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The PS5 is code-named Erebus, according to these internet sleuths

It makes sense, no?

Sean Hollister Senior Editor / Reviews
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
Sean Hollister
2 min read
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Sean Hollister/CNET

Even if cloud gaming is the future, it seems likely we'll get at least one more generation of physical boxes expressely designed to play the latest generation of games. And we may have just learned the extremely apt internal code name for that device: Erebus.

That's because when am internet sleuth at gaming forum ResetEra decided to poke into the latest Unreal Engine code, they found the word "Erebus" in an unlikely spot -- right next to the names for every other existing gaming platform, including the PS4, Xbox, Windows, Switch, Android and iOS.

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Epic Games; discovered by Gemusepizza/ResetEra

And Erebus doesn't just seem to be a "platform." Other bits of code suggest that it's specifically a game console.

Now, couldn't Erebus be a new Xbox rather than a PlayStation, or some other sort of console entirely? Sure. But if you take a close look at the roots of the name, it suspiciously sounds like Sony's modus operandi. 

Erebus is known as the god of darkness in Greek mythology, specifically one of the first five beings in existence. And while he's not necessarily the fifth to come into the universe, Sony has a recent fascination with Greek code names. The PlayStation 4 was Orbis. The PlayStation VR was Morpheus. 

And of course, one of Sony's best-known franchises, God of War, stars a Greek god. 

Proof? No. But it's a fun thing to speculate on. And Sony has strongly hinted we may see a new PlayStation by March 2021.

Sony declined to comment. 

While you wait, maybe check out our video unboxing of the gorgeous, tranparent blue PS4 Pro 500M Limited Edition? It's the console Sony made to celebrate selling 500 million PlayStation consoles to date. Video above, gallery below.

See the Sony PlayStation 4 Pro 500M Limited Edition

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