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[Bloomberg] Sony Working on Handheld Console for PS5 Games to Rival Switch

StereoVsn

Gold Member
The only way this could work so if the device could play PS4 and PS5 games natively without patching.

If developers have to patch games, this is unlikely to work out at the end. Because there is 0 chance that vast majority of the library will be patched.

At that point might as well get a PC handheld whether it’s Ally 3, Steam Deck 2, etc… and these will be pretty decent by the time the Sony device comes out. And they will play vast majority of PS4 and PS5’s library anyways and more.
 

Kumomeme

Member
the Steamdeck presence on market and A.I Upscalling like DLSS and PSSR might opened the possibilities of high powered handheld device with 'feasible' price.

probably lot of people in industry are actually looking toward how Switch 2 will perform.
 
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The PS Portal is fine as it is, they should just improve that & release a better version to launch alongside the PS6, that plays the entire library of PS games in our digital libraries..

If they even attempt to do any form of new physical media format for this, it'll fail significantly. They don't have the bandwidth to support 2 consoles from an IP perspective, we saw what happened to the Vita.
 

Astray

Member
The PS Portal is fine as it is, they should just improve that & release a better version to launch alongside the PS6, that plays the entire library of PS games in our digital libraries..

If they even attempt to do any form of new physical media format for this, it'll fail significantly. They don't have the bandwidth to support 2 consoles from an IP perspective, we saw what happened to the Vita.
It's likely going to be all-digital and share a library with the existing PS4/5 platform
 
the fundamental problem with Sony handhelds is that the games are just watered down versions of the console experience. These are games that demand big screens, big sound, high fidelity.

Uncharted on a portable doesn’t make as much sense as say, Lumines, and I don’t think they are going back to the later.
 

jm89

Member
You're literally the leaker of PlayStation hardware coming out of SIE's PEG division, yet you decided to not do a report on such thing because it seemed obvious? Come on now.

Yeah his slacking. Well atleast this adds more credibility that it's more then just them looking at the market as he reported before.
 

ShaiKhulud1989

Gold Member
You're literally the leaker of PlayStation hardware coming out of SIE's PEG division, yet you decided to not do a report on such thing because it seemed obvious? Come on now.

Because companies are lways working on something and of course they are thinking about portable ideas after Portal success. It is truly obvious for a hardware business.

But at this stage this is not even a concpet, but an idea. Nothing to report about like at all.
 
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SweetTooth

Gold Member
I think this is gonna be part of PS6 ecosystem, success depends on Sony's execution of this idea. Im looking forward seeing it in action
 
Something that plays PS4/5 games natively with cloud streaming/remote play of PS6 games sounds interesting and I'd probably bite if the price was right.

Having TV out with controller support would be cool too.
 
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Loxus

Member
You're literally the leaker of PlayStation hardware coming out of SIE's PEG division, yet you decided to not do a report on such thing because it seemed obvious? Come on now.

I like his thoughts on what it could be.


Edit: wrong person.
 
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Davevil

Late October Surprise
Everyone is making a doohickey now but i bet steamdeck will reign supreme
9bkqqu.jpg
 

Kdad

Member
Yes, and Vita was considered a flop with 3-5x as much sales as SteamDeck.

Although it's apples to oranges, I'm just saying with 3M sales, Steamdeck isn't even in the same ballpark as Playstation and is completely irrelevant.
When the VITA came out the handheld you compared it against was the 3ds
When a new PS handheld comes out, expectations have changed because of things like the Steam Deck and PS on PC.
At this point in time, Steam Deck form factor playing windows/linux games AND PS games changes the metrics compared to simply trying to differentiate from Nintendo's closed walls.
 

midnightAI

Member
the fundamental problem with Sony handhelds is that the games are just watered down versions of the console experience. These are games that demand big screens, big sound, high fidelity.

Uncharted on a portable doesn’t make as much sense as say, Lumines, and I don’t think they are going back to the later.
But full games like Astro Bot make perfect sense for a handheld. And actually, if they keep the same form factor as the Portal, all games make sense, we're already playing them on Portal.
 

