Gotta go fast! If there’s one takeaway to be had about the next generation of console gaming, it’s that speed is a true priority. For all the power being peveraged and revealed in the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles, it’s the brisk pace at which those delightful visuals can be shown off that truly matters in the grand scheme of things.
Microsoft’s approach to drastically reducing loading screens for the next couple of years is a simple one: A custom-engineered solid state drive with a terabyte of storage space to make use of, options to expand upon that digital real estate with the return of literal memory cards and an operating system that’ll allow for multiple games to be resumed from wherever you left off, whenever you want to.
Sony’s plans for the PlayStation 5 aren’t too dissimilar either, as the Japanese giant also wants to not only eliminate lengthy loading screens (I’m crying in 2011 Skyrim right now), but get you into the game faster than ever before. Here’s the latest update on that side: Back in September 2018, Sony filed a patent for “Dynamic Interfaces for Launching Direct Gameplay”, which sadly isn’t the name of Kaz Hirai’s metal band.
What it is (Cheers, Games Radar), is a slice of console user interface that’ll highlight specific parts from a game and allow you to hop right into them from your dashboard. Imagine Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, a game which in its complete form has single-player, multiplayer and Warzone attached to it. Don’t feel like sitting through the long screens of game engine technology credits and logos just so that you can reach the Warzone tab? Well you’ll be able to dash straight to Warzone from your main hub.
Think Mortal Kombat 11, and how you’d like to jump from UI to a few rounds of tournament play. Or how about going from dashboard to free-roaming mode in Tony Hawk Pro Skater 5: Second Chance Edition? That’s the gist of it, an idea which already builds on the PS4s ability to allow you to instantly resume a game if you left the console in rest mode.
Last week’s deep dive on the PS5 highlighted this idea as well, with lead system architect Mark Cerny explaining that Sony was looking to create a console that would allow its users to “jump right into whatever you like”. With all that fancy new hardware and the software to run on it, looks like hopping into a quick game of something may be the new status quo this decade.
Last Updated: March 26, 2020
MechMachine
March 26, 2020 at 10:16
Is this console thing not a touch vulgar if you consider the wider problems of the world at the moment. There is this YouTube, Dealer, who is practically salivating in his own stink at the fact that he predicted the Xbox series X was going to be more powerful , even though he conceded the he would graciously accept defeat if the PS5 was more powerful just before the Cerny event.
I watched a stream of where a group of pro Xbox guys ( Including Dealer ) discussed the pros and cons of the next gen consoles and they were actually using the load speeds of the Xbox as a major pro. Now that it’s inferior to the Ps5, He has made a video disparaging the tech and trying to somehow lessen the value of it. Mindless consumer madness at it’s worst.
The D
March 26, 2020 at 10:19
We joke about it in our own articles, but I’m with you 100%. I see articles and videos creating a needless pissing war between brands, whereas I’m like:
Can’t we just be happy that we’re getting two awesome new consoles soon?
Jacques Van Zyl
March 26, 2020 at 11:29
Two awesome new consoles are releasing soon – we aren’t gonna afford either at the current R/$ – 😛
Pieter Kruger
March 26, 2020 at 09:43
Ehhhh this doesn’t make sense. If the game as a whole will load in 1 or 2 seconds anyway what’s the difference? 3rd World problems I guess….LOL!
The D
March 26, 2020 at 09:48
I’m not waiting TEN WHOLE SECONDS to play a mode like some sort of peasant when it can be done in five. Gosh man, priorities.