No 1080p PS3 Games Yet, Says Sony

The PlayStation 3 may be capable of 1080p, but there are no games that support it right now. The company also clarifies the importance of HDMI for its self-styled full HD.

Sony took flack in the press earlier this week when it emerged that the HDMI-equipped PlayStation 3 would ship without an HDMI cable. This would have potential consequences for Blu-ray movie playback, which the US PlayStation 3 site says requires an HDMI cable for 1080p. But Sony has today confirmed with Kikizo that this isn't necessarily so.

Both models of the PlayStation 3 will be able to play games and movies in 1080p, SCEE's Jonathan Fargher told Kikizo. Whether you're watching Resident Evil: Apocalypse or playing Gran Turismo HD, you'll be able to enjoy a full 1080p signal through component cables.

According to Sony, the official US PlayStation 3 site's caveat that the HDMI connection is required for 1080p signals in Blu-ray movies is fallout from uncertainty over the Image Constraint Token - a next-generation anti-piracy measure.

Kikizo reported earlier this year that Sony has seemingly neutered the ICT, allowing full HD signals to bypass the HDMI requirement.

As it turns out, though, unless you're using the PlayStation 3 mainly as a Blu-ray movie player, you're not going to be getting much 1080p content anyway.

Sony has made an issue of pointing out that 1080p, which the Xbox 360 is incapable of, is the Holy Grail of "full HD". As it stands now, the only game that is running in 1080p, said Fargher, is Gran Turismo HD - a tech demo crafted by Polyphony to showcase what the system is capable of.

Gran Turismo HD

This is in line with our earlier report, where a development source told Kikizo that, "even with [final hardware] in mind, reaching good frame rates at 1080p with next-gen graphics is almost impossible. Instead many developers, ourselves included, are reworking so they run at 720p. "

Whether you'll ever be able to buy Gran Turismo HD is up in the air. However, Sony did confirm that an announcement would be made at the Tokyo Game Show later this month.

If Gran Turismo HD is not released as a full game, it is possible that Sony could release it as a download through its PlayStation Network Platform.

With the PlayStation 3 a virtual no-show at Games Convention in Leipzig, all eyes are now on PlayStation boss Ken Kutaragi, who will deliver the keynote address at the Tokyo Game Show later this month. Sony is planning to use TGS as the PlayStation 3's coming out party and it has already confirmed that 27 games will be playable at the show.

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games