Despite shortages that saw the console disappear off shelves as fast as it could be replenished, the PlayStation 5 has had an excellent 2021. At the last count, 13.4 million PS5s have been sold, and it would undoubtedly have been more if supply could keep up with demand.
Whisper it, but that masks the fact that killer exclusives have been in almost equally short supply. Sure, there are plenty of must-play titles on our list of the best PS5 games, but most of them aren’t exclusive to the new hardware.
Will 2022 improve on availability and software? What about new hardware and accessories? Here’s what we’re expecting from PS5 in 2022.
PS5 in 2022: Hardware availability and revisions
PS5 in 2022: Expect more stock shortages
Bad news for people still banking on PS5 restocks: Sony isn’t expecting the hardware shortage to end in the first half of 2022.
Recently, Sony reduced its production target for April 2021 to March 2022 from 16 million to 15 million, and while the projection for the following fiscal year of 22.6 million is obviously better, manufacturing partners are reportedly worried that this is somewhat optimistic.
The most positive estimate comes from AMD, which produces the chipset for the PS5. Back in October, CEO Lisa Su said: “I expect it to be from June-September of next year 2022 when, perhaps, it will be possible to go down to a video game store or a department store to buy a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X without it being an impossible task.”
The “perhaps” may be doing some heavy lifting there, as a lot of non-AMD components make up a PS5, but it’s something to hold on to if you’re still on the hunt for hardware in 2022.
PS5 in 2022: Possible revisions ahead
Those who haven’t been able to get hold of a PS5 yet may wonder if they’re better holding out for a major hardware revision of some kind — a ‘Slim’ model, or even a souped up PS5 Pro edition.
Those hoping for such news may be interested in a report from May that suggested a revision to the hardware was coming in late 2022, possibly to deal with the ongoing chip shortages. The rumor is that Sony may switch from 7nm chips to 6nm ones, which could give the theoretical PS5 revision a bit of a performance bump.
But take that with a pinch of salt as, historically, it would be unprecedented. It took between three (PS3 and PS4) and six (PS1) years for smaller versions of Sony’s consoles to appear in the past, and the first ‘Pro’ model console — the PS4 Pro — also took three years to show up.
With the PS5 still flying off shelves, does Sony really have any reason to revive the hardware just yet?
PS5 in 2022: A possible Game Pass rival?
PS5 in 2022: Spartacus the Game Pass clone?
While individual PS5 exclusives are interesting, what’s more exciting is Sony’s reported plans to beat Microsoft at its own game by introducing a Game Pass-like service to PlayStation in the spring.
Codenamed Spartacus, the service will reportedly allow players to play a selection of classic and modern games for the cost of a monthly subscription fee. It will apparently merge PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now into one service, with Sony apparently keeping the former’s branding while phasing out the latter.
The new look PS Plus will now come with three tiers: the first being what it is now (monthly free games and online services), with the next tier offering a library of PS4 and PS5 games, and the final one providing all of the above, plus extended demos, game streaming and titles from the PS1, PS2, PS3 and PSP platforms.
PS5 in 2022: The biggest games
PS5 in 2022: The biggest games
God of War: Ragnarok
Kratos is back in the first version of God of War designed for PlayStation 5. Given the previous entry is one of the best PS4 games around, this will be unmissable for those who have managed to bag a PS5 when it launches in 2022.
Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Zero Dawn was a breath of fresh air when it launched on PS4 back in 2017, and a sequel is finally coming next year. With the promise of a bigger and more diverse world to make the most of the new hardware, this is probably our most anticipated upcoming PS5 game for 2022.
Elden Ring
Unlike the above, Elden Ring isn’t a PlayStation exclusive with an Xbox release also on the cards, but anything from Dark Souls makers From Software is always going to be on all serious gamers’ radars. Made in collaboration with Game of Thrones’ creator George R.R. Martin, the beta gave us a brief but tantalising flavor of what to expect when it arrives on February 5 2022.
Gran Turismo 7
It’s been four years since Gran Turismo Sport appeared on PlayStation 4, and now we’re getting the true sequel to 2013’s Gran Turismo 6, and it’s coming on March 4 2022. You should know what to expect — a realistic and detailed driving sim — but this time, it’ll run in 4K at 60fps too.
Hogwarts Legacy
An open-world RPG may feel familiar, but one set in the Harry Potter universe certainly makes this a unique proposition. Set long before the events of the books and films, players will get to see how Hogwarts was in the good old days when it launches next year.
Forspoken
“Designed for PlayStation 5”, Forspoken is a third-person action game from Square Enix that looks pretty breathtaking from the early trailers. Not too much is known about the story, but given it has a team of “A-list writers” on board, this is definitely one to watch when it arrives in Spring 2022.
Ghostwire: Tokyo
Use your supernatural powers to fend off paranormal threats in this immersive looking first-person game, coming to PS5 in 2022. This could be Bethesda’s PlayStation swansong and it’s fittingly a timed exclusive, thanks to being arranged before Microsoft’s purchase of the company.
PS5 in 2022: Upcoming accessories
PS5 in 2022: A colorful new look
So far the PS5 has only emerged in white, and while that’s not going to change any time soon, Sony has at least finally unveiled plans to let owners customize their consoles with new plates.
Arriving in January 2022, the plates will come in Midnight Black, Cosmic Red, Nova Pink, Starlight Blue and Galactic Purple, costing $54 each. And there will be DualSense controllers to match, too.
PS5 in 2022: PSVR 2
We know that PSVR 2 is real, and the exciting early leaks suggest something with capacitive touch sensors, 4K screens and a plan based on more console-quality AAA titles, rather than throwaway experiences.
The PSVR 2 release date for the PS5 is very much up in the air. All we know for absolutely sure is that it won’t be coming in 2021, which sounds obvious now with mere days left in the year, but was more of a blow when it was first revealed. One report suggests that it’ll be with us for Holiday 2022, but you’d imagine that would be reliant on the global chip shortage and Sony’s priority will undoubtedly be getting PS5 consoles under TVs before branching out into add ons.
PS5 in 2022: Games on the go?
Sony has made no secret about the fact it sees mobile gaming as a big market, with PlayStation boss Jim Ryan previously saying that the company’s “iconic” IP will be coming to mobile at some point.
What form this will take is an open question — dedicated mobile ports are possible, but so is streaming via PlayStation Now. But one interesting patent shows how Sony could possibly make gaming on the go more familiar, with a DualShock shaped gaming grip for smartphones.
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