Subtle Playstation Changes Could Mean A Huge Surprise

Since Microsoft announced its pending $68.7 million purchase of Activision Blizzard in what is undoubtedly the biggest acquisition in gaming history, all eyes have been on Sony to see what the company will do in response. Though Sony's PlayStation 5 is still well ahead of the Xbox Series X|S in terms of sales — with recent data showing that the former has sold at least 5 million more units worldwide — Microsoft's Xbox has been becoming quite competitive in the console market with its Game Pass subscription service as well as better availability in terms of supply. Considering that Game Pass makes backward compatibility a simple matter for Xbox fans, PS5 owners are wondering if they might be getting a similar method to access older games soon.

If Sony wishes to keep its place on top of the console food chain, some announcements are in order in order to remain in lockstep with its competitors in the console market. Lo and behold, a recent discovery seems to indicate that the PlayStation 5 could be making some subtle changes in the near future, pending a formal announcement.

Dating back to before its launch, the state of the PS5's backward compatibility is a bit confusing. While many more recent PlayStation 4 titles are currently available on Sony's newest console, PS5 users are currently unable to play any titles that date back to the PlayStation 3 or beyond. This is in stark contrast to the Xbox Series X|S, which has a slew of titles from the Xbox 360 and Xbox eras available on its Game Pass service. However, it seems that the PS5 could make games from older generations of Sony consoles available to consumers as well upon its rumored release of a similar service in the future.

PlayStation fans on Twitter have discovered that recent glitches with PlayStation's trophy system have shown trophies for the PS3 instead of the PS4. This has led to fans of the PS5 getting excited, as backwards compatibility would indicate a huge change for the PlayStation 5 moving forward. Unfortunately, the sighting might amount to nothing. As of Jan. 25, all PS3 and PS Vita icons have been removed from the trophy system (via GamesRadar). Despite the mix-up, it's still very possible that older games could become available should Sony release its own subscription service in the future.