Killjoy-NL

Gold Member
When the VITA came out the handheld you compared it against was the 3ds
When a new PS handheld comes out, expectations have changed because of things like the Steam Deck and PS on PC.
At this point in time, Steam Deck form factor playing windows/linux games AND PS games changes the metrics compared to simply trying to differentiate from Nintendo's closed walls.
Steamdeck being proper competition for Playstation (and Switch) is PC make-believe.
 

hemo memo

You can't die before your death
This doesn't make sense. The "success?" of the portal is because it's a complement to the PS5. Having a dedicated portable would bring back the same problem of why the previous one failed and why Nintendo pretty much ran away from it.
 

midnightAI

Member
This doesn't make sense. The "success?" of the portal is because it's a complement to the PS5. Having a dedicated portable would bring back the same problem of why the previous one failed and why Nintendo pretty much ran away from it.
Any dedicated handheld would still have the ability to stream whatever the current console is though.

Theoretically there is no reason at all the Portal couldn't stream PS6, PS7 etc. but so could a dedicated device. Only the native games would suffer from being a gen or two behind which is fine so long as you could stream also.
 

ArtHands

Thinks buying more servers can fix a bad patch
I'm probably alone on this, but I don't want Playstation making a handheld.

I could be convinced, but Id prefer they just focus on consoles.

you ain’t the only one. in fact I say you’re the majority if we go by Vita’s sales numbers
 

FrankWza

Gold Member
I wonder what everyone that believe Xbox Series S is holding back gaming thinks about this?
It wont be a 1:1. This will probably play BC or PS5 games natively and stream PS6. It would have to play PS6 games from on board storage to be comparable to series s. In that case you're still talking about a handheld but it's still probably not going to happen because the battery would last about 20 minutes
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
It's almost as if people are willing to accept a gimped version of a game if it offers a new dimension of enjoyment (portability).

Simply making a cheaper console and demanding parity while being the lowest install base is a recipe for disaster.
Just to get an idea of how far away we are. The most powerful handheld PC right now is the ROG Ally X. It's like an $800 machine.

Here is ASUS' article on God of War Ragnarok: https://rog.asus.com/articles/rog-a...-rog-ally-x-performance-guide--best-settings/

According to DF, the PC port of Ragnarok is basically maxes out at the PS5 settings. The PS5 can run the game at 60fps at around ~1872p average according to DF on a regular PS5 (presumably the Pro will max it at 4K/60fps).

You can see the shit settings that the ROG Ally X needs to get to 40-50fps at 1080p and running with those settings you would maybe get 2 hours of battery life. Mix of low, medium, and a couple high settings. Also needs shitty FSR with frame gen.



And Ragnarok is a PS4 game at its heart. Modern PS5 only games are much more taxing (for good or ill, Ragnarok is still an amazing looking game). And no PSSR or DLSS are not going to bridge this gap. These algorithms are not magic and take computing/battery resources by themselves.
 
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N1tr0sOx1d3

Given another chance
>Releases PSP to rival the DS
>PSP is a great handheld and sells well
>Releases the Vita, barely supports it, lets it die
>Exit the handheld market
>Oh, shit, it's actually still profitable
>Come back after a decade after losing their entire market share.

The Vita was a great little system. Sony just didn't give it the proper support and poorly positioned it against mobile phones.
Not to mention their proprietary Memory cards that had you remortgage your house to afford one….
 

deriks

4-Time GIF/Meme God
Would it be popular if the bulk of its library was existing PS4 games?
Not sure, but since the tech is not far, it's a development thing more than titles

I mean, they could release a Fifa game (whatever) and the tech can still be the same with better quality
 

Kdad

Member
Steamdeck being proper competition for Playstation (and Switch) is PC make-believe.
I'm not saying Steamdeck is competition, I'm saying it has changed the expectations of what is possible for mobile gaming including mobile PS games. Entering the market with a wall garden PS machine will fail regardless of Steamdeck (or like) sales because expectations for PS on mobile have changed.
 

Killjoy-NL

Gold Member
I'm not saying Steamdeck is competition, I'm saying it has changed the expectations of what is possible for mobile gaming including mobile PS games. Entering the market with a wall garden PS machine will fail regardless of Steamdeck (or like) sales because expectations for PS on mobile have changed.
Maybe, but Nintendo Switch is a walled garden as well, so that isn't necessarily a problem.

Sony's biggest obstacle is Nintendo. That's why I personally think it's better for them to go the PS Portal route and stick with that, maybe release a premium model with an OLED 120hz screen.

Then again, my GF would love a dedicated PS handheld, because she wants her own Portal but keeps forgetting she'd need a PS5 as well.
 
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StereoVsn

Gold Member
Just to get an idea of how far away we are. The most powerful handheld PC right now is the ROG Ally X. It's like an $800 machine.

