The long wait for the PS5 reveal is beginning to worry some PlayStation fans. Two months after Xbox revealed its new console, the Xbox Series X, there's still no official presentation from PlayStation, and while we've had quite a bit of info leaked as to the PS5's internal specs, we don't know what the console is capable of or even what it looks like.
However, what we do know is that the dev kits are in the hands of developers. While everyone with access to a PS5 or Xbox Series X dev kit is bound tightly with non-disclosure agreements, one dev has broken cover to tell us everything they (legally) can, and hints at what they can't.
- Best PS5 games
- What about the rumoured Nintendo Switch Pro?
CTO at 4A Games, Oles Shishkovstov, was recently asked about the next-gen consoles in a recent interview with Eurogamer. He said the following:
"We are fully into ray tracing, dropping old-school codepath/techniques completely... Internally we experimented a lot, and with spectacular results so far. You will need to wait to see what we implement into our future projects.
"I am more excited for not yet publicly revealed things."
What is ray tracing?
Ray tracing is an advanced rendering technique. It generates images by tracing the path of light rays from one or more light sources, creating images just as our eyes see them. it's a technique that can generate a high level of visual realism, but it takes a lot of processing power to achieve, as its a complicated technique and speed is key in video games
The advances of next-generation computing power has finally allowed ray tracing to become more common in games, as images can now be rendered fast enough for gamers as opposed to, for example, a visual effect on film (which can take as long to render as it needs to, and only needs to be done once). The video below, from 4a Games, shows the advances in ray tracing capable on PC, which can now be replicated on console.
Next-generation games are going to use ray tracing to transform the way games look, creating immersive, realistic worlds only possible on next-gen consoles. However, an intriguing tidbit of information from Shishkovstov is that he's most excited for "not yet publicly revealed things".
We know quite a bit about the Xbox Series X and the PS5 already, with solid-state drive memory banks, ray tracing and even some launch titles like Senua's Saga: Hellblade II and Godfall. However, it sounds as though there are secrets which have been kept under wraps until later in the year, when both companies are comfortable revealing the full specs of their new machines.
As the unease around Sony's refusal to reveal the PS5 begins to grow, it's comforting that somebody with an early version of both consoles in hand is so relentlessly positive about their capabilities. We can't wait to see the games in action later this year.
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