A new PS5 and PC cross-buy icon has been discovered on the console, as theories mount over Sony’s PC and handheld plans.
Xbox’s future plans may have stolen the limelight over recent weeks, but Sony has been making some mysterious moves too, that seem to be related to their next gen hardware.
Beyond Sony discussing the technology in the PlayStation 6 last month, the company has rolled out a power saver mode for certain games on the PlayStation 5. While this feature appears to be relatively innocuous on the surface, it’s suspected that it’s related to a rumoured PlayStation handheld.
In a similar vein, another PlayStation 5 feature has been discovered by a dataminer, which also seems to have broader ramifications for Sony’s future.
As shared by X user Amethxst, a cross-buy icon has been found on the PlayStation 5 console, which is said to have been added sometime after March this year.
Aside from the ‘cross-buy’ icon, there’s a separate logo for PlayStation 5 and PC purchases – which is practically identical to the cross-platform purchase icon between PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4. Amethxst states neither of these logos currently exist on the PlayStation 4, which implies the cross-buy icon is PlayStation 5 and PC specific.
While the obvious assumption is that Sony is planning to allow cross-buy purchases between PlayStation 5 and PC in the future, like Xbox’s ‘Play Anywhere’, this functionality might also connect to a broader shift in Sony’s cross-compatibility plans.
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Some believe this icon could suggest Sony is planning to release a PlayStation launcher on PC, using this cross-buy feature as a potential selling point to pull people away from Steam. It’s certainly possible and, back in 2022, dataminers found references to a ‘PlayStation PC launcher’, so this might finally be coming to fruition.
Others have suggested it could be connected to Sony’s next PlayStation handheld, which is rumoured to be launching alongside the PlayStation 6. However, all the rumours suggest this device will run PlayStation 5 games natively, so this cross-buy feature seems like they wouldn’t apply to that.
Although how it would handle PlayStation 6 games, if it’s compatible with them at all, is unclear.
These icons were found within the PlayStation 5 console, so it’s clear Sony intends to use them at some point, but exactly when they will be rolled out is the key question.
Many Sony-published PlayStation 5 titles have already made their way over to PC, like Returnal and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, so it’s possible this cross-buy functionality could start when other Sony exclusives arrive on PC – like Death Stranding 2: On The Beach or Ghost of Yōtei.
It may even signal that Sony will begin to release new PC games at the same time as the console launch. That would be a major change in its current exclusives policy and something it has previously only done for online-only games like Helldivers 2.
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