Well, there goes our hopes and dreams that the PlayStation 5 would be backward compatible with older PS1, PS2, and PS3 titles. I guess Sony was serious about people not wanting to play retro games.
In a recent interview with Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, PlayStation exec Jim Ryan confirmed that the PS5 won’t be able to play PS1, PS3, or PS3 games. Instead, the company focused its efforts on making sure that the PS5 could play the vast majority of PS4 games.
Which looks to have paid off as 99% of the existing PS4 games will be playable on the PS5. Considering that the PS4 had zero backward compatibility with the PS3, this a an improvement.
Granted, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of this, as Ubisoft had “leaked” that the PS5 wouldn’t be able to play PS1, PS2, or PS3 games. For now, it simply means that if you want to play the older games, you’ll need to pick up the older consoles and/or hope that PlayStation eventually brings them over via PS Now. While PlayStation’s competitor, Xbox, has confirmed that gamers will be able to play Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One games on the Xbox Series X/S when the console is launched.
Will this be a factor in the overall success of the PS5? That’s extremely doubtful in my opinion. Sure, having the ability to play older generation games is nice, but that’s a bonus and it isn’t terribly necessary. When you buy a new generation console, you’re likely looking to play newer titles. And while I do enjoy reliving my childhood, there’s a reason why I still have my older PS2, PS3, and Xbox 360 consoles.
The PlayStation 5 launches on November 12, 2020, in North America and other markets.
