Enterprising gamers have discovered an internal list of backward compatible games for PlayStation 5, and around 150 PS4 releases could face issues on the new console. When talking about the PlayStation 5's compatibility with the previous generation, Sony has stated that the console would work with 99 percent of PlayStation 4 titles, listing a mere handful of games that would not work on the new system. This included the long-delisted Afro Samurai 2, obscure horror game Joe's Diner, and Shadow Complex Remastered, among a few others. The assumption was that everything not on that initial list would work without a hitch, although Sony did warn that some games would see more issues than others on the new hardware.

A subsequent announcement by Ubisoft has thrown all of those assumptions out the window. In a recent post highlighting compatibility for its games between PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, the publisher had a further list of games that would not function on the new hardware. This list includes several PSVR-focused titles as well as the Assassin's Creed: Chronicles series and Assassin's Creed: Syndicate. The existence of this second list led many players to wonder how many more titles would be nonfunctional, and they may now have a more definitive answer.

Related: What FPS Games Are Available On PS5 At Launch

The official PlayStation website just got an upgrade timed with the upcoming PlayStation 5 launch, and it includes an easy to browse library section. User andshrew from ResetEra noticed an API that monitored which games to display based on an internal backward compatibility list, which is a clear view into which games Sony has deemed as not working correctly on the new hardware. Andshrew also published a list that lets users search through the entire catalog to ensure that everything from Killzone Shadow Fall to Streets of Rage 4 made the cut. From that site, user Eoin produced a list of games deemed as "Bootable" but not "Compatible."

playstation 5 release

There are quite a few notable games among the almost 150 titles that will likely not run as well as players like on PlayStation 5. Several sports titles, including most of the MLB The Show series and the previous two years of NBA 2K don't make the cut. Bethesda's Prey and Ninja Theory's Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice are also on the list, two games that Microsoft would very much like to have exclusively playable on its platform now that it owns the developers. There's also the recently released Mafia III: Definitive Edition, several Call of Duty games, and the Arkham City portion of Batman: Return to Arkham.

It will be interesting to see if developers and publishers comment on the games they have on this list and why exactly they can't run on the PlayStation 5. On the other side of the aisle, Microsoft has already confirmed that nearly every game that ran on Xbox One will be boosted by Xbox Series X|S. The only exception is those games that required the Kinect to function. Sony's list of compatibility feels more scattershot, and players will likely be guessing at what technical hurdle isn't being cleared here, or if there is some other business at work here preventing these games from functioning as intended.

Next: The PS5 Looks Better Than Ever In Sony’s New Hardware Gallery

PlayStation 5 will launch on November 12, 2020.

Source: Andshrew/ResetEra