The handheld industry is moving quicker than ever, and in just the last 12 months we have seen the Steam Deck grow in popularity, the new AYANEO 2 jump into the market, and the ASUS ROG Ally be revealed to dominate the handheld gaming PC space.
Cloud gaming is also growing in popularity, especially after the release of the Logitech G Cloud, which partners fluidly with Xbox Game Pass and PS Remote Play to gain access to your console games anywhere on the road.
It’s now Sony’s time to shine, with reports from Insider Gaming confirming that an upcoming Playstation handheld is in development codenamed the “Q Lite”.
This piece of hardware is likely to target those that want to use remote play in a whole new way, using high quality, premium hardware that connects directly with your Playstation 5.
Think of it as a companion handheld that accesses your library while you travel, giving you fluid 1080p 60FPS gameplay in your hands on Playstation hardware.
So yes, it will require a constant connection to the internet.
Rumours state that the upcoming Playstation handheld will feature a large 8″ display that is surrounded by a PS5 controller-like design to make the gaming experience feel like an actual Playstation 5, just portable.
I know, I was hoping for some kind of PS Vita resurrection, but I don’t think we’ll get that lucky, this sounds like it’s going to look like a bigger version of the Backbone controller.
It’s likely this upcoming playstation handheld will also release with new wireless earphones and headphones, to create an all new way to play Playstation games on the go.
Over the last year or so Sony have been pushing Remote Play very aggressively, intriguing modern gamers and even retro gamers to the scene thank to them bringing back some of the best PS1 games to their “Classic Catalogue” which can be accesses when you pay for PS+ Premium.
As of now this is all of the information we have, but we’re excited to see what Sony come up with, we’re all for handhelds here, but it needs to be executed correctly, especially if its only used with remote play.
Sony is expected to reveal a showcase event over the coming months, which focuses on the “second phase of PS5”, here it’s likely we’ll see more information about upcoming hardware and potential new games dropping on the system.
I can imagine they will want to launch the device towards the end of the year before the holidays, if it’s ready by then, but as of now there’s no information regarding specs, release dates or pricing.
What Is PS Remote Play?
PS Remote Play is a way to play your games library remotely by connecting to your console wirelessly through an internet connecting.
Concept images by Yonghwan Kim
