What to expect from PS5 in 2021: Exclusives, predictions, PSVR 2 and more

It’s been yet another fantastic year for Sony and its PlayStation brand, culminating with the launch of PS5 alongside several fantastic exclusives such as Demon’s Souls and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. 

The new generation of consoles has begun with a significant bang, and Sony is already storming ahead of the competition with its incredibly powerful console. Given all of this evident success, the coming months tease even more exciting developments.

Whether it’s games, software updates, or perhaps even new hardware, 2021 is bound to harbour plenty of surprises from the Japanese giant. Trusted Reviews has compiled some of the most exciting things to expect from PS5 in the coming year, whether it’s things we already know about or deeply held mysteries we’d love to see materialise. 

Lots of excellent exclusives

Sony has already established the PS5 as a console worth owning for its exclusive offerings. Demon’s Souls is an undeniable masterpiece, while Astro’s Playroom is a wonderfully creative showcase of what the DualSense controller is capable of. The system feels like a genuine leap forward, meaning the benchmark for other games to surpass it is already set very high indeed. 

The coming 12 months have already begun teasing exactly what we can expect. Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Horizon 2: Forbidden West are the two frontrunners, both of which are predicted to launch before the year is over. This is likely the tip of the iceberg, with a number of first-party exclusives yet to even be revealed. Final Fantasy 16 is also expected in 2021, and will be coming first to PS5. 

Plenty of system refinements

While the core PS5 experience is incredibly satisfying, it shipped with a few niggles that felt like a step backward when compared to its predecessor. The trophy system is annoying to browse, its storefront is an unintuitive mess, and some things are simply harder to find than they were before. 

It’s incredibly likely that 2021 will feature a number of system software updates that will address these issues, enhancing the user experience with new features and refinements that will make the platform more enjoyable than ever. The PS5 has more than its fair share of teething problems right now, and next year will serve to iron them out. 

PlayStation VR 2

The original PlayStation VR is fully compatible with the PS5, but it’s certainly becoming a little long in the tooth when it comes to what the virtual reality headset is capable of. Compared to the Oculus Quest 2 and Valve Index, it can appear downright archaic – so perhaps it’s time for Sony to consider an upgrade. 

Patents suggest that it will adopt Bluetooth wireless technology and updated motion controllers that will finally put the archaic PlayStation Move remotes to rest after more than a decade on the market. An enhanced display, improved visuals and more ambitious room scale experiences would make the PS5 an ideal home for fledgling VR enthusiasts. 

More studio acquisitions

Sony isn’t nearly matching the pace of Microsoft when it comes to snapping up studios, but the Japanese giant has made it abundantly clear that it aims to acquire more development houses after Insomniac Games proved to be such a massive success. Which studios exactly this may be remains a mystery. 

Bluepoint Games is the most likely one, having worked with Sony on a number of high-profile remakes across the past couple of console generations. Their relationship is intimate enough that the two could easily co-exist under the same umbrella with little adjustment. FromSoftware, Capcom and Kojima Productions are some slightly more eccentric examples, but given Microsoft bought Bethesda, anything is possible. 

A bigger focus on cloud gaming

PlayStation Now feels mediocre when compared to Xbox Game Pass, even if the PlayStation Plus Collection is picking up the slack in some areas. If Sony hopes to compete in the service ecosystem, it will need to place a greater focus on its cloud gaming efforts in 2021. 

PS5 has already established some of the groundwork to make PlayStation Now a big deal, working the service into the user interface in a way that makes it a breeze to access. Now, it simply needs to make it clear why players should be interested, whether that be through an impressive library or more appealing asking price.