Sony's PS5 Prism Collection Brings Back See-Through Controllers

You can see the fan. That’s the first thing that jumps out of Sony’s picture of the new PS5 Prism Collection: three PS5s in tinted, see-through covers with the cooling fan showing through the plastic, next to three DualSense controllers you can look straight into. Sony announced it on October 28 in Flare Orange, Emerald Green and Graphite Gray, and in its own words, this is “the return of transparent controllers.” Here’s what each piece costs, when and where you can pre-order, the one thing Sony didn’t say about the covers, and how far back Sony’s clear-plastic habit goes.

What is the PS5 Prism Collection?

It’s Sony’s newest colour line for PS5 accessories, and the first with a DualSense you can see through. Each colour comes as two pieces, a DualSense controller and a set of console covers, both with a glossy finish. The clear plastic doesn’t stop at the front, either. It wraps around the back of the controller, which, as Sony designer Satoshi Aoyagi puts it, offers “a look at the technology that powers the DualSense.”

Sony pitches it as a throwback. In the announcement on the PlayStation Blog, Leo Cardoso, who works on Sony’s colour, material and finish design team with Aoyagi, says they wanted to bring back “the iconic see-through trend of the late ’90s.” That trend never left retro hardware, and my own ModRetro Chromatic is transparent red.

Aoyagi says the orange “subtly takes on a rosy hue” where the clear plastic doubles up, the green is “a deep hunter green that gains depth through its transparency,” and the grey is “a cool-toned storm gray.” Look closely at Sony’s own product photos, though, and Flare Orange looks a lot more red than orange. Sony calls it orange, so that’s the name, but if you’ve been waiting for a red see-through DualSense, take a close look before November 10.

How much does the Prism Collection cost?

The controller is $84.99 and a set of covers is $74.99. In the UK that’s £74.99 and £64.99, in Europe €84.99 and €74.99, and in Japan ¥12,480 and ¥9,980. A plain white or black DualSense is $74.99, so the see-through look costs $10 more, which is exactly what Sony charged for this year’s Hyperpop controllers.

Here’s how it lines up with Sony’s other recent colour lines, at US prices. Over on the Xbox side, Microsoft’s translucent Forza Horizon 6 controller lists at $89.99.

When can you pre-order it, and where?

On November 10, at 10am local time. In the US that’s 7am Pacific, 10am Eastern, on PlayStation Direct, and in the UK and the nine EU countries listed below, it’s PlayStation’s own online store. The controllers will also be at participating retailers. There are no product pages up yet, so there’s nothing to bookmark before the 10th.

The covers are the catch. In the 11 countries where PlayStation sells hardware directly, the covers come only from PlayStation: the US, the UK, France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal and Italy. Everywhere else, they go to select retailers in limited quantities. So in the US, if you want the covers, PlayStation Direct on the 10th is the plan.

When does the Prism Collection come out?

February 4, 2027, for the controllers and the covers alike. Sony says launch starts on that date and that the exact date and availability can vary by country, so some markets may get it later. That’s almost three months between pre-order day and the first deliveries.

Do the Prism covers fit the PS5 Pro?

Sony hasn’t said, and it’s the thing to settle before you pre-order covers. The announcement, the Japanese and Southeast Asian versions of it, and the covers page on PlayStation’s site don’t name a PS5 model anywhere.

Here’s what points one way. The consoles in Sony’s picture have the Slim’s shape, with the split band across the middle. The covers in Sony’s two newest colour lines, Chroma in 2024 and Hyperpop this year, were both made for the Slim, and Sony’s PS5 Pro compatibility guide says Slim covers don’t fit the Pro. So the safe guess is Slim, and it’s still a guess. If you have a Pro or the original PS5, wait for the product page.

Is there a transparent DualSense Edge?

No. The Prism Collection is the standard DualSense and the console covers, and that’s it: no DualSense Edge, no PS Portal, no headset. That’s a smaller line than the 30th Anniversary collection in 2024, which put the grey PS1 look on the DualSense Edge and the PS Portal too.

Has Sony made see-through controllers before?

Yes, just not on the PS5, and not for a while. The last one was the translucent dark blue DualShock 4 that came with the PS4 Pro 500 Million Limited Edition in 2018, which Sony also sold on its own. A year earlier came the Crystal, Blue Crystal and Red Crystal DualShock 4s, with a translucent top panel, sold as store exclusives in the US and Canada and split between GameStop and EB Games, Walmart and Best Buy. Before that, Japan got a limited Crystal DualShock 3 in 2013 for ¥5,500, and in 2002 Sony sold the PS2 in Japan in translucent Ocean Blue and Zen Black, each with a matching controller.

The late-’90s moment Cardoso means goes back to the PS1. In 1997 Sony sold a clear memory card in Japan, and its 1998 run of coloured DualShocks there included one called Crystal and, for what it’s worth, one called Emerald. That’s the trend Sony says it’s bringing back, eight years after its last see-through pad. For the record, I own a PS5.