SONY has announced a bizarre attachment for the PS4 controller that could hint at what to expect from next year’s PS5 joypad.
Gamers can now purchase “back paddles” that strap on to the rear of your DualShock 4 pad.
The official name for the add-on is the Back Button Attachment.
It comprises of two programmable “paddle” buttons that Sony describes as “highly tactile”.
You can map up to 16 different actions to these buttons, to give you an edge over enemies.
And the add-on also includes a small OLED screen that displays real-time info on your button assignments.
There’s a 3.5mm port for a headphone jack, and a clip function to attach the paddles to your controller.
The idea is that the paddles make it quicker to perform some functions in games.
Response times can be hugely important in twitchy multiplayer games like Call of Duty.
There’s a dedicated button on the attachment to quickly and easily remap your buttons.
And you can save up to three different profiles at a time to use across various games.
What’s really getting gamers excited is the fact that this attachment could give us clues about the PlayStation 5.
Sony has already confirmed that the PS5 is coming for Christmas 2020 with a new joypad to boot.
It’s possible that this new attachment is an early sign that the new control will already have paddles built-in.
However, Sony hasn’t confirmed this and it’s impossible to guarantee that this will be the case.
Sony has already revealed some early details about the PS5 joypad, however.
Sony’s new controller will feature haptic feedback that replaces the “rumble” technology typically found in joypads.
The term “haptic” literally means “relating to touch”, and so it’s about providing better touch feedback to your hands.
That means more vibrating motors in your controller in places like the triggers and even joysticks to give what PlayStation calls “a broader range of feedback”.
“Crashing into a wall in a race car feels much different than making a tackle on the football field,” said PlayStation boss Jim Ryan.
“You can even get a sense for a variety of textures when running through fields of grass or plodding through mud.”
The new controller will also feature adaptive triggers technology built into the L2 and R2 trigger buttons.
Developers will be able to program the resistance of these triggers so you can feel the “tactile sensation of drawing a bow and arrow”, for instance.
Game creators are already receiving early versions of the new controller.
In other news, an ultra-rare ‘Nintendo PlayStation’ a cancelled console could sell for millions at auction.
Microsoft recently unveiled its new Xbox Series X console with a bonkers vertical design.
Sony’s PS5 has beentipped to cost over 450.
And find out why both the PS5 and the Xbox X Series could be the last consoles you ever own.
Are you planning to buy the Xbox Series X or the PlayStation 5 next year? Let us know in the comments!
