Sony may be working on a solution to allow PlayStation 3 games to run natively on PlayStation 5 consoles, according to a reputable industry insider. Even with the PS5’s many strengths, its backwards compatibility has been a frequent point of criticism. Most games from earlier PlayStation generations, except for the PS4, are not playable on the PS5.
While Sony occasionally adds older PlayStation games to the PS Plus Premium Classics Catalog, the overall backwards compatibility of the PS5 remains limited. Many titles from the PS1, PS2, PS3, PS Vita, and PSP eras are not accessible on modern PlayStation platforms. Even when these classic games are available, they come with restrictions. For example, these games can only be accessed digitally, meaning physical copies are not supported on the PS5. Additionally, PS3 games require a constant internet connection for cloud streaming, complicating the gaming experience.
Although playing PS2 discs on a PS5 might not happen soon, there is hope that PS3 games could soon be playable without cloud streaming. This information comes from Shpeshal_Nick, a reliable insider who discussed the topic on a recent episode of the XboxEra podcast. According to his sources, “Sony is working on select PlayStation 3 backwards compatibility for the PS5.”
The term “select” implies that Sony might handpick specific PS3 titles to make compatible with the PS5, similar to Microsoft’s approach with backwards-compatible games on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.