PlayStation NEO – new PS4 details leaked

PlayStation 4.5, packing high performance and tailored for virtual reality applications, has been much rumoured. Now word is that we have some specs to start getting excited about.

This week details about a new PlayStation 4, codenamed NEO, have been released which reveals that the new system will retail for around $400 and will provide a faster CPU, faster memory and improved GPU.

The details have been leaked thanks to a new document created by Sony for developers that explained all new games must incorporate a ‘Base Mode’ and ‘NEO Mode’.

The upgraded console is said to be capable of outputting in 4K resolutions, but, according to the leakers, games don’t have to be 4K native.

Sony has yet to confirm that the project is in the works (naturally), but the reports indicate that it would appear before the company releases its PS VR headset in October.

The increased power from the PS4.5 should make it easier to run hardware-intensive VR games on the console. The codenames would certainly fit, with the ‘Neo’ console linking with its PS VR’s ‘Morpheus’, but that upgraded hardware won’t mean that PS4 Neo owners get exclusive VR modes though.

The only fly in this ointment is that Giant Bomb says games must have peripheral parity, so if a title doesn’t offer VR support in its ‘base’ iteration, it won’t do in its Neo version either.

The good news is that the company’s documentation reportedly states that there will be no Neo-only games, owners of both versions of the console will continue to use the same PlayStation Store, and publishers are barred from offering special features or downloadable content to owners of one type of console.

Thankfully, players of both the original PS4 and PS4 Neo and will be able to play alongside each other on PlayStation Network. So that’s nice, isn’t it?

More details as they come through, but are you excited or a bit meh?

Let us know below or on the GN FB page 🙂