What if the PS5 Could Play Games from Every PlayStation Console?

Here’s an outlandish idea: what if the PlayStation 5 could play games from every PlayStation console ever made – including the handhelds? To be clear, that would include: PS5, PS4, PS3, PS2, PSone, PS Vita, and PSP – the manufacturer’s entire 25 year history, in one device. Obviously, you wouldn’t expect the next-gen console to include a UMD slot, but digital downloads from the PlayStation Store should work fine when it comes to the platform holder’s portables. As for the PS4, PS3, PS2, and PSone – well, physical discs or digital downloads should get the job done, right?

[gangsta_red]

That would be the console to own.

Imagine PS+ offerings having free games from PS4, PS4, PS3, PS2 and PS. It would be an exciting month every month.

Not to mention their PSNow service could start offering downloads from PS3 games to the new system.

And the PSnow library could greatly expand by offering PS-PS4 titles and then eventually PS5.

Sony can definitely do it if they put the R&D time into it, I refuse to believe the cell architecture is that hard to get it to run on today's tech. Hell we put a man on the moon right?

[King_Noctis]

I believe people here used to bash BC and said it wasn’t needed. They said they buy new console to play new games, not old games.

So in my opinion it isn’t needed on the PS5.

[JonTheGod]

You base your own opinion on what you think.others have said in the past?

... Bit weird.

[King_Noctis]

@jon

I might have forgotten a tiny little letter (/s).

[gangsta_red]

Well you have to understand that BC is a **great feature.

**just not necessary to have....

[kingPoS]

It'll be just like when the ps3 and ps4 debuted. People were still attached to the previous console because that's were their established libraries were.

Case and point, the first three games i bought for my ps4 were gta5 the handsom collection and lbp3.

Gateway MT6706 2008

[rainslacker]

Being needed, and being wanted are two different things. BC isn't needed to sell a console, nor does having BC sell consoles. But, I would be fine with a bc feature on any console.

People didnt bash BC, just accurately pointed out its not really needed, which this gen has shown to be true

[King_Noctis]

@hentai

I honestly have never seen anyone said that here. It is either BC is not needed, or people mockIng Xbox player for playing old games.

[isarai]

I would lose my gyot dayum mind!

But i'd be there day 1 with my preorder waiting in line. Usually i wait about a year for the launch kinks to get ironed out, but i wouldn't be able to wait if this were the case as i still play psx/2/3 games often. Hell my setup has a PS2, PS3 and PS4 that can all be consolidated into this one system. Eliminating that taken up space aswell as a plethora or cables, input switches and adapters.

All that being said, PS3 is where i have my doubts. That damn Cell is a tough nut to crack, even emulation has taken 13 years to get to the still very limited state its in now. Sure in ideal scenario Sony would pool some resources together and go ham on R&D to deliver, but i don't think they'll do that for a feature that really doesn't make them any money. But here's hoping im wrong!

[ocelot07]

It would be nice but not to bothered if it does not. I would be more happy if they some how get PSP and Vita titles to work on the PS5. I know not all PS Vita titles will work. But maybe the ones that worked with the PSTV.

[darthv72]

I remember psp games were tested via a USB UMD reader on the PS2 as a prototype but it's a shame it never progressed from the testing stage. They went with a revised PSP with tv out instead. As for the Vita, that one could have benefited from tv out as well but they went with the vita tv. And those are pricey nowadays.

[rainslacker]

PSTV is a great little device. But sadly, there are a lot of games which don't work on it. If the game doesn't have a specific big screen mode available, it basically doesn't work.

I'm sure there are some hacks to make it work, but I don't want to install those on mine. I wish there was a way to do TV out with the Vita. that should have been a day one feature IMO.

If Sony had Vita and PSP BC, which I know it won't, I'd be fine with buying a UMD/Vita Cart attachment to use the physical media. I do have quite a few digital games for both systems, but my physical collection dwarfs the numbers by a large margin. I understand though that such a thing would have limited demand in the mainstream, but would probably be huge within the collectors market. Luckily, both my PSP, PSTV, and VIta still work great. I never upgraded my PSP to one with TV out though.

[autobotdan]

One console to rule them all. Sauron's console

[AnubisG]

...one console to find them....

[Relientk77]

One console to bring them all, and the backwards compatibility binds them.

[l33t_haxx0r]

Never gonna happen, psnow will bring us this

[Limitedtimestruggle]

That would be quite amazing really. I hope Sony pushes on the backward compatibility stuff next gen!

