Wild speculations emerged over the weekend that Sony Interactive Entertainment is gearing up to cease production of PlayStation game discs, after a Japanese report was taken out of context. Although the report itself is in English, it pertains to blank optical disc production specifically in Japan, and has nothing to do with Sony’s gaming business.

PlayStation game discs ‘marked safe’ from cuts

According to Mainichi Japan, Sony’s cutting around 250 jobs from its recordable media business. The usual engagement farmers on X shared the report with misleading text, leading to another round of console wars and a strange panic among fans.

Popular X user Wario64 was one of those who shared the report and got hit with Community Notes, but that understandably didn’t stop the console warriors.

It certainly doesn’t help that that an all-digital future is a recurring topic in gaming circles.

Recently, veteran U.S. market analyst Mat Piscatella opined that Sony and Nintendo will both eventually embrace a digital future, with Microsoft already heading into one as it’s increasingly moving away from physical releases. Piscatella reckons that by PS7, PlayStation game discs will be a rarity.

Meanwhile, Nintendo is expected to hold the line for at least two more generations.

The post No, Sony Isn’t Ending PlayStation Game Discs appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A newly-published Sony Interactive Entertainment patent reveals an interesting idea for fully customizable PlayStation controllers: draw your own controller with electrical ink. The company has acknowledged that standard off-the-shelf controllers don’t work for everyone, and has set out to solve that problem.

How fully customizable PlayStation controllers would work, per Sony’s patent

As spotted by Exputer, the patent describes a “user-customized” controller that comes without any default buttons, allowing players to draw buttons how they see fit using conductive ink.

If the patent ever comes to fruition, Sony’s custom controller kit would come with “special purpose anti-fatigue buttons.” As an example, Sony says one such anti-fatigue key would allow players to press a button once and the gaming system will assume that the button is held down. So, in other words, if you want to sprint with a simple button press as opposed to holding a stick down, you’ll want to use this anti-fatigue key.

“Computer games typically involve use of an off-the-shelf game controller which some people may find difficult to manipulate,” Sony argues.

Worth reiterating that companies routinely patent ideas. However, many of the patents we’ve seen over the last decade have resulted in actual products — like the PlayStation Portal — so never say never!

The post Sony Has an Interesting Idea for Fully Customizable PlayStation Controllers appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Circana’s Mat Piscatella reckons that PlayStation might go fully digital after the PS6, if trends over the last few years are anything to go by. Xbox is already leading the way, with Microsoft steadily pulling away from physical releases. Piscatella — who is well versed in industry trends and sales patterns — thinks that Xbox players should expect a fully digital future sooner rather than later.

Will PlayStation and Nintendo follow Microsoft into a digital future?

Piscatella offered his thoughts on a digital future in response to a tweet from Limited Run Games, which reveals that there won’t be any “traditional” retail release for Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Collector’s Edition on Xbox.

Indeed Microsoft has been moving away from disc releases, and in some cases, Xbox Series X discs have only contained game keys, requiring a full download to play.

As for Sony, the company has previously revealed that its consumers are increasingly shifting to digital downloads, and in recent years, the sales breakdown between its digital and disc releases has been heavily tilted towards the former.

Piscatella reckons that PlayStation players have one more gen of discs whereas Nintendo players have at least two.

Will PlayStation 7 be completely digital? Time shall tell!

The post PlayStation May Go Fully Digital After PS6, Analyst Predicts appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

Over the weekend, images and gameplay footage purportedly from a very early build of Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 leaked online. The ongoing Insomniac Games leaks all result from the same ransomware attack that took place in December 2023, with Sony struggling to take them down.

Alleged Spider-Man 3 gameplay leak reveals a new protagonist

We’re not going to directly paste the leaks here (they can be found on Reddit and X), but we will briefly discuss the information that we’ve gathered from them, so those worried about spoilers should proceed with caution.

The images purportedly from Spider-Man 3 show Cindy Moon/Silk swinging around New York. Interestingly, she did make an appearance towards the end of Spider-Man 2, when Miles Morales’ mother invites her boyfriend over to dinner. Her boyfriend, Albert Moon, brings his daughter with him. Although we don’t really see her — you’ve already guessed it — it’s Cindy.

