Sony’s Ambitious Project Cronos Unveiled: A Major Step Forward in PS5’s Cloud Streaming Experience

Earlier this week, PlayStation’s cloud streaming beta for PS5 was officially rolled out to select users, supporting up to 4K streaming. Named internally as Project Cronos, this new streaming architecture is aimed at building a robust PS5 streaming experience, marking a significant advancement in Sony’s growth in the ever-expanding market.

The development of Cronos began five years ago, driven by the complexity of the PlayStation 5’s SSD. While the SSD’s speed was a highlight, it also posed challenges that required Sony to design a completely new network storage solution. This led to the creation of a custom storage server under the codename “Kura,” capable of reading up to 5 GB/s with less than 1ms latency.

Sony plans to have a total of 28 data centers across 15 metros for the PS5 cloud streaming rollout, with a full launch planned for FY23 (April 2023 – March 2024). The cloud streaming will include PS5 titles from the PlayStation Plus game catalog, game trials, and supporting digital PS5 titles that players own. The goal is to make it easier for premium members to jump into their favorite games without downloading them first onto the PS5 console.