[Rai]

that would just be a cherry on top...but I didn't spend 400-500 to play old games. I paid that much to play PS5 games.

[Firebird360]

Ps5 will be $600, so will scarlet.

[RizBiz]

It'll probably be even more than that in Canada if you include tax. :(

[jjb1981]

I feel like this is what they are trying to do behind the scenes. PS3 will definitely be the most troublesome.

[Godmars290]

Looses me with the handhelds, and it would be great if the PS5 could play every physical copy of every system prior to it, but it will never happen thanks to the cause of all our problems: lawyers.

[rainslacker]

I think such a system would have some appeal to a decent number of people in the gaming community. I could easily see a premium console with all generations and versions of PS being something that would sell to the right customers. Even if it were expensive, such a thing would be very desireable to collectors. But, the cost to design such a system which doesn't require emulation, and the cost to make, would probably make it something that clocks in around a grand, and limited in production. Which ultimately, would probably make it a very expensive console on the colletors market.

[Gaming4Life1981]

Any games you own thats digital needs to work on ps5 or I'm gonna be pissed. I dont own any disc from ps1, ps2 or ps3 so I can care less. All the games I own on ps4 that's a physical disc I'll just get rid of when I get rid of my pro for ps5.

[nitus10]

I would be very surprised (ie. appalled) if the PS5 could not play PS4 games either via Bluray install or digital download install. In fact, I would go as far as to say that it is very possible (PC's do this) that is possible that a PS5 game may be playable on the PS4 although with reduced assets.

Note: If the PS5 has a UHD Bluray drive then any game that comes out on UHD Bluray will not be installable on a PS4 since the PS4 only has a Bluray drive, but there is no reason that the game could not be downloaded from the Playstation Store.

[Gaming4Life1981]

I dont think consoles will ever allow next gen games to work on last gen consoles even if they were downgraded. I just want my digital library to come with me on consoles and it should have been like this from the start of online on consoles, but now it's a must. Xbox is doing it and rightfully so and I'll have seriously rethink buying a ps5 if they dont follow suit.

[rainslacker]

@gaming

That's essentially what's happening with the mid gen models. Less disparity between hardware specs, but ultimately the same thing.

But, requiring forward compatibility as a requirement means the lowest common denominator will be considered, which could hold back game design. Otherwise, devs would have to make more versions of the more.advanced games than they really want to make.

[veicht]

I hope so, we know it will play ps4 games but I'd be happy to hear that it can natively support ps1 and 2 games as well (also for 3 but not holding my breath on that).

[rainslacker]

I think if they had native compatibilty... not emulation...of all gens of PS consoles, excluding the portables, and it works with all physical media, they'd build a ton of good will among consumers.

I really think it won't have all that, or there will be some variations in what's available from different gens, but still nice to think that this stupid BC debate could potentially die a quick death. Wishful thinking I suppose.

[CrimsonWing69]

It would be the best console ever, quite literally.

[strayanalog]

If it could play physical copies of games from the previous gens then, yeah, other than that being pretty amazing, the console would definitely earn another pro from me.

[PhoenixUp]

PS3 felt like the ultimate PlayStation being able to play PS1 & PS2 games

It’d be awesome if PS5 could top that

[Sitdown]

If it does that, then I could safely store my og ps3. I definitely would eventually own more than 1.

[Larrysweet]

Never cause of ps now

[Elda]

Exactly.

[rainslacker]

Yeah. I mean it's all about money. But of course, selling all those digital games on the store brings in revenue, so the money argument falls flat

If they allow downloads of all those games in psnow, they've effectively matched game pass, and have a huge catalog of games to pull from. Bc would allow for downloads, while psnow offers cheap access to them.

When you really look at it, BC is a perfect way to promote psnow

[SkatterBrain]

the people that emulated the PS3 on pc took this long to barely get stuff running okay, for sony to throw that software in there , i wonder if theyd use that teams code rather than start from the bottom to unravel the complicated Cell Processor

[Kumakai]

that would be awesome.

[Mozillayaseen]

Since the cell ship is old now it shouldn't be too expensive to produce. Can't they put it in the PS5 to make it Ps3 compatible?The other systems shouldn't be too hard to run on Ps5 (i could be wrong)

[rainslacker]

CELL costs more to produce today than it did at the start of the gen. Manufacturing plants have retooled to make other chips that have more demand, so it ends up costing more to make them. Sony said they'd probably drop the PS3 sooner than they did the PS2, because the cost of the chip was supposed to rise about $50 each within 3 years of them stopping mass production of the PS3. As of now, CELL is really only used in some servers from IBM. They're much more capable than what was in the PS3, and extremely expensive.

