Prices for several PS3 games have appeared on the PS5 store, leading fans to speculate that certain PlayStation titles are in the process of being backwards compatible.
PS3 games listed on the PS5 store typically redirect players to the trial page for PlayStation Now, Sony's cloud subscription service that lets you stream older titles on the latest generation of hardware.
However, fans have seen some PS3 games listed in the store with new price tags in place of the PlayStation Now logo, including two games in the Prince of Persia series and Dead or Alive 5 (thanks, VGC).
The games cannot be purchased, although they can be added to your wish list. The new prices could hint at where the PS5 store, PlayStation Now, and the future of PS3 gaming are headed.
Analysis: Is further backwards compatibility likely?
The sudden appearance of PS3 game price tags has sparked a lot of speculation and hope that PS3 games will be available for purchase on the PS5 store in the near future. While nothing has been confirmed by Sony yet, a PS5 backwards compatibility review isn't out of the question, given the bigger changes coming to its PlayStation-adjacent services.
Last week it was reported that PS5 system architect Mark Cerny had filed a patent suggesting the console would be backwards compatible and PlayStation Now membership cards would be withdrawn from sale in UK retail stores. and USA
Add to that the December report from Bloomberg that Sony is preparing to combine PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus into an Xbox Game Pass-style service, codenamed Spartacus. Offering multiple subscription tiers, the highest one is supposed to allow players to stream a library of classic PS1, PS2 and PS3 games.
These reports indicate that PlayStation Now is reaching the end of its life, as Sony prepares to end the subscription service for its successor. These unexpected price tags recently seen on the PS5 store could be the first signs of this change.
Extending PS5 backwards compatibility wouldn't hurt fans, as gamers are always itching to return to their favorite titles from past generations. While the PS5 can run the vast majority of PS4 games, its incompatibility with previous generation titles is a sticking point.
Currently, the only way to play PS2 and PS3 games on Sony's latest console is to stream them through PlayStation Now. A subscription service that only offers a handful of older titles, many gamers eager to delve into older games are naturally more drawn to Xbox Series X, which lets them play Xbox One, Xbox 360, and the original Xbox versions right out of the box. . box, without the need to contract any additional service.
If Sony wants to match its main rival's backwards compatibility, adding PS3 games to buy from the PS5 store would be a welcome step.
Take a deeper dive into Xbox's backwards compatibility journey in TRG's interview with Series X Development Lead Jason Ronald.
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