Then, there’s some gameplay footage circulating on X. To reiterate, it appears to be from a very early build with reused assets, and isn’t indicative of the final product whatsoever. Apparently, a team of Brazlian modders who made a playable PC build of Spider-Man 2 following the hack are now bringing Spider-Man 3 to life as well.

Spider-Man 3 is unlikely to release before Marvel’s Wolverine, which seems to be Insomniac’s next big project. At this point, it’s hard to say if Spider-Man 3 will be a PS5 game or a PS6 game (or both).

The post Spider-Man 3 Alpha Gameplay Apparently Leaked appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A known leaker has suggested that the next-gen Xbox‘s release date will likely be set before the PS6 launch. Microsoft had previously hinted that the next Xbox and PS6 will launch by 2028, but if rumors are true, Xbox might jump ahead of its rival.

Microsoft might try to replicate Xbox 360’s success by beating PS6 release date

This rumor comes from X user TheGhostofHope, a known and reliable Call of Duty leaker. They claim to have been informed by “trusted sources” that Microsoft plans to release the next Xbox by 2026, and it’s possible that Microsoft will promote the hardware alongside that year’s Call of Duty as a launch title.

In response to a follower, TheGhostofHope opined that Microsoft might be trying to beat the PS6 to the market if this rumor is true. Fans are speculating that the company could be trying to replicate the Xbox 360’s success, which went on sale a year before the PS3 and became an instant hit among gamers. Prior to Sony‘s marketing deal for Call of Duty, Xbox 360 was often seen as the best console to play shooters on.

These are all rumors and speculations, so take them with a grain of salt. But given the increasing amount of leaks pertaining to Xbox’s next-gen hardware, we won’t be surprised if the 2026 launch window is correct.

The post Next-Gen Xbox Might Launch Before PS6, Rumors Suggest appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A new Sony Interactive Entertainment job advertisement has some fans convinced that PS6 CPU will likely be ARM-based. The job is for system software development, and will task the incumbent with ensuring that games and programs are compatible across different architectures.

Is Sony considering switching CPU architecture for the PS6?

ARM processors have seen rapid advancement, with major companies including Microsoft and Apple opting for custom ARM-based chips. In fact, there have been rumblings that the next Xbox will be switching from x86 to ARM.

During last year’s court showdown between Microsoft and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission over the Activision Blizzard deal, a number of internal documents ended up leaking. One of those documents was a Microsoft presentation which suggested that the company is entertaining the idea of building a next-gen system based on ARM architecture.

Earlier today, a ResetEra user found the aforementioned Sony job ad, a translation of which reveals that the company is looking for someone who is familiar with “recent major CPU architectures.” “Develop systems to enable programs developed for our entertainment game consoles to run on game consoles with different architectures,” the description reads. “Specifically, we will enable a large number of game titles developed for PlayStation to run on the new architecture system.”

We’re merely speculating right now, but we wouldn’t be surprised if PS6 does make the switch to ARM.

The post PS6 Might Have ARM CPU, Sony Job Ad Suggests appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A known insider has joined the ranks of those who claim that “all” Xbox exclusives are going to release on PlayStation eventually, including Forza and Halo. This claim comes days after Xbox president Sarah Bond seemingly teased multiplatform announcements at the upcoming Xbox Showcase in June.

Why Xbox exclusives are reportedly heading to PlayStation

This latest rumor comes from none other than Windows Central journalist and insider Jez Corden, who is generally reliable especially when it comes to Microsoft leaks. In a Discord channel (via ResetEra), he said that Xbox will become a platform that resembles Steam in the future, with hardware that’s somewhat “niche” like the Steam Deck.

Corden added that fans should expect to see the likes of Halo and Forza on PlayStation platforms. Previously, it was rumored that Microsoft is considering bringing Gears of War to PlayStation.

When asked on X what will become of Xbox hardware if players have the option to play its exclusives on other platforms, Corden said that Microsoft has accepted that its hardware will remain niche. Over on Discord, he claimed that he doesn’t think the company expects Xbox sales to grow.

