- PS5 hands-on videos finally popped up online this weekend as Sony gave press and influencers in Japan the opportunity to play games on the new console.
- They had a chance to record gameplay footage of games running on the PS5 for the first time.
- We still haven’t seen the user interface of the PS5, which launches on November 12th in the US.
Ever since Sony pulled back the curtain on the PS5’s design back in June, we’ve been waiting to see the console in action. We know about its new controller and all of the upgraded hardware that will power the console, but we’ve still yet to see anyone actually turn the console on and explore the software or play any games.
Now, just over a month out from the launch of the PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition, we still don’t know what it looks like to use the console, but some of the first hands-on videos were finally published, as influencers and publications in Japan got to play games on and take pictures of the PlayStation 5 for the very first time.
Most of the videos show footage of games running on the PS5, but Famitsu did publish a short video on Sunday that offers close-up glimpses of the DualSense controller as well as the massive PS5 tower:
Another video from a Japanese YouTuber includes a few shots of the console and the controller early on, but mostly focuses on gameplay, with demos of Astro’s Playroom, Godfall, and Balan Wonderworld. It’s an odd mix of titles, as none of them really appear to push the hardware to its limits, but at least they all run smoothly:
Surprisingly, the biggest headline to come out of the previews had nothing to do with load times or graphics or even the size of the console, but rather the presence of a mysterious nut or bolt hidden near the top of the console close to where the white case meets the black tower. The photos where the bolt appears were originally taken by 4Gamer, but as The Verge explains, we still have no idea how PS5 owners will be able to install expandable storage. Much like the Xbox Series X, we know that PS5 owners will be able to expand the SSD storage of the console, but Sony has yet to explain how it will be possible. Perhaps the answer lies beneath the mystery bolt.
Way back in June — right after the PS5 Future of Gaming event — I wrote a piece covering everything we still didn’t know about the PS5. Three months later, many of those questions have been answered, but preorders for the PS5 have already opened up and we still have no idea what it looks like when you hit the power button on a PS5. Hopefully Sony has another event in store for the near future that will fully lift the veil of secrecy.
