PlayStation 5 launch: more details of Sony console unveiled at launch event

11 June 2020, 23:35

The PlayStation 5 has been revealed. Picture: Sony

By Maddie Goodfellow

Sony has unveiled its forthcoming PlayStation 5 and a raft of titles set to land on the next-generation console.

At the "future of gaming" event, Sony showed two versions of the next generation PlayStation 5 console, as well as details of new games launching.

It was the first time the Japanese tech giant revealed the machine's physical design, after months of teasing features due to appear on the follow-up to PS4 which launched seven years ago.

The new PS5 console includes a white and black design to match a new controller that will be included.

The DualSense controller will include motion sensing and other capabilities including haptic feedback, adaptive triggers and a built-in mic.

The new console features two designs, one with a 4K Blu-Ray drive and another known as the PS5 Digital Edition which appears to be without a disc drive.

The PlayStation 5 will go head-to-head with Microsoft's own next-generation offering, the Xbox Series X at the end of the year.

"With PlayStation 5, we are making a significant leap to deliver a truly new generation of transformative play experiences that will redefine expectations for what games can be," said Jim Ryan, president and chief executive of Sony Interactive Entertainment.

"Worlds will be richer and more beautiful, they'll captivate your senses in ways you didn't think possible, and you'll be able to experience them much more seamlessly, with lightning fast loading.

"Today's showcase is just a glimpse of what's to come in the next generation, and we want to thank our community for taking this journey to PS5's launch with us."

The DualSense controller comes with the console. Picture: Sony

In terms of specs, the console features a 10.28 teraflop GPU clocked at 2.234GHz. It also holds 16GB of GDDR6 memory.

Speaking at the event, Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, said: “It’s now just over a year since we started sharing technical details about the PlayStation 5.

“But today’s the day we’ve been waiting for for years - when we get to show you some of the games that demonstrate our belief that PlayStation 5 marks the biggest generational transition our industry has yet seen."

At a press conference in March, Sony explained.“Soon there are games that could never have been created before,”

The console can be placed upright or on its side. Picture: Sony

The release date for the console has not yet been officially announced.

In a blog post, PlayStation boss Jim Ryan said: "Since we originally unveiled our next-generation console in April, we know that there’s been a lot of excitement and interest in hearing more about what the future of games will bring.

"Today I’m proud to share that our next-generation console will be called PlayStation 5, and we’ll be launching in time for Holiday 2020."

It is thought the console will arrive in stores around October or November 2020, in time for Christmas.

Sony hosted the launch event online. Picture: Sony

Sony also used the event to launch a host of new games for the console.

Grand Theft Auto will also be coming to the PS5 with "enhanced and expanded" versions of Grand Theft Auto V and Grand Theft Auto Online set to launch in the second half of 2021.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales was among the roster of games set to appear on the PS5, an alternative incarnation of the Marvel Comics character that does not focus on the original superhero incarnation of Peter Parker.

It will launch in winter this year, following 2018's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse movie and the last Spider-Man game to be released exclusively on PS4 in the same year.

The PS5 will also mark the return of Ratchet & Clank in a new title called Rift Apart, in which the duo travel through different dimensions via portals, alongside a female lookalike of Ratchet - although the release date was not confirmed.

Elsewhere, gamers saw trailers from familiar franchises such as Gran Turismo 7, Oddworld Soulstorm, Hitman 3, Resident Evil Village, Horizon: Forbidden West, Sackboy: A Big Adventure and NBA 2K21.

Games launched include...

- Gran Turismo 7

- Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

- Project Athia

- Stray

- Returnal

- Sackboy: A Big Adventure

- Destruction AllStars

- Kena: Bridge of Spirits

- Goodbye Volanco High

- Oddworld: Soul Storm

- Ghostwire