PS5 backwards compatibility focus is all on PS4 games as Sony has no answer about PS1, PS2, and PS3 games

One of the remaining big discussion points about the PS5 among fans is the extent of the console’s backwards compatibility. Sony has already made it clear that many PS4 titles will be able to run on the next-gen device, with over 4,000 games from the previous generation being thoroughly tested for PS5 compatibility. However, the question remains whether Sony is going to offer PS1, PS2, and PS3 games support for the PS5, and the latest statement from the company, although seeming quite negative in the first instance, is actually rather cryptic with its content.

A Sony spokesperson who was talking to the Japanese media outlet GameSpark made this comment in regard to PS5 backwards compatibility, which has been translated into English by Twitter user BlackKite: “We will focus on PS4 compatibility and develop compatible PS4 libraries so that users can move their PS4 libraries to new consoles.” Straightforward and nothing cryptic there, but the spokesperson continued with: “There is nothing we can answer about backwards compatibility with the PS1, PS2, and PS3”. It’s understandable if a first read of that statement leads to the conclusion that full PS5 backwards compatibility all the way back to the original PlayStation is not going to happen.

Of course, PS5 fans have started debating whether this actually means Sony has discarded work with older titles permanently, temporarily, or even most optimistically that the company has a solution in place already (emulator built into the PS5?) and simply wants to keep it as a surprise to reveal later down the line. An alleged leak by a Turkish retailer last month suggested that PS5 backwards compatibility went through all previous four PlayStation generations, so maybe Sony’s lack of an answer indicates a simple desire to keep mum for the moment.

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