The aforementioned “tease” from Xbox executive Sarah Bond can be seen below (the PlayStation blue heart, if it isn’t obvious).

Corden and other insiders might be on to something here. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has already taken note of Xbox games dominating PlayStation Store charts. The company has indicated that it’ll continue to bring more Xbox first-party games to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.

The post Halo Among Xbox Exclusives Headed to PlayStation, Says Known Insider appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

PS5 players who pre-ordered Sea of Thieves can now access the Sea of Thieves beta ahead of the full release at the end of the month.

Sea of Thieves beta sails in

The Sea of Thieves beta will run until 9 AM UTC on April 15, 2024 and is open to anyone who pre-ordered any version of the game for PS5.

All beta participants can earn Renown, currency, and cosmetic rewards from the Season 11 seasonal progression track. This will also be carried over to the full game when it releases on April 30, 2024.

As a bonus, beta players can receive 10 Renown levels that go toward their Season 12 progression.

The beta is already proving popular, with the Sea of Thieves social media account warning of longer wait times due to the sheer number of new players.

trophies are not currently supported in the Sea of Thieves beta, but progress towards them will be counted when players play the full game.

When everyone is free to sail the seas of thieves, monsters, and more, it’ll be alongside other console and PC players. Let’s hope there are no warring factions born of this, eh?

Sea of Thieves is the latest Microsoft-owned title to rock up on other consoles after Pentiment and Hi-Fi Rush. Survival game Grounded is also set to make the jump next week with a pS4 & PS5 release on April 16, 2024.

The post The Sea of Thieves Beta Is Now Open on PS5 appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

CD Projekt RED has said that fans shouldn’t expect mictotransactions in The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2077 sequel as long as they have no multiplayer elements. The comments come seemingly in response to the controversy surrounding Dragon’s Dogma 2, which has been criticized for excessive microtransactions added at launch.

The Witcher 4 development ramps up as Cyberpunk 2077 sequel enters concept phase

Details about the upcoming games are still scant, but The Witcher 4 — code named Polaris — is expected to be a single-player game like its predecessor. CDPR has The Witcher multiplayer project brewing separately.

During an interview with Stockwatch.pl, CDPR’s Chief Financial Officer Piotr Nielubowicz was quizzed about the developer adding microtransactions to its games in the future. In response, Nielubowicz made it clear that CDPR stands by its stance that there is no place for microtransactions in single-player games. He added that the studio won’t rule out monetization for its multiplayer games, however.

The backlash surrounding Dragon’s Dogma 2 resulted in Capcom issuing a statement emphasizing that the game’s lengthy list of DLC — which includes rare in-game items — can be earned through gameplay. In a recent update, the company increased the in-game availability of one such item called “The Art of Metamorphosis.”

The post New Cyberpunk and The Witcher Single-Player Games Won’t Have Microtransactions appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.

A known insider has opined that the PS5 Pro‘s limited CPU improvements could possibly be due to PS6 backwards compatibility. Yesterday, the PS5 Pro’s specs leaked during Sony‘s third-party developer rollout, which revealed that the console’s CPU offers a 10% boost over the original.

Could PS6 backwards compatibility explain PS5 Pro’s CPU?

According to insiders who’ve seen Sony’s leaked technical document, the PS5 Pro comes with a CPU that’s “identical” to standard PS5’s, but it comes with a “High CPU Frequency Mode” that boosts it to 3.85 GHz — a difference of 10%. Known AMD insider Kepler took to Twitter to speculate that this could be due Sony’s “complex” backwards compatibility system.

“The way Sony handles backwards compatibility is very complex, and it requires the new hardware to run at the same or higher clock speed, even if the new hardware is faster at lower clock speeds,” Kepler explained. “If they are using Zen6 dense cores for PS6, they can’t target 4GHz+ for the PS5 Pro as that could break backwards compatibility.”

This is merely speculation at present so take it with a grain of salt, but it does seem to make sense.

The PS5 Pro is expected to launch in fall 2024.

The post PS5 Pro Seemingly Designed With PS6 Backwards Compatibility in Mind appeared first on PlayStation LifeStyle.