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Sony: First PlayStation 4 Design Featured Only 4GB Of RAM

John-Shepard 13 Comments

8GB of GDDR5 RAM is a big selling point for many developers. They love it.

But did you know that the original PlayStation 4 design only had 4GB of that memory? We'd heard some designers say this about the early PS4 kits, and now SCE Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida confirmed this fact at the Tokyo Game Show (via GameSpot ).

He said that due to great developer feedback, they updated the amount of GDDR5 RAM in the PS4 to 8GB:

"And because we chose expensive memory…we really liked the performance, but it's pricy, right? So going to 8GB was a bit of a business decision. But we were able to make that decision because of a lot of the feedback from developers."

The Xbox One also has 8GB of RAM, so it was a good idea for Sony to give the PS4 the same amount. Developers have often said this generation that they wished the PS3 offered more RAM, which would give game makers more opportunities. Well, they're definitely getting that for the next generation, so here's hoping they take advantage!

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Sources: Up To 5.5GB Of PS4’s Memory Available To Devs

Ben-Dutka 32 Comments

We know the PlayStation 4 offers 8GB of GDDR5 RAM. But how much of that is actually accessible to developers?

After all, you need a certain amount to make the system run, right? The good news, however, is that according to a new Eurogamer Digital Foundry report , game makers will have access to as much as 5.5GB, with 4.5GB guaranteed.

The PS4 will only reserve 3.5GB of the total RAM for the operating system, but sources say an additional GB of RAM can be used as flexible memory, which would bring the available total to the aforementioned 5.5GB. Furthermore, other sources have said the 3.5GB requirement could be reduced once work on the PS4 OS is complete and potentially streamlined. As for the RAM used for the OS, that will go towards new system features, such as application switching and the ability to pause and resume games in mid-session.

So, does this sound like a developer's dream machine, as many have already stated? Or would you rather they had even more RAM to play around with? Seems like plenty, but…

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PS4’s 8GB Of GDDR5 RAM: Devs Say Sony Finally Listened

Ben-Dutka 25 Comments

When Sony revealed their new PlayStation console to developers, they were excited to do so. Why?

Because this time, they listened.

During a roundtable discussion with SCEA vice president of publisher relations Adam Boyes (and as attended by PlayStation LifeStyle ), Boyes said his favorite moment was announcing that the PS4 would have not 4, but 8GB of GDDR5 RAM. Originally, they were only going to have 4GB in the system.

Gearbox President Randy Pitchford flat-out told Sony that "if you go with 4GB of GDDR5, you're done." After which, the entire room of about 30 people said- "you guys, you never listen, you've never been good at this stuff." So Boyes steps back and asks the important question: "Are we going to be the best console in every single category?" And before they started doing what needed to be done, that answer was no. So then he asked devs about the possibility of implementing 8GB of GDDR5 RAM and the response was simply, "that would be incredible."

And so it is. That particular feature of the PS4's architecture has been lauded by just about every significant designer in the industry.

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