A lot of PS5 commentary has focused on the console itself. The SSD will help games load faster than ever; the GPU help render games in 4K and run them at 60 fps; the physical design may cause friends and family to mistake it for a router. But a console isn't just about its hardware.
The accessories and software features can make a huge difference as well. That seems to be the case for Tango Gameworks, the studio behind Ghostwire: Tokyo, which has drawn particular attention to the PS5's DualSense controller and 3D audio protocols.
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Information comes from an interview in IGN. Reporter Lucy O'Brien talked about Ghostwire: Tokyo with Shinji Mikami, Tango's founder and CEO, and Kenji Kimura, the game's director director. Ghostwire: Tokyo is an action/adventure game that Sony featured during its PS5 games showcase earlier this summer. While the three participants mostly discussed the game itself, Mikami and Kimura also touched on how the DualSense and 3D audio will enhance the game in ways that previous hardware couldn't.
"You need to experience it directly because this is very difficult to explain both verbally and in text," said Kimura, "but the DualSense Haptics and adaptive triggers felt so good that it made us, the developers, say 'woah!' because they allowed for us to feel and experience the various actions and attacks like never before."
The difficulty, Kimura continued, was in finding a way to show players just how subtle and immersive the DualSense could feel before they actually get a chance to play the game. Such a thing might not be possible, he conceded, but he did seem to think that the DualSense's capacities are fundamentally different from vibration features in existing controllers.
Kimura also touched on the PS5's 3D audio features. For those who aren't familiar with it, 3D audio is a protocol that customizes three-dimensional soundscapes based on the shape of your ear. This technology is already available in certain PC gaming headsets, although the PS5 will theoretically use a version of the technology that optimizes soundscapes for each individual listener, making it more immersive.
"[3D audio] is also difficult to explain without personally experiencing it," said Kimura. "To feel like you’re actually there, to feel the objects and beings that are actually there, sound is extremely important. You’ll be able to feel like you are there and 'feel' the things that are there with 3D audio."
Ghostwire: Tokyo is schedule to launch sometime next year, but both 3D audio and the DualSense controller will be available at the PS5's launch later this year. Whether they'll revolutionize the gaming space or just be two more "nice-to-have" features, we'll have to wait and see. The PS5 is slated to come out during 2020's holiday season.
