Technologies
The Witcher 3’s Next-Gen Update: How to Upgrade PS4 Games to PS5 Versions
Geralt of Rivia’s Wild Hunt makes the generational leap.
This story is part of 12 Days of Tips, helping you make the most of your tech, home and health during the holiday season.
You can play most PlayStation 4 games on the PlayStation 5 thanks to the Sony console’s excellent backward compatibility feature. But a few publishers allow you to upgrade PS4 games to the PS5 versions for free. This lets you play with 4K dynamic resolution at 60 frames per second and delivers shorter loading times, making for a smoother gaming experience with less waiting around.
The most recent major title to get the upgrade treatment is the classic 2015 role-playing game The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt, which added ray tracing and 60 frames per second performance modes (it’s also available for the Xbox Series X|S and PC versions). This came after developer CD Projekt Red announced a remake of the first game, and before TV prequel spinoff Blood Origin is due to hit Netflix on Dec. 25.
The developer’s other major game, Cyberpunk 2077, got its next-gen update earlier this year after stirring up controversy when it was released in 2020, due to major performance issues.
Getting to next-gen
The PS5 has been going in and out of stock at retailers since it launched in 2020. The digital-only model costs $400, and the one with a disc drive is $500.
Your game upgrades won’t happen automatically or through a typical game update, so it’s easy to accidentally keep playing the PS4 version of a game on your new PS5. You have to go to the game page on the PlayStation Network and choose to upgrade to the PS5 version. That’ll download the extra data needed for the next-gen features.
Read more: PS5 restocks: When to expect the console to appear
You can also upgrade to PS5 versions if you have a physical PS4 game, as long as you bought the PS5 with a disc drive. You’ll always need to use the PS4 disc to play the PS5 version; upgrading doesn’t get you a free digital copy of the game. You’ll still download the PS5 update from the PSN, but you won’t need a PS5-specific disc — your PS4 one will become an authenticator.
If you opted for the digital-only PS5 and have a disc, you’re out of luck. There are a few more limitations and caveats:
- Some PS5 versions of current PS4 games aren’t out yet.
- Next-gen versions will be bigger files, so they’ll take up more precious memory on the console’s SSD.
- You’ll end up with a fresh list of trophies (each version’s list is separate).
- A few games’ saves won’t transfer, and some require you to upload your save manually from the PS4 version before you can access it on PS5.
- Some game upgrades are available only in cross-gen bundles or special editions.
First-party policy change
Sony initially said 2022 exclusive Horizon Forbidden West wouldn’t let you upgrade from the PS4 to the PS5 version for free unless you bought the more expensive Digital Deluxe, Collector’s or Regalla Edition. It later reversed course, saying anyone who bought the PS4 version would be entitled to a free PS5 upgrade.
However, PlayStation boss Jim Ryan also confirmed that upgrading future first-party games will come at a price.
«Moving forward, PlayStation first-party exclusive cross-gen titles (newly releasing on PS4 & PS5)-both digital and physical*-will offer a $10 digital upgrade option from PS4 to PS5,» he wrote a blog post. «This will apply to the next God of War and Gran Turismo 7, and any other exclusive cross-gen PS4 & PS5 title published by Sony Interactive Entertainment.»
Free upgrades you can get now
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
- Atelier Ryza 2
- Borderlands 3
- Bugsnax
- Cyberpunk 2077 (PS4 save doesn’t transfer)
- Dead by Daylight
- Destiny 2
- DIRT 5
- Doom Eternal (save doesn’t transfer)
- Far Cry 6
- FIFA 21
- Final Fantasy 7 Remake
- Fortnite
- Ghostrunner
- Guilty Gear Strive
- Hitman 3 (digital version only)
- Horizon Forbidden West
- Immortals Fenyx Rising
- Kena: Bridge of Spirits
- King Oddball
- Little Nightmares 2
- Madden NFL 21
- Maneater
- Marvel’s Avengers
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Metro Exodus
- Mortal Kombat 11
- Nioh
- No Man’s Sky
- Outriders
- Planet Coaster
- Praey for the Gods
- Resident Evil 2
- Resident Evil 3
- Resident Evil 7
- Resident Evil Village
- RIDE 4
- Riders Republic
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
- Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order
- The Pathless
- The Elder Scrolls Online
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
- Watch Dogs Legion
- WRC 9
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Some upgrades will require you to pay or buy a specific (more expensive) version of the game:
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is upgradable only if you buy the $70 cross-gen bundle or the $90 Ultimate Edition. The PS5 version costs $70; the PS4 version is $60.
