Credit: PlayStation Japan
Six years after its launch, an all-black PlayStation 5 is hitting the market. Sony has decided to release the PS5 in “Midnight Black”—and interestingly, on November 19, the same day “GTA VI” is set to launch.
According to the Japanese PlayStation blog, using the black PS5 requires a Japanese PlayStation Network account, and the console supports only the Japanese interface language. From a technical standpoint, it is a standard PS5 Digital Edition model with an 825 GB SSD. There are no changes to specifications or performance improvements. Sales of the console begin on November 19 at a price of 55,000 yen ($347).
Sony did not explain why it chose to release the new color variant at this particular time. It is noteworthy, however, that this coincides with the launch of Rockstar’s highly anticipated open-world game, GTA VI. Also going on sale that same day, November 19, is a matching Midnight Black disc drive priced at 11,980 yen ($76), which enables the use of physical game discs on a console originally designed solely for digital content.
The announcement also reiterates Sony’s previously stated strategy of shifting exclusively to digital game releases. This decision has already drawn criticism from fans of physical copies. A statement on the Japanese PlayStation website reads: “New PlayStation games released from January 2028 onwards will be available exclusively in digital format—via the PlayStation Store and participating retailers. Games on physical media released prior to January 2028 will remain playable.”
The CFI-2200B02S version—which lacks an optical drive and features an 825 GB SSD—will come in black. A disc drive in the same color will also go on sale for around $75.