Sony to Devs: New PS4 Games Must Be Compatible with PS5 Starting From July

Details on backwards compatibility

Sony has reportedly told developers that any new PlayStation 4 games submitted for certification after the 13th July 2020 must be able to run on PlayStation 5. This information comes courtesy of Eurogamer, who managed to get a peek at internal developer documentation that outlines Sony's instructions.

So what does this mean? Well, put simply, every PS4 game that's submitted for approval beyond the 13th July should be fully playable on PS5 through backwards compatibility -- otherwise Sony doesn't give them the green light.

However, this information shouldn't be misconstrued. Sony has previously said that the "overwhelming majority" of PS4 games will be playable on PS5. It's just that these newly discovered instructions ensure that from a certain point, all PS4 games must work on PS5. It's basically Sony making sure that developers support the PS5, even if they're crafting a PS4 release.

As for updates to existing PS4 games, or any game submitted for certification before the 13th July 2020, PS5 compatibility is not mandatory, but "strongly recommended".

Anyway, we're bound to get more information on backwards compatibility from Sony in the near future, as the PS5's big reveal seems imminent.

[source eurogamer.net]