PS5 games could get even better thanks to Sony AI

PS5 games could get even ameliorate thanks to Sony AI

(Prototype credit: Girts Ragelis | Shutterstock)

Information technology seems that Sony has big plans for PS5 and AI technology, which will assistance it requite a computational edge over Microsoft's slightly more powerful Xbox Series X.

Information comes from the Sony Corporate Strategy Meeting slideshow from May 26, freely available on Sony's website. The company devotes multiple slides to PlayStation topics, roofing everything from PlayStation Studios movies and Television set shows, to the ongoing importance of the PlayStation Plus subscription service. The most intriguing tidbit, however, arguably comes from the "Collaboration in Game AI" slide.

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"Sony AI, which we established last yr, has begun a collaboration with PlayStation that volition make game experiences even richer and more enjoyable," the slideshow reads. "Past leveraging reinforcement learning, we are developing Game AI Agents that tin exist a thespian'south in-game opponent or collaboration partner."

For those who aren't familiar with it, Sony AI is a larger initiative in the company, "dedicated to using AI to help unleash human imagination and creativity," co-ordinate to its website. Sony is a footling vague on how its AI protocol differs from like projects elsewhere in the tech sphere. Withal, the company does explain that Sony AI'southward four main pillars are Gastronomy, Imaging & Sensing, Gaming and AI Ethics.

Employing smarter, more subtle AIs in gaming could have meaning benefits. As the slideshow suggests, computer-controlled enemies and allies in video games don't usually behave like real people would. Sony AI could theoretically help non-actor characters in video games respond more dynamically to players' choices and skill levels, or at to the lowest degree carry unpredictably enough to simulate a real person behind the controller.

If successful, Sony could leverage this AI protocol to give players much smarter computer-controlled opponents and allies. This, similar to Nvidia's DLSS, tin alleviate computational load on hardware and beginning that to the cloud. It could also aid deliver more dynamic games on PS5 over Xbox Serial X. But given that Microsoft has its own cloud platform in Azure, it could easily implement a similar feature.

There were a few other PlayStation stories in the slideshow, including an interesting speech from Jim Ryan, president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, on the current country of the PS5, and what Sony hopes to achieve adjacent. (At that place's nothing too shocking here, although Sony seems to want to develop smartphone games for some of its more popular IPs. We oasis't heard much virtually that elsewhere.)

PlayStation Plus is as well a surprisingly big role of Sony'south strategy, as the service has grown "nearly tenfold" compared to 2014, according to the slideshow. ("Sixfold" would be more accurate.) Sony calls PlayStation Plus "the about important [straight-to-consumer] service in the Sony group because information technology has the largest community." PlayStation Plus appears to exist both very popular, and very assisting.

One final interesting annotation: Sony may have big plans for its cloud gaming service, PlayStation Now, as well:

"Currently, we are working to enhance and develop our services within the network, such a PlayStation Plus and PlayStation At present, which is our streaming game service that began in 2014."

Could PlayStation At present become a true Xbox Game Pass competitor, or is Sony just assuring investors that, yes, the service nonetheless exists and is making money? Hopefully, we'll know by the end of the year.

Marshall Honorof is a senior editor for Tom's Guide, overseeing the site's coverage of gaming hardware and software. He comes from a science writing background, having studied paleomammalogy, biological anthropology, and the history of science and engineering science. Afterwards hours, you tin discover him practicing taekwondo or doing deep dives on classic sci-fi.