Can I Play My PS4 Digital Games on PS5? A Complete Guide

The short answer is yes, PlayStation 5 fully supports playing digital games originally purchased on PS4 systems. Backwards compatibility encompasses the vast majority of over 4,000 PS4 titles, enabling gamers to easily transition their library to the next generation. Keep reading as we dive deeper into how PS5 handles your existing digital investments.

You Don‘t Need To Rebuy PS4 Games

Out of over 4,400 games released on PS4, Sony confirms only 11 PS4 titles are currently unsupported on PS5 hardware. This encompasses both disc and digital formats representing an excellent 99.8% backwards compatibility rate.

Best selling exclusives like Spider-Man (20M copies sold), God of War (19.5M) and The Last of Us Remastered (20M) all make the jump. The full list covers a wide gamut of AAA third party blockbusters, indie hits and PSVR titles as well.

Simply sign into your existing PlayStation Network account on PS5 and access to your entire catalog of purchased games is seamlessly granted. Downloading and playing PS4 titles on PS5 hardware is a quick painless process thanks to the new console‘s cutting edge SSD technology and custom decompression silicon.

While exact figures are not public, Sony has invested heavily in PS5‘s backward compatibility program. As Lead Architect Mark Cerny stated, "almost all" of the PS4‘s 100 most played games are supported.

Enhanced Performance with Game Boost

In addition to baseline compatibility for playing your existing PS4 digital library on PS5, many titles go beyond that via Game Boost. This proprietary technology enables supported games to tap into PS5‘s more powerful hardware for tangible gains.

Digital Foundry analysis reveals several PS4 games receiving resolution bumps to 4K along with smoother, sometimes doubled frame rates. For example, Days Gone on PS5 utilizes dynamic 4K rendering versus native 1080p on PS4 while hitting a flawless 60 FPS.

First party system exclusives tend to have the most extensive optimization. In Ghost of Tsushima enabled options include dialing resolutions up to 2160p at a locked 60 FPS where before PS4 Pro targeted 30 FPS. God of War likewise sees 60 FPS now possible at close to 4K quality.

Game          PS5 Game Boost           PS4 Base
------------------------------------------------    
Days Gone     4K/60FPS                 1080p/30FPS    
God of War    4K/Up to 60FPS           4K/30FPS
Spider-Man    4K/Up to 60FPS           4K/30FPS   

The numbers speak for themselves – Game Boost can entice players to replay favorites at literally twice the framerates. And considering these substantial gains require no extra developer work, it‘s an ingenious feat of backwards compatibility.

Simple Library Transition, Ultimate Flexibility

Sony continues the trend of exceptional legacy support with PS5 playing nicely with PS4 digital libraries. SIE CEO Jim Ryan emphasized these customer-friendly policies – "We are carrying the huge momentum of PS4 forward in a way that no previous PlayStation generation has managed."

Buying habits have massively shifted towards digital in the PS4 era as well. Over 63% of game sales in 2021 were digital downloads, so PS5‘s painless transition process covers most players‘ purchases.

And there is added flexibility to redeem PS4 game entitlements. Once downloaded to PS5, you retain the ability to transfer back and play natively on a PS4 system as well. This enables accessing your library across both consoles rather than being "stuck" to new hardware.

PlayStation‘s commitment to compatibility and customer-friendly policies firmly establishes trust with fans as we enter the PS5 generation. Over 4000 existing PS4 digital games carry forward ready to enjoy today, often with hugely improved performance and visuals for free. That makes upgrading to next-gen hardware an even easier choice for PlayStation faithful.