Sony Interactive Entertainment has revealed the first details on the PlayStation 5 controller, which is set to feature haptic feedback, “adaptive” triggers and more.
In a newly-publishedWiredarticle, the platform holder revealed more details on its next-generation console, which it confirmed will be calledPlayStation 5and release at the end of 2020.
[UPDATE:ASony Interactive Entertainment(SIE) patent has revealed images of what could be thePS5 controller.]
UPDATE 07/04:Sony has officially unveiledPS5‘s DualSense controller, which it calls “a radical departure” from its previous DualShock pads.
ORIGINAL STORY CONTINUES:
The prototype PS5 controller currently being sent to developers is described as “an unlabelled matte-black doohickey that looks an awful lot like thePS4‘s DualShock 4,” but under the hood there are some significant additions.
The first is “adaptive triggers,” which SIE says can offer varying levels of resistance to make game mechanics such as shooting a bow and arrow—the tension increasing as you pull the arrow back—feel more realistic.
The PS5 controller – which will switch to USBC for charging – also includes haptic feedback, with highly programmable voice-coil actuators located in the left and right grips of the controller.
Combined with an improved speaker on the controller, the haptics can enable “astonishing effects,” claims Wired.
In a series of short demos, the publication ran a character through a platform level featuring a number of different surfaces, which it says gave distinct and tactile experiences.
“Sand felt slow and sloggy; mud felt slow and soggy. On ice, a high-frequency response made the thumbsticks really feel like my character was gliding. Jumping into a pool, I got a sense of the resistance of the water; on a wooden bridge, a bouncy sensation.”
Next, a version ofGran TurismoSport ported over to a PS5 devkit enabled the player to ‘feel’ the difference between dirt and track surfaces. “Doing the same thing on the same track using a DualShock 4 on a PS4, that sensation disappeared entirely,” the article said.
The PS5 controller’s larger-capacity battery and haptics motors make it a bit heavier than the DualShock 4, it’s claimed. However, product manager Toshi Aoki said the final version will come in a bit lighter than the currentXboxcontroller “with batteries in it.”
In the same article Sony confirmed thatPlayStation 5’s ray-tracing technology will be hardware-accelerated, the consolewill feature a “completely revamped” user interfaceandallow configurable game installs.
So far Sony Interactive Entertainment has confirmed severalPS5 hardware details, with system architectMark Cernyrevealing that the system will be disc-based and support 8K graphics.
PS5 will also be backwards compatiblewith PS4 games and support the currentPlayStationVR headset.