- Death Stranding Director’s Cut costs $10 if you upgrade from the PS4 version.
- Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut costs $30 if you upgrade from the original PS4 version.
- Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered is available only with the $70 Miles Morales Ultimate Edition. It’s not technically an upgrade, but you’ll be able to transfer your save from the PS4 version.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Jan. 28
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Jan. 28.
Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.
If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword
Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.
Mini across clues and answers
1A clue: Remove from a position of power
Answer: OUST
5A clue: Not cool
Answer: UNHIP
7A clue: «Fine, see if ___!»
Answer: ICARE
8A clue: Kind of bored
Answer: JADED
9A clue: Primatologist’s subjects
Answer: APES
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Kind of board
Answer: OUIJA
2D clue: Prepare to use, as a pen
Answer: UNCAP
3D clue: Desirable place to sit on a hot day
Answer: SHADE
4D clue: Pair on a bicycle
Answer: TIRES
6D clue: ___ Xing (street sign)
Answer: PED
Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Jan. 28, #492
Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Jan. 28, No. 492.
Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.
Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.
Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.
Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta
Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.
Yellow group hint: Stats about an athlete.
Green group hint: Where to watch games.
Blue group hint: There used to be a ballpark.
Purple group hint: Names are hidden in these words.
Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups
Yellow group: Player bio information.
Green group: Sports streamers.
Blue group: Former MLB ballparks.
Purple group: Ends in a Hall of Fame QB.
Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words
What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?
The yellow words in today’s Connections
The theme is player bio information. The four answers are alma mater, height, number and position.
The green words in today’s Connections
The theme is sports streamers. The four answers are Netflix, Paramount, Peacock and Prime.
The blue words in today’s Connections
The theme is former MLB ballparks. The four answers are Ebbets, Kingdome, Three Rivers and Tiger.
The purple words in today’s Connections
The theme is ends in a Hall of Fame QB. The four answers are forewarner, Harbaugh, honeymoon and outmanning.
Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
Technologies
Google Rolls Out Expanded Theft Protection Features for Android Devices
The latest Android security update makes it harder for thieves to break into stolen phones, with stronger biometric requirements and smarter lockouts.
Google on Tuesday announced a significant update to its Android theft-protection arsenal, introducing new tools and settings aimed at making stolen smartphones harder for criminals to access and exploit. The updates, detailed on Google’s official security blog, build on Android’s existing protections and add both stronger defenses and more flexible user controls.
Smartphones carry your most sensitive data, from banking apps to personal photos, and losing your device to theft can quickly escalate into identity and financial fraud. To counter that threat, Google is layering multiple protective features that work before, during and after a theft.
Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
At the center of the update is a revamped Failed Authentication Lock. Previously introduced in Android 15, this feature now gets its own toggle in Android 16 settings, letting you decide whether your phone should automatically lock itself after repeated incorrect PIN or biometric attempts. This gives you more control over how aggressively your phone defends against brute-force guessing without weakening security.
Google is also beefing up biometric security across the platform. A feature called Identity Check, originally rolled out in earlier Android versions, has been broadened to apply to all apps and services that use Android’s Biometric Prompt — the pop-up that asks for your fingerprint or face to confirm it’s really you — including third-party banking apps and password managers. This means that even if a thief somehow bypasses your lock screen, they’ll face an additional biometric barrier before accessing sensitive apps.
On the recovery side, Google improved Remote Lock, a tool that allows you to lock a lost or stolen device from a web browser by entering a verified phone number. The company added an optional security challenge to ensure only the legitimate owner can initiate a remote lock, an important safeguard against misuse.
And finally, in a notable regional rollout, Google said it is now enabling both Theft Detection Lock and Remote Lock by default on new Android device activations in Brazil, a market where phone theft rates are comparatively high. Theft Detection Lock uses on-device AI to detect sudden movements consistent with a snatch-and-run theft, automatically locking the screen to block immediate access to data.
With stolen phones often used to access bank accounts and personal data, Google says these updates are meant to keep a single theft from turning into a much bigger problem.
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