PS1 and PS2 chips can be replicated using more common types of processors due to the instruction sets they were based on, and the fact that there are plenty of devices out there which still use that architecture for what would seem like menial things.

All that assumes they'd be using hardware BC in the first place, instead of just going for the emulation route like MS does now.

[nitus10]

Nice but I really can't see that happening.

When the PS3 was released the buyer was effectively purchasing a PS2 and a PS3 so I can't see the PS5 having an "emotion engine" (PS2) and "cell architecture" (PS3) in addition to its X86_64 architecture. Of course, it may be possible that PS1, PS2 and PS3 games may be run under emulation.

It must be noted that there are quite a few PS1, PS2 and PS3 games that are remastered to run on the PS4 but you really have to repurchase them even if you have the original game.

[franwex]

Doubt it would happen. But if it does, then wow. Best console in existence, even if ps5 games were lacking it would be the best console. Though, it is highly unlikely that the games will be lacking.

[Elda]

Though that would be nice but it's not that's why Sony has PS Now.

[BlaqMagiq1]

It would be the cherry on top for an already amazing console that's going to kill it next gen.

[HighPlayer28]

They dont have the engineers to pull that off.

[Tross]

Then it would be an excellent system for retro gaming in addition to being a beast for modern gaming. I'm sold on a PS5 regardless, but I wouldn't say no to additional greatness.

[AK91]

I hope for older titles they implement PSNow, I know PS3 is a b*tch to use for BC but using streaming would solve that issue, hell if we just use game streaming for legacy titles it would get a lot of praise.

[Acecalibur]

I'll take two thanks.

[RizBiz]

I'd be happy with a Valkyria Chronicles 2&3 HD remaster.

[Platformgamer]

i don't care

[SixEye]

Be asking to much from sony to have compatibility with passed gen console games, they probably get you streaming and paying for them like they do now with PSNow lol if you want to play ps2 or ps3 games, I wouldn't get my Hope's up on ps5 having compatibility features and it it does probably pay for it, your better off with MS xbox if your interested on playing all your games you invest on passed gen consoles and dnt have to spend a dim.^^,

[sampsonon]

but what about ps games? lol can you play their games on an xbox? nope.

if sony was smart they would allow people to play their old games on the ps5. and for most people that don't own the old games for ps, ps2 and 3, they can sell them for $10 digital download.

[sampsonon]

as long as they don't get lazy and rely on old games instead of making new games like a certain other company decided to do.

[xxShadow-Shockxx]

My dream would be to have the PS5 drop with backwards compatibility thru all generations locally and digitally with the ability of every game throughout all generations to also be purchased digitally. Theres a lot of games from ps1 and 2 that i dont have anymore but would love to play again.

[Xavi4K]

it should be the default thing by now, Xbox will probably be able to run two generations back (X1, X360) so If sony wish to provide this feature they will it's achievable.

[Lord_Sloth]

Then I'm playing The Bouncer and Harmony of Despair again.

[BenRC01]

There you go folks. Another article written for clicks by a cretin who knows nothing about console hardware pre ps4.

[ShockUltraslash]

Then sony cant sell games back to you that you already own.

[CrustifiedDibbs]

sony fans would hate it. they dont buy new consoles to play old games. at least thats what i heard.

[PimpDaddy]

Day ONe purchase for me if that happens!!!

[WiiU-Dude]

I might cry...I really mean cry. That would be the be all end all, but I guess that is what online cloud gaming should bring one day I suspect. The thing is I would love hardware backwards compatibility. There is always licensing issues. Music or content that the license has expired or there are those studios that are long gone that make it difficult. I just know if any of you gamers are like me, there are plenty of obscure games you like that others may not and therefore following a model like Xbox you know will never be bothered with.

[rataranian]

It probably could. But then it would hurt sales from the online store. And they cant allow that.

[NewEnds0186]

Sony should focus on PS4 BC first and make sure it is as flawless as possible then work back from there.

If they can do BC for all of the PS consoles then they will be the go to console for alot of people IMO.

[Mister_G]

Maybe via PS Now. I'd be surprised if it was native.