Now it’s official: Both Sony and Microsoft will release their next generation of consoles near the end of 2020. As per tradition, it may happen in November, but that doesn’t matter too much. What we are more interested in what kind of games we can expect, as new hardware should give developers lots of space to do things that weren’t possible on this console generation.
Is quantum leap in graphics possible?
We can hear PC gamers telling us that modern computer hardware is far beyond of PS4 and Xbox One, but while risking of getting them angry, that advantage doesn’t mean almost anything. Sure, every multiplatform game looks visibly better on PC, even if you have an average machine with a decent video card like GeForce GTX 1060. In games like Gears 5, you’ll get better effect and antialiasing then even on Xbox One X, while Crash Bandicoot N’Sane Trilogy runs at 60 fps only on PC. You could also mention ray tracing, but the fact is that only a few games support it, and it’s still rather expensive technology. The thing is, PC and console versions of the same game still very much look like, and sometimes it’s hard to spot a difference. The same happened during the PS3/Xbox 360 era.
That is why we need the next-gen console hardware to advance the graphics quality. While there are no exact numbers, both PS5 and end next-gen Xbox console will be a few times faster than the current champion Xbox One X. What we do know is that CPU probably won’t be impressive, but the GPU will be another matter. Both Microsoft and Sony were happy to announce that their games will support ray tracing on the hardware level. That means that this technology will finally become mainstream, and every game developer will feel pressure to use it. But we expect by far more detailed objects that are getting close to what we watch in animated movies. That may especially benefit open-world games that so far had to make serious compromises to achieve that kind of quality. But we are still skeptical about some of the promises.
8K, and 120 fps? Don’t count on it
People with great memory might remember that Sony promised that even PS3 could run games in 120fps, More than a decade later, consoles are still bound to 60 fps. Both Sony and Microsoft didn’t fail to mention that their next-gen console will support 8K and 120 fps, but while Sex Cam Sites are a reality, we doubt their promises will come true. Of course, simple indy games could achieve both things at the same time, but could you imagine playing Grand Theft Auto VI in full Ultra HD resolution with 120 fps? Since 8K won’t become mainstream for at least five years, you can bet that developers won’t care about it either. Why would you make an 8K game, with fewer details and slower frame rate, while you stay in 4K and keep at least 60 fps? By the time 8K TV sets become widely available, both next-gen consoles will be four or five years old, so it’s likely that companies will start selling advanced versions as they did with PS4 Pro and Xbox One. But even then, 8K and 120 fps will probably stay a dream.
Back to cartridge load time
What we loved about cartridge-based consoles is that they were as fast as using the search on the Porn Star Database. That meant that games loaded instantly, which is impossible even today. While it’s exciting that PS5 and Xbox Next will have SSD drives, far more interesting is that both companies claim that their SSDs are much faster than the usual SSDs for PCs. In theory, that could mean that loading times will become a thing of the past. Sounds too good? Well, it’s sound that it could become a reality far quicker than 8K + 120 fps gaming. Again, this would mostly benefit huge, open-world games, so more elevators other slow-moving scenes to keep you occupied while you are waiting for the next chapter to load.
The gameplay is the king
Still, all these enhancements won’t mean much if the gameplay doesn’t advance. We want to see bigger worlds, stories that are better than anything found on the Sex Stories Platform, or realistic physics in sports games. Hopefully, both Microsoft and Sony are aware that they need to deliver.
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