A patent filed by Sony last January reveals an ambitious project for consoles with two GPUs instead of one, as well as some PC configurations that support Nvidia’s SLI and AMD’s CrossFire GPUs.
However, the patent states that implementing two GPUs on a console is much more complex than on a PC.
This patent details how two GPUs work to render one frame at the same time, or split a frame into two and feed them to two GPU units. Only one of the GPUs controls the HDMI output. This requires the GPU to manage the video output and read frames from other GPUs.
Variations on high-end consoles with larger, faster storage and two GPUs are also mentioned, but the other is solved with just one. This may be in line with the PS4 and PS4 Pro configuration (except for the GPU part, of course). So it’s safe to assume that Sony is already working on a PS5 Pro with two GPUs. This has the potential to enable a high-quality VR experience and 4K games at 120fps. Finally, the two GPUs get their own memory controller and memory to avoid memory congestion.
In addition, this patent describes cloud gaming and requires additional devices with sensors such as NFC, GPS, IR blasters, biosensors, and weather sensors. The device will be linked to the console, enabling cloud computing and ultimately cloud gaming. However, I don’t know what all the sensors are for.
As with all patents, no one knows when this will be the final product. So don’t hold your breath yet.
