​PS5 vs Series X: How Backwards Compatibility Works On The Next-Gen Consoles

With both Sony and Microsoft being in the console business for decades, now, more than ever before, we're looking at the new console generation and asking how it will support backwards compatibility. New games are obviously exciting, but just how many different consoles will I need under the telly to play all my old games?

This week has seen both console manufacturers make public statements about just how far their new consoles will go to support old games, so we finally know which old consoles we can hide away in the attic come release day this Christmas. (That is, of course, assuming neither console is delayed because of the current pandemic, or if, indeed, we'll be able to leave our houses and go buy the new hardware.)

Xbox Series X backwards compatibility

Since it first started revealing details on the Xbox Series X, Microsoft has been talking about backwards compatibility. The new Xbox will be able to play (a selection of) games released on every generation of Microsoft console, and some of them will look and play better than they ever did in the old days.

In a recent look at the hardware in the new Xbox, Microsoft laid out the benefits for old games, such as "improved boot and load times, more stable frame rates, higher resolutions, and improved image quality". These updates are to be made freely available to you as soon as you install the game on the new console.

Games like Gears 5 are due significant upgrades, Microsoft says, with frame rates increased to 100 frames per second, better lighting and shadows, and more dense visual effects. You can see it in action below:

Another great aspect of Microsoft's approach to backwards compatibility is that your Xbox One game saves and progression will be accessible on the new console. Microsoft isn't clear whether your saves on the older consoles will be accessible.

A big feature of Microsoft's backwards compatibility is that the Series X will support cross-generation multiplayer. Again, whether this extends all the way back to the original Xbox is unclear, but certainly playing between the Series X and Xbox One will be possible.

It's worth noting, however, that while you can play games from all generations of Xbox on the Series X, you can't play all Xbox games on the console. In the same way that the Xbox One is only able to play a selection of Xbox and Xbox 360 games, the Series X will have a limited catalogue of old games it can play. That still includes over 600 games, but you should check if your old games are on this list before getting rid of the consoles they were released for.

PlayStation 5 Backwards Compatibility

While Sony also mentioned backwards compatibility in its first PS5 announcements, it has been a lot less open about the extent of its support for old consoles. Sony's lead system architect Mark Cerny told Wired in April last year that because the PS5 shared its system architecture with the PS4, it would be able to play PS4 games.

However, because the PS5 is so much more powerful than its predecessor, using an ultra-fast SSD instead of a regular hard-drive, it's actually causing problems getting old games running. "Running PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro titles at boosted frequencies has added complexity," Cerny revealed in a recent deep dive into the new console's hardware. "The boost is truly massive this time around, and some game code can't handle it. Testing has to be done on a title-by-title basis."

To that end, at launch, the PS5 won't run all PS4 titles. Cerny says that Sony has tested the top 100 PS4 games ranked by playtime and he expects "almost all of them" will be playable when the new console launches.

The PS5 has a fancy internal hard-drive that runs much faster than anything on the market, but you may not want to fill up that space with last-gen games which don't need the new hardware. For those old games, you can install them to a standard external drive.

What wasn't said in Cerny's talk about the PS5's hardware was any mention of support for PlayStation 1, 2, or 3 games on the new console. While no mention is not the same as confirmation that the new console won't support games from all previous PlayStation generations , it certainly doesn't give us much hope for the feature. Cerny did also talk specifically about adding an old console's chipset to a console to let it play old games as being "extremely expensive" - which is why the PS5's hardware is an evolution of the PS4 and not a reinvention, because it makes backwards compatibility more affordable.

Personally, I still have hope that we might see old PlayStation games available for streaming through Sony's PlayStation Now service, but I have stopped thinking we might see in-console support for playing old games. It's certainly something we'll be asking Sony at the first opportunity.

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Clearly Microsoft is being much more open about wanting to support its vast back catalogue of games, from right across its previous consoles. It looks like the Xbox Series X will easily replace the other Xboxes you might still keep hooked up to the television - unless you are dead set on playing Xbox and Xbox 360 games that aren't supported. On that front, be safe in the knowledge that both Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge and Blinx: The Timesweeper are backwards compatible.

While Sony is seemingly not being as extensive in its support, it's no small thing to be able to play PS4 games on the new console. That means from day one the PS5 will have an extensive library of great games to play. But it would be excellent to see Sony find some way to crack open its archive of classic games. With over 25 years of PlayStation history behind us, there are some gems that it'd be great to easily play on a modern machine - without the need for using old consoles and cable converters to get them working on modern televisions.

Featured Image Credit: Sony/Microsoft

Topics: PlayStation 5, Xbox, PS5, Xbox Series X, PlayStation