Sony wants to make video game loading screens a "thing of the past" with the PS5, reveals the platform holder. The company made the comments while teasing the SSD storage technology that the next-generation console is set to feature.

A Sony spokesperson recently described the ultra high speed SSD storage technology as "the key to our next generation." Sony's "vision" is to make loading screens "a thing of the past" and that this technology will allow game developers to "build new and unique gameplay experiences."

This isn't the first time that Sony has spoken about the fast loading technology in its next-generation console. In a demo of the PS5's technology given by PlayStation lead systems architect Mark Cerny, it was revealed that the PS5 can load Spider-Man 15 times faster than the PS4. On the PS4, it takes around 15 seconds to load the game's environment, but on the PS5 it can take less than a second.

For PS5 game developers, it means that they can create bigger game environments without wondering how the console is going to load them in a good amount of time. It also means that they won't have to use any technological tricks to keep players busy while the part of the game they want to get to takes the time to load.

It's a safe bet that players will also be happy to see loading screens go. As games have gotten much larger, so have the loading screen times. Destiny 2's loading time issues meant that players sometimes had a long wait to get into activities, to load up the character selection screen, and go into the game's inventory tabs. For other games that have environments with many textures and areas, it can take minutes to load.

Games may also be better looking because of this. If the PS5 can load more textures and environments quicker and can load better looking textures too, then developers will be able to offer them without making players unhappy. Some of the rumored PS5 games are Horizon Zero Dawn 2, Battlefield Bad Company 3, and Grand Theft Auto 6, so it will be interesting to see how their environments and textures fare in the next-generation of consoles.

Open world games such as Death Stranding, Cyberpunk 2077, and Ghost of Tsushima are all rumored to be releasing on the PS4 and PS5. The PS5 releases of these games could provide a major boost to the quality of their graphics and the loading times, too.

Source: Official PlayStation Magazine UK