One of the PlayStation 5’s launch titles, with its Power Saver mode, could give us a good idea of what the rumored, yet unannounced, handheld might be capable of.
Demon’s Souls Remake has been updated to support Power Saver mode on the PlayStation 5, as well as improvements to performance and resolution. At first glance, the reduced power consumption shows how the rumored PlayStation handheld could run PlayStation 5 games. Developed by Bluepoint Games and released in November 2020, the remake indicates its support for Power Saver mode with a small letter in the console’s main menu. This feature is part of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s commitment to the Road to Zero environmental plan, launched in 2010 with the aim of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.
Although Power Saver mode officially appeared on the PlayStation 5 as part of a larger environmental initiative, some have speculated that its introduction and limitations could be a testing ground for the new PlayStation handheld. The performance and resolution changes introduced in Demon’s Souls Remake partially support this theory. The resolution appears lower than in Performance or Cinematic modes.
The target frame rate for the game has also changed in Power Saver mode (30 FPS instead of 60). This accurately reflects the experience, which is not ideal for a desktop console with this type of game. However, on a handheld device, this would not be such a big problem. Power Saver mode also results in an impressive reduction in power consumption, from ~224 W to ~98 W. While this is still too high for a handheld device, the fact that the game wasn’t significantly degraded by a few software tweaks bodes well for the rumored handheld console, as similar steps will be necessary to ensure optimal gaming performance.
Demon’s Souls Remake is one of many PlayStation 5 games that will support Power Saver mode with an upcoming update. Other titles that will support the feature include Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, which offers an interesting testing opportunity with its 60 FPS performance and high-quality graphics.
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