Sony Confirms PlayStation 5 Release for 'Holiday 2020,' Shares More Details

After a number of reports offered tantalizing details on the next PlayStation, Sony finally announced when the PS5 will be hitting shelves. On the official PlayStation Blog and in an interview with Wired, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan revealed the PlayStation 5 will launch during 2020's holiday season.

This is also the first time the company has refrained from using codenames to talk about the console, confirming that Sony won't be ditching the number-oriented naming scheme just yet. Mark Cerny, the lead system architect for the PS5, also gave a few hints on just how powerful the console will be. "There is ray-tracing acceleration in the GPU hardware," he explained. For those unfamiliar, ray-tracing is a technique in rendering that essentially traces light to simulate a more realistic image.

As well as the expected increase in processing power, Cerny added that the inclusion of a solid-state drive will dramatically reduce loading times from the current generation of consoles. Additionally, 4K Blu-ray playback is available unlike it was on the 4K-compatible PS4 Pro.

The next iteration of the DualShock controller will receive an upgrade, too, utilizing "haptic technology" to allow for a wider range of "rumble" style feedback. The L2 and R2 trigger buttons will benefit from the technology, as game developers will be able to change the resistance of the buttons. "In combination with the haptics, this can produce a powerful experience that better simulates various actions," Jim Ryan wrote.