So that fake-looking PS4 Slim could actually be real

I really want to emphasise the word could in that headline, because despite some compelling new evidence, there’s still a chance the Playstation 4 Slim doing the internet rounds lately could be completely bogus. As we learned from those photos of fake Nintendo NX controllers from a couple months back, people are jerks who like being faking jerky-jerks who fake things because they’re jerks.

…Jerks…

Quick recap, a listing on the UK auction site Gumtree over the weekend claimed to have a newer, slimmer PS4 to sell. It came with pictures, and my first personal reaction was that it looked a little weird. I find myself agreeing with a fellow games journalist friend of mine who said it looks like someone sat on a PS4 and squashed it slightly.

The rest of the pictures showed the unit from different angles and alongside a regular PS4 for comparison. The first suspicious detail was that the optical port was missing from the back of the console, a design decision that makes very little sense given it is what allows for all kinds of surround sound setups, from home theatre systems to gaming headsets.

Anyway, just as I’d written this off as a clever 3D printing job, a video from YouTuber “ZRZ” has surfaced where he is unboxing the console, showing off the design before setting the thing up and turning it on. The video also shows off a slight refresh of the Dualshock 4 controller, where the touch pad in the centre now has a transparent slit that projects the same light colour as the light bar on the back.

Here’s the video for you to see for yourself:

For many, this will be conclusive evidence that the console is on the level. And you can hardly blame them, this is pretty compelling evidence, which is more credit than I was originally going to give the first pictures. And for it to be a hoax they would have had to go to a lot of lengths. They would have needed a real PS4 hidden away somewhere in that TV unit, and have someone off camera controlling it with a real Dualshock 4 in synchronisation with the button presses they show on the refresh one on camera.

But since that scenario isn’t entirely out of the realm of possibility, and as I mentioned earlier people like to be faking jerky-jerking fakers, we can’t take this is as a confirmation just yet.

Bottom line, we’re just going to have to wait until Sony officially announces the thing before we can be sure it’s real. Their upcoming event in New York on September 7 is believed to be announcing the Playstation Neo, but could also be revealing a PS4 Slim like this one. General rule in the games industry, you can’t ever be 100 per cent sure a thing exists until the official announcement is made.

So now we start the waiting game, followed by someone inevitably busting out Hungry, Hungry Hippos…

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