Unlike most of the tech world, new gaming hardware from the same manufacturer isn’t released all too often. Consequently, game console announcements are typically met with a lot of fanfare and gracious praise. That should’ve been the case with the unveiling of the PS5 Pro; it sports new internals that seek to provide the “most visually impressive way to play games on PlayStation.”
Alas, Sony has found itself backed into a corner rather than basking in a sea of standing ovation. There are jeers and snares rather than cheers and flattery. Indeed, rather than being lauded as an exciting new prospect for PlayStation, the PS5 Pro is currently being mocked as the console that seemingly nobody asked for and almost certainly nobody needs.
The diminishing of diminishing returns
The concept of “diminishing returns” has been discussed increasingly in the world of video games over the last few years. This is due to the objective fact that gaming has more or less started to hit the ceiling that it’s been shooting for practically since the beginning: the ever-important level of photorealism.
Ads for games even back in the 90s touted “realistic” and “breathtaking” visuals, despite being severely limited by the primitive computing power of the day. Now, in 2024, it’s almost comical to think that consumers of the time were truly convinced that what they were enjoying was something graphically spectacular. But, in reality, it was spectacular.
Consumers of the late 80s to mid-90s got to see firsthand the gradual transition from 2D 8-bit and 16-bit experiences to fully polygonal 3D experiences. In truth, they had every right to be blown away.
As the 2000s rolled in, those 3D experiences became more advanced over time and gradually started to take shape toward the level of complexity we’re more familiar with today.
Around the 2010s, the proverbial ceiling mentioned earlier was starting to truly come into view. Now, here we are in the 2020s, picking apart pixels and frames to see exactly what improvements PS5 architect, Mark Cerny, touted in his subjectively underwhelming technical showcase of the new PS5 Pro.
The obvious jump between different console generations has long been narrowing, but now it seems to be a mere step up at best. Also, it doesn’t help when the reveal of a supposedly dramatically improved machine is being paired with gameplay footage from titles that are now several years old—no matter how enhanced it’s all claimed to be.
More is less
The PS5 Pro has better everything; a stronger GPU, faster RAM, and faster CPU. It even sports some onboard AI upscaling technology to help further ink out more visual fidelity from the on-screen images it generates. Yet, all the raw power and processing capability it has doesn’t change the fact that the core games running on it already look very good.
What’s made the current console generation (the 9th) so divisive is how long it has progressed while still being tied to its predecessor.
While cross-gen releases are nothing new, about the second year between is when we’d begin to see a drastic shift towards the new platforms. That hasn’t truly been the case with moving from the PS4 and Xbox One to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
In reality, it’s been quite the hodgepodge of situations. Truly current-gen exclusives like 2023’s Forza Motorsport continue to be few and far between even four years into the generation.
There have been other titles that started as cross-gen releases that ultimately opted to drop older platforms in the end. The recently released Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown comes to mind. Yet, there are still quite a few games that continue to truck ahead across generations, such as 2023’s The Crew Motorfest.
It also goes without saying that with the plethora of live service titles, and others that simply continue to have a lot of updates, older games that started life out on PS4 and Xbox One are being kept fresh and continually supported on those systems.
This isn’t exactly a bad thing; it’s more opportunity for players to enjoy the labor of love that developers are producing. But, it has been arguably bad for business as consumers this generation have been a little slower to adopt newer consoles. Consequently, both Sony and Microsoft have been forced to realize that growth patterns have changed.
PS5 has been the healthiest of the newer platforms; 61 million units have been sold as of June 2024. So, it’s certainly not in trouble.
Even so, a few months ago, PlayStation still had to decrease its sales projections for the next fiscal year. This came in conjunction with layoffs throughout some of its studios and the admission the console is formally entering the “latter stages of its life.”
The icing on this mud cake is that after a very slow burn in the beginning for both PS5 and Xbox Series X|S due to manufacturing and shipping constraints brought on by the pandemic, not only have both platforms not seen a permanent price drop by this generational mid-point, but some markets have seen recent price increases.
With elements like that, spending R&D on a mid-gen refresh doesn’t seem like it would be high on the priority list, yet here we are.
A rock and a hard place
The PS4 Pro and Xbox One X formally changed the ruleset for mid-gen console refreshes. In the past, systems would often get new models with minor improvements a few years after the original launch.
But, those two consoles brought with them superior hardware that allowed them to notably outpace their predecessors. This created the first true same-platform division; doubled up by the fact that both sides adopted the same strategy.
