Rumor: PS4 to get an Upgrade?

So, GDC happened over the weekend, otherwise known as the Game Developer’s Conference, where industry leaders all around the globe (but mostly in North America) come together to shell out awards, talk amongst themselves, and generally tease journalists. It’s not as flashy or full of reveals and information the way that E3 or Gamescon is, but it’s absolutely still a big moment every year and it’s a great time to hear whispers or rumors regarding the state of the industry.

Case in point.

Kotaku recently caught wind of and reported on a mysterious rumor that seemed to be circulating around the floor of GDC. It was spoken about by developers, leaked by anonymous sources, and all knowledge of it was disavowed by Sony: a new and improved PlayStation 4, dubbed the PlayStation 4.5.

Not a PlayStation 5, let me be clear. A new, better version of the PlayStation 4. One that, according to the sources, would run games at a whooping 4k resolution (giving it four times the graphical fidelity of the current machine) and have improved processing power to help developers utilize the improved graphics to its best potential. The implied goal of this upgrade was to make the PS4 more competitive with PC systems, but also to improve the experience of PlayStation VR users, who would really notice improved graphics, given that the screen would be right up against their faces.

Now, there’s a lot we don’t know, since everything we’ve learned has so far exclusively come from Kotaku’s digging. We don’t know how much it’ll cost, when it will be released (or even announced) or even how fans will get their hands on this upgrade--if this will be a software thing or if you’ll need to buy a whole new system--but it’s very likely happening. I mean, it makes sense--the consoles need to be competitive with the PC market somehow, and people willing to shell out nearly 400 bucks for PlayStation VR would likely also be willing to pay to improve their PlayStation 4, but all the same… if they would have to buy a new console, wouldn’t it just make more sense to get the Vive or the Rift and use PC…?

Well, there’s too many mysteries to ask any more questions. We’ll have to see how this pans out…