About a month ago, rumors of an upgraded PlayStation 4 console began to spread across the internet. The new model, dubbed PS4.5 or PS4K by fans, is expected to support 4K resolution, but little else had been revealed until Giant Bomb was able to confirm several huge details with multiple sources this week.
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According to Giant Bomb’s report, the 4K-capable PS4 carries the codename NEO internally. Sony’s NEO PS4 is said to feature 8 Jaguar Cores running at 2.1 GHz (as opposed to 1.6 GHz on the original), an improved AMD GCN with 36 CUs at 911 MHz and 8 GB of GDDR5 RAM at 218 GB/s.
Although it doesn’t appear that Sony will separate the player base by making games exclusively for the upgraded console, several documents indicate that the company will require developers to include both a “Base Mode” for original consoles and a “NEO Mode” for upgraded consoles on all PS4 games beginning in October.
Similar to earlier reports, Giant Bomb’s sources claim that the NEO PS4 will exist alongside the standard model. Other than the upgraded hardware, the user experience should be completely identical for NEO and standard owners.
The documents also show that Sony is adamant about standard PS4 owners not feeling left behind once the NEO launches. The company has told developers not to any exclusive incentives for playing the NEO version of a game, which includes anything from cosmetic unlockables all the way up to special game modes and features.
No release date was mentioned in the documents, but with “NEO Mode” becoming a requirement in October, it would make sense for the upgraded console to launch before the end of the year, likely at a price of $399.
