in the first few years of the PS5’s life cycle. Whether it be “8K support,” better framerate, or other bells and whistles with a bit of DLC content wrapped in, Sony saw huge success by re-releasing The Last of Us Remastered on PS4. It seems crazy that they wouldn’t try to do the same thing with these final few flagship titles, though it might boil down to whether development costs are worth it to them.

Killzone 5 - no, I’m sorry. I think Killzone is lost to time. Knack on the other hand, will never die.

And as for whatever Bluepoint Studios is working on, we recently learned the company is developing its “biggest” game yet for PS5. Speculation before has been both for a Demon’s Souls remake or an original Metal Gear Solid remake. Both aren’t crazy candidates, but there is such a great stable of PlayStation exclusives from the last few generations that Bluepoint could be working on any number of remakes.

PS5 Games We Think Might Already Be In Development 8 IMAGES

What's up with PS5's controller?

"With all the details on the controller, has anyone seen info on whether it still has a 3.5 jack? A thing of real convenience on the current gen controllers for me." - u/PalapaSlaps

"Hi, can someone explain to me [what] adaptive triggers are?" - u/Germerican96

"How much more will the controller cost than the DS4?" - Dan Stapleton, IGN

"Speaking of new DualShock, controller battery life? Will it be called 'DualShock 5'?" - Isiah Smith, IGNSadly, we have yet to see the new PS5 controllers, save for a brief description that suggests they’re in line with the DualShock 4, but with new bells and whistles. (No info on that 3.5 jack just yet. But we do know they will feature USB-C charging.)

As for adaptive triggers, and the other newly touted feature haptic feedback, we only have a small bit of info to go on for how Sony is integrating them. Though other, similar technology could help us understand them a bit better — even if it worries us about how much they’ll be used.

Based on Wired’s PS5 report, haptic feedback does away with standard rumble motors in favor of tactile feedback meant to simulate the conditions of your in-game character. Is your character trudging through mud or skidding on ice? The controller will simulate the feeling of that in... some way.

Fall 2019 DualShock 4 Colors 5 IMAGES

Honestly, it’s hard to say for sure how a standard controller will do that well and in consistently interesting ways that don’t distract from playing. Rumble has been the industry standard, and while Nintendo tried to innovate with the admittedly cool HD Rumble on the Switch, that has become sadly an underused gimmick.

As for adaptive triggers, developers will be able to tune the triggers to in-game actions, such as the drawing of an arrow on a bow. While that could be cool and interesting to use, it again will have to task developers with employing specific ideas unless Microsoft has these same features. The Xbox One in fact did have triggers featuring rumble technology to better simulate in-game elements like a car engine.

As for price, standard MSRP for most PS4 controllers is $59.99. I wouldn’t be shocked to see that price go up another $10 to $69.99 given all the new tech being put into the controllers. But, again, Sony may opt to take controllers at a loss at first just to get them into people’s houses.

And, yes, it’s probably going to be called the DualShock 5, while also delivering either a comparable or (a man can dream) better battery life than the DualShock 4.

Will Sony finally launch a legit answer to Xbox Game Pass?

- Mark Medina, IGN

I think Sony is going to keep positioning PlayStation Now as its alternative to Game Pass. The recent addition of major PS4 games (albeit on a rotating basis) like God of War and a big price cut signals Sony is serious about getting more Now subscribers.

If anything, I think Sony will take a cue from Xbox and pair Now with PlayStation Plus, making it an easier purchase for the millions of people who already subscribed to Plus and who may not even yet know Now exists.

Will PS+ offer both PS5 and PS4 games?

- Daemon Hatfield, IGN

I would expect it to for sure. While Sony recently took PS3 and PS Vita games out of the free games lineup for PS Plus, I’d expect them to add some incentive back in for PS5 owners.

Those removals felt more like a realization of where the player base was rather than an attempt to rob us of more bang for our buck. So I wouldn’t be shocked to see, at least at the start, a free PS5 game each month with two free PS4 backward compatible games. (And please, for the love of VR, add in one free PSVR game each month!)

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Will There Be a PlayStation VR 2?

- Mark Medina, IGN

Sony is being coy right now about the future of PSVR, save to say that the company is continuing to support it. PSVR being backward compatible with PS5, to me, means we won’t see a PSVR 2 near the launch of the PS5.

But, I absolutely think we’ll get upgraded PSVR headsets, especially as other VR headset makers continue to innovate. I’d expect it to get a push in 2021 or 2022, depending on what else Sony has in store on the first-party side.

What's the next-gen "wow factor"?

"What can consoles even do next gen? Innovation was dead this gen. What makes me think they will do better next time?" - ineedgames, IGN commenter

Taking these two together — past generations’ “wow factor” for attracting new customers has really been the graphical jumps. The HD bump from PS2 to PS3, and even the PS3 to PS4 shift signaled some startingly new visuals for games. And while I’d expect the PS5 to have prettier games, I don’t think it will be quite the shift we’ve seen in past generations, especially given the mid-step consoles like the PS4 Pro.

Instead, I think innovation will be less obvious but will factor into many more aspects of game development. Yes, we’ll (hopefully) see great additions like faster load times and more solid framerates and resolutions. But it’s the multitude of under-the-hood elements that will be where games innovate. Being able to craft more detailed, intricately designed worlds (if not bigger ones) that don’t buckle under technical limitations, and developing NPCs with more depth and complexity to make gameplay more unique for each player are just two examples of what jumps to mind.

And we’ve seen those shifts start to happen already with games like Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, and even upcoming games like Watch Dogs: Legion. I’m no developer, so I’m not going to try to pinpoint what those advancements will specifically be, but I’d expect we’ll start to see some shifts if not near launch then within the first year of the PS5.

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For more on PS5, check out how it will include a power saving feature to help combat climate change, and how a dev kit design was seemingly confirmed by a game developer.