The thing is, the PS4 and Xbox One were unique. Their predecessors lived exceptionally long lives for home consoles (PS2 aside.) On top of that, they were initially outfitted with less-than-stellar components; likely as a way to keep costs down. So, the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X were designed to essentially deliver on what Sony and Microsoft likely envisioned for their 8th gen consoles since the beginning.
The PS5 and Xbox Series X|S aren’t quite in the same boat. Both platforms were much better designed to suit the needs of developers and the wants of the consumers right out of the gate. Yet, as mentioned earlier, the divide between the two compared to their predecessors still hasn’t been quite enough for developers nor consumers to have justified leaving the older platforms en masse.
This is why among the current fleet of cross-gen titles, there have been seven different variants per game: PS4, PS4 Pro, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox One X and Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X. PS5 Pro will now introduce an eighth element.
On paper, this sounds incredibly convoluted, considering across only two platforms, there can now be as many as four distinct versions of a cross-gen game. Yet, on a more positive note, it shows just how scalable game engines have become.
Sure, more power yields a greater achievable scope. But, today it’s not a necessity like it was before. And that’s where the argument of being for or against the PS5 Pro really comes in.
Needs vs. wants
Having the most cutting-edge thing in tech is something most enthusiasts dream of, yet only few can indulge in. This is why in the console space, many gamers only reach for one platform and maybe two, at best. But, even for the PlayStation loyalists in this scenario, trying to justify the $700 cost of a PS5 Pro is quite a difficult task.
The console is nice on paper, but so far in practice, it seems to yield significantly minute improvements over the existing PS5.
Curiously, Cerny opened his aforementioned presentation essentially praising what’s been achieved thus far with the existing PS5, and ended it highlighting that players will continue to have amazing experiences “no matter which of the systems” they choose. Again, the showcase consisted of released titles, some of which from several years ago, being put on display as models for the new system’s capabilities.
Viewed in its entirety, this is why the eyewatering $700 pricetag has been nothing short of a slap to the face for consumers. Nintendo’s oddball success aside, Sony continues to be the market leader by a mile and a half. Unfortunately, it seems to be showboating about it at this point.
On one hand, the price tag reflects the company’s desire to avoid selling the new system at a loss; a fact of the business that has long plagued manufacturers. But, a higher price should absolutely be backed up by capabilities that warrant that, and so far, the PS5 Pro doesn’t display any meaningful characteristics in that regard.
Game consoles are already ‘wants’ that fall well into the ‘luxury’ category for everyday consumers. At $700 then, the PS5 Pro alienates even more would-be buyers and almost certainly makes even a PS4 look more desirable out of pure accessibility and continued game availability. It should also be mentioned that this system comes with a disc drive included, unlike the “premium” PS5 Pro.
“Where do we go from here?”
Amazingly, this all comes at a time when Microsoft is busy forging a whole new path that involves untethering its experiences from the necessity of Xbox hardware. Rather, consumers are now being promoted the option to play Xbox games via the Cloud on devices they’re already likely to own, like Amazon Fire TV Sticks.
Both sides are clearly doing their own thing at this point and it sets a slightly unnerving precedent for the future of gaming. On one hand, Sony seems keen to keep producing continually more expensive new pieces of hardware and expects its consumers to foot the bill no matter what.
Similarly, Apple was once mocked and maligned back in 2017 when it had the “gall” to sell a $1000 smartphone to consumers with the introduction of the iPhone X. Yet, seven years beyond, it’s now the norm and even the preference of consumers to go for phones in that premium price range. Is Sony expecting a similar outcome?
Meanwhile, Microsoft has all but vocally accepted its position as the ‘secondary choice’ and is now opting to open its doors wide to anyone willing to walk through. This won’t increase Xbox console sales, but that doesn’t seem to be the primary target anymore; Xbox as a brand is what Microsoft wants to push.
Nintendo remains as a rock in the valley, standing tall utilizing its strength, seemingly unbothered by the surrounding commotion. As it prepares to introduce its own new system shortly, the events of the last few years seem to now put it in an even more favorable position to hit the ground running.
Whenever that announcement comes, Sony is bound to have even more egg on its face by the inevitable cheaper price tag. Sure, Nintendo’s system will absolutely not even attempt to compete in terms of raw power, but that clearly hasn’t stopped the Switch from being a force to be reckoned with for nearly eight years.
These truly are unchartered waters for the gaming industry.
For perhaps the first time in its existence, all players involved are following drastically different strategies which are bound to yield a unique set of results. Concluding which strategy is correct is more controversial than ever.
