More than 15 years after the PlayStation 3 was first released, the choices Sony made with the console still haunt the PlayStation brand. Sony revealed this week that it will overhaul its PlayStation Plus subscription service to allow users to access more games from PlayStation history. This new game library will include nearly every PlayStation platform with a number of titles available for download natively on PS5 and PS4. However, PS3 games on the service can only be tried if they are played via streaming, which obviously requires an internet connection. While this is something PS Now subscribers have been familiar with for years now, PS3’s backward compatibility on PS5 only continues to make Sony’s services pale in comparison to the competition.
If you’re out of the loop with why the PS3 continues to be an issue for Sony when it comes to backwards compatibility, the issue is with the console body. At the time, Sony was really trying to break new ground with the PS3 and build the platform on the back of the cell processing architecture. And while this console architecture made the games more technically impressive at the time, it also created a whole host of other problems. Not only did some third-party developers struggle to port games to PS3 when the platform was still around, but the unique way games worked on the console also resulted in Sony not being able to add backwards compatible functionality to the PS4 or PS5.
Because of this issue, the only way Sony has since come up with a way to make PS3 games playable on modern PlayStation hardware is through streaming. Not only is this something that subscribers have to pay to actually use it, but it’s also an internet-only solution. Considering that the worldwide internet connection is not as reliable as it is in some western markets, this is by no means a good solution.
Compared to the Xbox, Sony’s continuing problems with backward compatibility seem just a black eye on PlayStation as a whole. Microsoft has found a way in recent years to make titles that date back to the original Xbox playable on Xbox One and Xbox Series X. In fact, physical Xbox and Xbox 360 games can still be put into the Xbox Series X right now and work just like they would They have on the original hardware. Not to mention, Xbox has added graphical and performance upgrades to these older games as well. This is something PlayStation fans (myself included) have been dying to see on PS5 for quite some time. Instead, it seems the best Sony can go for is to require users to pay an annual subscription just to make games from the past more convenient to play.
Probably the most annoying thing about Sony’s continued issues with PS3 backwards compatibility is that the PS3 has been a great console overall. The platform library was excellent and contains classics such as the last of usAnd the DisreputableAnd the Metal Gear Solid 4, and much more. Although a number of the titles in this catalog have been reworked or moved elsewhere, it’s frustrating to see games from this era become increasingly difficult to revisit as the years go by. After all, who still wants to connect the PS3 to their TV in 2022?
Sony’s new PlayStation Plus version is by no means terrible. For those who want to play some great PlayStation games from last year (and have a solid internet connection), it’s great to see that Sony is now working on making these titles even more accessible. However, had it not been for the decisions made with PS3 nearly two decades ago, the current PlayStation ecosystem might have been much better off as a result.
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