Unexpected PS5 Feature Possibly Leaked In New PlayStation Patent

The PlayStation 5 may use cartridges. That, or Sony is working on a new separate PlayStation [...]

By Tyler Fischer

The PlayStation 5 may use cartridges. That, or Sony is working on a new separate PlayStation system that utilizes cartridges. A new patent filed by Sony Interactive Entertainment has surfaced online for a game cartridge. The patent was filed earlier this year at the Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial (INPI) in Brazil, and was spotted by Dutch website LetsGoDigital, the same website who notably discovered the PlayStation 5 devkit patent, which turned out to be real.

The design of the cartridge was realized by Yujin Morisawa, the Senior Art Director of Corporate Design at Sony Interactive Entertainment. And, as you can see, it's a basic cartridge design. That said, it's unclear what this could be for. Sony has already squashed the idea of a PlayStation Vita successor, and we know the PS5 uses blu-ray discs.

As mentioned above, lending credence to this patent leak is the fact that this is exactly how the PlayStation 5 devkit leaked, with a patent -- designed by Morisawa -- filed to the INPI, later spotted by the aforementioned outlet. Again though, unlike the devkit, it's less obvious what this could be for. A home PlayStation console has never used cartridges. So, is this for another PlayStation device, possibly a new PlayStation handheld? Alas, all we can do right now is speculate, but there seems to be something to this.

That all said, it's important to remember that hardware makers such as Sony file patents all the time, many of which never make it to the consumer market. It's quite possible this cartridge will be another example of this.

PlayStation 5 is currently planned to release sometime holiday 2020. At the the moment of publishing, there's no word of a precise release date or a price point. For more news, rumors, leaks, media, and information on the upcoming next-gen PlayStation console, be sure to peep all of our previous and extensive coverage of the console -- and all things related to it -- by clicking right here. Meanwhile, as always, feel free to leave a comment or two letting us know what you think or, alternatively, hit me up on Twitter @Tyler_Fischer_ and let me know over there.

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