BY Fast Company Contributor 3 MINUTE READ

The moment that South African gamers have been waiting for has finally arrived.

It’s a day of celebration for gaming fans as Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) launches its next-generation and much-anticipated console, PlayStation 5 (PS5).

“Today marks a historic moment for the PlayStation brand, and all of us at SIE are pleased to celebrate the release of PlayStation 5 together with our community of fans, game developers, and industry partners,” said Jim Ryan, President and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment.

“PS5 is a truly next-generation console representing the beginning of a new era for gaming. I’m thrilled for the new worlds that players will begin to experience today, and I’m equally excited for the lineup of games still to come for PS5 that will continue to propel the gameplay experience forward. We are humbled to work with a talented community of world class game developers. Their creativity will bring limitless possibilities to what the future of gaming can look like on PS5.”

This new generation of gaming will be celebrated as iconic buildings and popular sites in 25 territories around the world will be lit up with projecting images of the PlayStation shapes, the PS5 console, the DualSense wireless controller and other PlayStation brand imagery.

The PS5 Digital Edition will be available for a recommended retail price (RRP) of R9 999.99 and PS5 with an Ultra HD Blu-ray™ disc drive will be available for an RRP of R11 999.99.

Both PS5 models offer the same specifications, so players will enjoy the same transformative gameplay experiences regardless of which PS5 they choose.

Gamers can enjoy favourites such as Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Demon’s Souls, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, and Astro’s Playroom. PS5 owners can enjoy more than three dozen new games this festive season, including games from SIE’s publishing partners such as Call of Duty®: Black Ops Cold War (Activision), Fortnite (Epic Games), FIFA 21 (EA), NBA 2K21 (2K), Godfall (Gearbox Publishing), Watch Dogs®: Legion and Assassin’s Creed® Valhalla (Ubisoft), and many more.

The fun won’t end when the holiday does.

PS5 gamers can look forward to even more incredible games after the festive season with upcoming Worldwide Studios exclusives include Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, Returnal, Destruction AllStars, Horizon Forbidden West, Gran Turismo™ 7, and a new God of War game. Additional games launching first on PS5 include DEATHLOOP™ from Arkane Studios/Bethesda Softworks, Ghostwire™: Tokyo from Tango Gameworks/Bethesda Softworks, Project Athia (Working Title) from Luminous Productions/Square Enix, and Final Fantasy® XVI from Square Enix. Resident Evil™ Village from Capcom and Hogwarts Legacy from Warner Bros. Games round out the lineup of highly anticipated PS5 titles.

PlayStation Plus members won’t miss out on the fun as they can enjoy a curated lineup of 20 PlayStation®4 games that defined the generation with the PlayStation Plus Collection, available to download and play on PlayStation 5. The PlayStation Plus Collection features critically acclaimed games, including Batman™: Arkham Knight, Bloodborne, Call of Duty®: Black Ops III – Zombies Chronicle Edition, Fallout® 4, God of War, Monster Hunter: World™, Final Fantasy®XV, Resident Evil®7 Biohazard, Persona 5, The Last of Us Remastered, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End and more.

PS5 promises to bring players into game worlds with unprecedented speed, visual fidelity and sensory immersion.

Gamers will enjoy near-instant load times thanks to PS5’s ultra-high speed solid state drive (SSD), as well as breathtaking 4K graphics and silky-smooth gameplay up to 120 frames per second.

With the enhanced haptic feedback and adaptive triggers of the DualSense wireless controller and the immersive soundscapes made possible by Tempest 3D AudioTech, PlayStation 5 will virtually transport you into the game world.

PlayStation 5 also offers plenty of entertainment experiences, with a curated lineup of some of the most popular streaming services available at launch, including Netflix, Spotify, Twitch, and YouTube.

There will be a dedicated space exclusively for media entertainment on PlayStation 5, making it fast and easy to switch between games and movie/TV.

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