PS5 Pro Talking Point
Image: Push Square

The PS5 Pro is almost three weeks old at the time of writing this article, having released on the 7th November — and we think it's time to weigh up our early thoughts on Sony's supercharged system.

At $700 / £700, the Pro's pricing still makes our eyes water, even though we've been playing games on the thing for the best part of a month. But has the console been able to justify its undeniably expensive price tag yet? That's a question we hope to answer with this Talking Point.

To kick things off, here are the opinions of our esteemed editorial team...

"The Upgrade Lies in 120hz and VRR Monitors"

The Last of Us Part 2

If you ask around, I’m sure you’ll find more reasons to avoid the PS5 Pro than you would to pick it up. Whether it is the eye-watering price tag, the lack of disc drive, or the seemingly side-stepping upgrade. I totally get and even agree with most of the complaints about the Pro, but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been enjoying my time with it.

I haven’t been blown away by any one game in my time, but across the board there is just an elevated layer to the experience, whether it is a steadier performance or slightly sharper visuals. I think a lot of the upgrade lies in 120hz and VRR supporting monitors — something Sony has been a little hesitant to point out if you ask me.

Playing a shinier version of The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered in upscaled 4K is nice, but playing a shinier version at roughly 90 frames-per-second is really what makes the Pro shine for me, and that's a feature potentially locked off for a lot of players.

Since I was sent along a unit from Sony for our review, I’m often asked: “If Sony asked for it back, would you buy another?”. Truthfully, I think I would. As mentioned in my review, I’d rather play on the PS5 Pro than the base PS5 because while there isn’t a huge difference with most Pro Enhanced games, there is still a difference.

- Aaron Bayne, Video Producer

"It's All About the Future"

Death Stranding 2

When I upgraded from the original PS4 last generation to the PS4 Pro, it felt like an event. I'd been playing the Skyrim remaster on the base console in the lead-up to the PS4 Pro's launch, and when I booted the Bethesda RPG up after the upgrade, it felt and looked like a second, even better remaster had been placed over the top of what I was playing before. There was a genuine difference that immediately made me appreciate the system.

I think anyone would be very hard-pressed to find a similar example for the jump from PS5 to PS5 Pro, with what I currently appreciate the most about the latter being that Metaphor: ReFantazio runs much more smoothly. The visual differences are minimal at best, but I think we all kind of accepted that was going to be the case going in anyway.

We're not at a point anymore where the sort of graphical leap from a PS2 to a PS3 can be achieved; we're well past those peaks now. The current computing upgrades are more about ray tracing, AI upscaling, and improving frame rates — the PS5 Pro covers those bases, so it's not like Sony is lagging behind on a feature or enhancement that top-of-the-line PCs offer.

It's just not exciting anymore; you can't look at a standard PS5 title and easily argue how it wasn't possible on a PS4 like you could in generations past. I think that's something we just have to accept now.

However, what does excite me is knowing I'm in prime position for the very best Death Stranding 2, Ghost of Yotei, and GTA 6 experiences. When those heavy hitters roll around, and we see the improvements the PS5 Pro can bring to those titles, I may be a lot more positive about the console. That's why I got a PS5 Pro: I have little interest in returning to older games; it's all about the future for me.

- Liam Croft, Assistant Editor

"I Find It Very Difficult to Recommend"

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

I didn't expect the PS5 Pro to provide some kind of seismic shift in terms of technical advancement over the standard console — but then is that really the right perspective to have when the system costs a whopping £700? This is the question that I've been getting hung up on.

Now look, I play a lot of games. Way more than your average PS5 user, to the point where the Pro starts to make some sense. Why wouldn't I just push past the cost and enjoy my favourite hobby to its fullest?

The thing is, nothing I've played on the Pro — so far — has convinced me that the upgrade is truly worthwhile.

The biggest improvements can be found in titles like Dragon's Dogma 2 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth — games that struggled on the base PS5 to begin with, primarily due to a lack of optimisation. I just can't get away from the idea that we're paying £700 to try and make up for developer-side shortcomings.

Case in point: God of War Ragnarok looks incredible and plays exceptionally well on the Pro. But it already looked downright stunning on the standard system; there's nothing here to fix, unlike my previous examples.

We've stumbled into the realm of diminishing returns, and the price of entry seems incredibly steep.

Does the Pro have better times ahead? I'd like to think so. The hope is that future releases will take more convincing advantage of the hardware (and PSSR software), resulting in better value across the board.

But right now, based on what I've played, I find it very difficult to recommend Sony's mid-gen upgrade to anyone who doesn't have money to burn.

- Robert Ramsey, Assistant Editor

Now that we've had our say, we want to know what you think of the PS5 Pro. Be sure to vote in our poll, and then feed us an honest opinion in the comments section below.

What are your thoughts on the PS5 Pro at this early stage? (1,977 votes)

  1. I absolutely love it16%
  2. I think it's great18%
  3. It's just okay10%
  4. Honestly, it's disappointing8%
  5. I regret buying one3%
  6. I haven't bought a PS5 Pro45%