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‘PlayStation 4’ Incremental Upgrade To ‘PS 4.5’ To Accommodate 4K Graphics Gaming Resolution [Rumors]

By Tony Smejek
Published on: 08:40 PST, Mar 18, 2016

It looks like Sony is going to develop a PlayStation console upgrade to their graphics processor for the current platform, according to Kotaku. In this case, it would be deemed more of an incremental upgrade to what currently exists on the market and coined a “PlayStation 4.5.”

In the past, there was a concern voiced by YouTuber ReviewTechUSA regarding the serious concern of PlayStation going the route the way the Sega Genesis did with varying, upgradable components that wound up being problematic, i.e. Sega CD and Sega 32X console upgrades.

Reason being was the thought that this could split the consumer base and segregating them via upgradable hardware. In times past, when this was done through Sega, it put developers in a bind as they were torn between developing a new game for the already large, existing gamer base or creating it for the upgraded version.

Then, there is the thought of creating two versions of the same game which can be quite a mess.

Now, the Sony PlayStation is going to accommodate 4K resolution and Sony is already “briefing the developers,” according to Kotaku. On top of that, another feature being upgraded is the processing power for game enhancement regarding the PlayStation VR.

That being said, if you take a look at a recent report by EuroGamer, there is a question left up in the air about the “external processing unit” for the PlayStation VR console. The only information provided is what it could NOT do via a Sony presentation by Chris Norden, the senior staff engineer.

  • It provides no extra GPU or CPU power.
  • It’s not any form of PS4 expansion or upgrade.
  • It’s not directly accessible by the developer in any way – code cannot be written to it.

The PlayStation staff member from Sony emphasized the lack of extra GPU and CPU power and doesn’t consider it any kind of upgrade or expansion.

Yet, the aforementioned “PS 4.5” upgrade is reported to do that very thing. So, one can ascertaine that the external processing unit and the reportedly developing upgrade aren’t one in the same.

Details of the tasks of the external processor for the PlayStation VR are provided at Eurogamer.

To put it simply, current resolution output for the Sony PlayStation 4K pictures and videos work fine. But for gaming, that’s a different animal and the rumored PS4 console upgrade could provide it.

The Game Developers Conference in San Francisco this week featured meetings held by Sony regarding this very PlayStation 4 console upgrade and the term “PS 4.5” emerged in online conversations. The content of the conversations include the attributes for the “PlayStation 4.5.”

“They mentioned the name ‘PS4.5’ and discussed its increased horsepower, mentioning both 4K resolution and PlayStation VR.”

The PlayStation upgrade for the console still isn’t clear on the question regarding the segregation of incremental platforming, considering there’s not much information addressing those questions. Xbox One, however, addressed this and has gone on record to detail how it would be in favor of upgrading in such a fashion because there have been “whispers,” according to Kotaku, about the Xbox console getting incremental upgrades as well.

Sniper Elite developer CEO Jason Kingsley gave his take on how this could be pulled off successfully, according to Gaming Bolt.

“I don’t think anybody actually knows [what Microsoft has planned]. Yes, you will have to make the game to work on the existing, let’s call it lower-spec Xbox. You would also, depending on how the operating system works, have to anticipate the upgrade… We’re already working on Xbox One titles and we don’t know if there is another one coming. I guess at some stage we might know.”

Does it sound like the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles would, if this venture pans out, take on the similar upgradable characteristics of a PC? Will these incremental upgrades be good for gamers given the current forecast?

[Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images]

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