While previous reports have indicated that the rumoured portable PlayStation 6 will be able to run PS5 games, albeit at lower, resolutions, a new rumour indicates that the compatibility might go further than we first thought. In a post on the NeoGAF forums, Kepler – known for having correctly leaked the fact that the PS5 Pro makes use of RDNA 4 features back in September – has posted that the portable PS6 has compatibility with the PS5 in terms of the shader binaries that are used.
Theoretically, this would mean that developers don’t really have to do much to get their game running on the rumoured console. Rather, the game will run on its own just fine, since it doesn’t need any extra compilation thanks to the shader binaries being compatible. On the other hand, Kepler does note that, if left alone, the performance of the game on the console might not be ideal. Rather, developers will likely have to do some work in optimising their games to get it running on the portable PS6 at smooth frame rates.
This ties in with previous reports, which indicated that the rumoured console will run off an SoC fabricated on the 3 nm node, and will be capable of using up to 15 watts of power. While not high-performance by any stretch, the efficiencies in modern chip fabrication does mean that the SoC should be fairly capable. According to Kepler, the power of the theorised handheld gaming system will sit somewhere between a PS5 and an Xbox Series S.
This also means that the SoC used for the portable PS6 will be different from what we see on the main console. According to the report, the handheld console’s chip was specifically designed to be able to run at low voltages.
While Sony is far from making any proper confirmation of a new generation of PlayStation consoles being in the works, a statement by the company back in 2022 indicated that the console could launch some time after 2027. The statement, made during Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, also included the companies worries at the time of not getting Call of Duty games on its platforms in light of the acquisition.
Going by history, Sony until the launch of the PS4, Sony had followed a 5-year console cycle from the original PlayStation all the way up to the launch of the PS3. The PS4, however, was launched in 2013, coming on the heels of the longest console generation of the time – 8 years. This has been the standard that Sony has been following since, with the PS5 having come out around 8 years after the PS4.
If the rumours about Sony working on a handheld gaming system to accompany the home console release of the PS6 end up being true, the company would be returning to the handheld gaming market after having spent over a decade away from it in light of the PlayStation Vita’s commercial failure. Sony would like prefer to emulate the success of the PlayStation Portable in that regard, especially in light of stiff competition from handheld gaming PCs like the Steam Deck and the Asus ROG Ally, as well as other consoles like the Nintendo Switch 2 as well as whatever Microsoft is working on.
