Rumors, rumors
Eric A. Sim
"PlayStation 2, PlayStation Next, PlayStation 2000 – whatever you decide to
call it, chances are that Sony's 128-bit flavor of the console we all know
and love isn't going to be arriving anytime soon on either side of the
Pacific. Latest estimates place its arrival at 18 months at the earliest,
and with Dreamcast already on the streets of Tokyo (and destined for U.S.
shelves later this year) you'd figure that Sony would be cooking up
something to keep interest in the PlayStation brand from fading in its
presence. According to several reliable developer sources, it's doing just
that – although the fruit of its top-secret efforts may never actually see
the light of day.
Talk of a "PlayStation 1.5" has been echoing in the industry for almost two
years, but from what IGNPSX has learned recently, it is anything but
speculation, and is, at least somewhere deep inside Sony's hardware research
facilities, a bona fide reality. But what exactly is it?
According to those who have seen the silicon up-and-running, it isn't
anything earth-shattering, but would have the potential to increase
PlayStation's viability nonetheless. Here's what's hiding under its hood,
according to our sources:
A new GPU capable of enhancing existing PlayStation titles with texture
filtering and other hardware-based effects in addition to resolutions of
640x480 and higher.
A new CD-ROM unit capable of faster throughput (estimated at 8x) while
retaining compatibility with existing titles that are designed to work with
the current PlayStation's 2x drive in mind.
More system memory, currently believed to be about double that found in the
current PlayStation.
Possible inclusion of four controller ports.
Compatibility with existing PlayStation software is obviously the crux of
this hardware, although the possibility of games designed specifically for
use on it (i.e.: Game Boy Color) cannot be ruled out entirely. Those who
have seen the hardware tell IGNPSX that it offers the user two modes of
operation, "enhanced" (provides all of the keen new effects) and
"compatibility" (for those who want to play their games as they appear on an
original PlayStation).
Now for the big question – what does this mean for PlayStation as we know
it? Given the fact that, as it stands, there is no indication that games
would be made that can only run on this new hardware, it isn't likely that
current PlayStation owners would be given the shaft by Sony. On the other
hand, those who bought a system days or weeks in advance of the "step two's"
introduction might feel like they've received the short end of the stick.
And while the system would no doubt split the market to some extent, it
would admittedly be a good tactic to keep current (and future) PlayStation
owners to stick with the Playstation brand, something that Sony is obviously
very keen on doing.
We say "would" because, according to our developer sources, Sony is still
divided as to whether it should even release this new flavor of PlayStation
in any territory, and is no doubt waiting to see how PlayStation 2 is
shaping up – or rather, as our sources convey, not shaping up – before
making a final decision. There's even the chance that the hardware may only
reach market as an add-in for other multimedia devices, much in the same way
that VMLabs' NUON technology will be included in some DVD players introduced
later this year.
How do you feel about the prospect of a "stop-gap PlayStation" coming to a
store – and living room – near you? Would you buy it in a second, or be
outraged to no end? We'd like to know what you think. Drop us a line at
edito...@ign.com.
For the record, Sony Computer Entertainment has never acknowledged the
existence of a next-generation PlayStation system other than the PlayStation
2, and even in that respect it has remained tight-lipped. For more on this
breaking story, be sure to read the Februrary 1999 (#18) issue of PSM
magazine, on newsstands now. "
Can't we stop all the feudin' and a fightin'?
Have Fun-E.