Here is ASUS' article on God of War Ragnarok: https://rog.asus.com/articles/rog-a...-rog-ally-x-performance-guide--best-settings/

According to DF, the PC port of Ragnarok is basically maxes out at the PS5 settings. The PS5 can run the game at 60fps at around ~1872p average according to DF on a regular PS5 (presumably the Pro will max it at 4K/60fps).

You can see the shit settings that the ROG Ally X needs to get to 40-50fps at 1080p and running with those settings you would maybe get 2 hours of battery life. Mix of low, medium, and a couple high settings. Also needs shitty FSR with frame gen.



And Ragnarok is a PS4 game at its heart. Modern PS5 only games are much more taxing (for good or ill, Ragnarok is still an amazing looking game). And no PSSR or DLSS are not going to bridge this gap. These algorithms are not magic and take computing/battery resources by themselves.
Thing is 780M in that handheld is basically RDNA 3 which isn’t much faster than 680m in RDNA 2.

We should see a major improvement in 2026 with AMDs RDNA Unified architecture (I think that’s the name). Throw in dedicated AI hardware, much improved FSR and PSSR on top.

Basically, this should give enough power for PS4 and PS5 games.
 

Topher

Identifies as young
I wonder what everyone that believe Xbox Series S is holding back gaming thinks about this?

Hopefully Sony learns from the mistake of XSS memory configuration since that is the issue that has been pointed out by game developers.

Can’t wait to read something about this… Because if true, it’s going to be worse than the Series X and Series S situation…

Why? Steam Deck and other handhelds don't have the same limitations as XSS.
 
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Roxkis_ii

Member
My concern is with the games that don't really run well on the base PS5. Like I heard Ff7 rm 2 looks like vaseline on the screen in performance mode, how much worst would that look running on a handheld??

I doubt this device could run current ps5 games as is, so if games have to be patched, thats lots of thrid party games you can't access.
 
Maybe, but Nintendo Switch is a walled garden as well, so that isn't necessarily a problem.
For me, even with a Legion Go ( I had a Steam Deck) as long as Nintendo keeps their games restricted to their own platform, a Nintendo console justifies its place in the market. A new Sony handheld is trickier because 'play your Playstation games on the go' is something the PC handhelds already offer. I think if someone isn't tied to PC or Steam but has an existing Playstation digital ecosystem, taking that library on the go has more value to that kind of customer. Like I have a PS5, but if push comes to shove I'd rather just double dip Spider-man or God of War on Steam sale than buy a Playstation portable. The more I can consolidate my hardware, the better. But as with all things, YMMV....
 

Zathalus

Member
It doesn’t stand to reason at all. And if Sony releases a handheld that only plays PC compiles of PS5 games, it’ll be DOA. That offers less than my Steam Deck.
I never claimed that it would only play PC compiles? I’m not even sure what you’re arguing anymore. First you claimed “Sony's next handheld will just be an x86 handheld so Sony can just use their PC versions without any additional work.” And now it’s “ if Sony releases a handheld that only plays PC compiles of PS5 games, it’ll be DOA. ”. What exactly do you think this device to be? Because from what the article and other leakers are saying it is a device to play your PS5 library, and has got nothing to do with PC handhelds.
 

Buggy Loop

Member
I doubt its to rival switch honestly, its pretty clear Microsoft is making one and they're already thinking of countering the move.

Sony doesn't give a shit about Nintendo doing their thing for a while now.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
Thing is 780M in that handheld is basically RDNA 3 which isn’t much faster than 680m in RDNA 2.

We should see a major improvement in 2026 with AMDs RDNA Unified architecture (I think that’s the name). Throw in dedicated AI hardware, much improved FSR and PSSR on top.

Basically, this should give enough power for PS4 and PS5 games.
Even if you could sort of get there with new hardware, and I am very skeptical of hardware being hyped 2+ years out from release, there is still the question of price and battery life. The Steam Deck is the cheapest device like this, and the most popular, and we dont know how many have been sold, but it's probably less than 10, and Sony isn't getting into this business to sell 3-4 million units a year.
 

kaizenkko

Member
It can work this time because of IA upscallers. In 2028 Sony can be possible to launch a portable device who runs PS5 games just fine thanks to PSSR or similars. Besides that, I'm sure that we can expect at least 4 years of cross-gen releases after the PS6 launch.
 
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