One of the biggest features gamers seem to ask for from the likes of Microsoft and Sony is that they allow a means to play past generation video games. However, this current generation first missed out on that front but since then both Microsoft and Sony looked to answer this issue in their own ways. For instance, Microsoft offered a software style backward compatibility mode where old gamers could be downloaded for free just as long as you have a legitimate copy. Sony, on the other hand, decided to offer a different means of backward compatibility. Instead of using past copies, Sony released a new service called PlayStation Now which would give players the ability to enjoy several past video game titles through streaming.
Now a new patent which was reported on by Eurogamer had revealed some insights as to what Sony is looking to do in the future. While it doesn’t look like we are going to see backward compatibility, at least from what this patent details, it does appear that Sony is looking to bring back even more remastered editions of their previous video game titles. With this patent, Sony would be able to significantly cut down the development time required normally for creating remastered video game titles.
Instead, with this new feature developers could use the same framework that the original title used while simply replacing the textures and audio files. This would allow the developers to quickly update and deliver gamers past video game titles that would essentially play the same while visually overhauling the gameplay experience.
[Source: Eurogamer]