Sony has announced that its new power-saving feature will launch tomorrow (Sept 17) as part of a bigger PS5 update, and has also revealed which games will support it. In case you don’t remember, this new feature is designed to deliberately reduce your console’s performance in games to help reduce its total power consumption.[1] It has been in the beta tasting phase but is now being rolled out to everyone.
Oddly, it seems like this update is not being pushed out automatically because the PlayStation Blog[2] offers specific instructions on how to download it.
“The PS5 system software update is rolling out globally, starting tomorrow. To update your PS5 system software, go to Settings > System > System Software > System Software Update and Settings.“
It isn’t clear exactly how the new feature reduces performance, but most likely it’s going to scale back the resolution and graphical settings, while probably aiming for lower framerates as well. The blog notes that some gameplay features may be unavailable in this mode, and VR is a total no-go.
Out of the gate, three games will apparently support this feature: Demon’s Souls, Ghost of Yotei[3] and Death Stranding 2. Don’t worry, it’s completely optional
To use the new feature you’ll need to:
- Go to Settings > System
- Select Power Saving > Power Saver for Games
- Turn on Use Power Saver and select which games you want to play using Power Saver.
There has been a lot of speculation that this new mode might be a testing ground for the rumoured PlayStation handheld that is said to be launching either alongside the PS6, or may actually be a dockable PS6 somewhat akin to the Switch 2.
That’s speculation, though. What we do know is this is all part of Sony’s ‘Road to Zero’ plan which they launched aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaall the way back in 2010. It aims to get Sony to net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. But let’s be honest here, it’s hard to imagine many gamers willingly sacrificing performance, especially since the PS5 isn’t actually a huge power hog anyway.
“At SIE, we are committed to Sony’s ‘Road to Zero’ environmental plan[4], launched in 2010, which includes achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040**. We are always exploring how we can contribute to these goals through our products and services,” says the blog post.
As for the rest of the update, it will add a new feature which allows the Dualsense and Dualsense Edge controllers to be paired with multiple devices. You can then swap between these devices using button combinations on the controller.
References
- ^ this new feature is designed to deliberately reduce your console’s performance in games to help reduce its total power consumption. (wolfsgamingblog.com)
- ^ the PlayStation Blog (blog.playstation.com)
- ^ Ghost of Yotei (wolfsgamingblog.com)
- ^ ‘Road to Zero’ environmental plan (www.sony.com)