As a quick addition, testing out the PSVR2's Kayak VR Mirage , a graphical benchmark for Sony's headset as is, there is a substantial difference to the Pro visuals. PSVR2 enhanced games are very limited as of launch, but we'd love to see how some big hitters like Horizon: Call of the Mountain or Metro Awakening could benefit from the extra power.
The things of which you will find impressive from game to game really do differ. Sometimes it's performance and sometimes it's the sharpened fidelity. Very few games have that night-and-day "wow" factor difference that a lot of you may be looking for. However, at the end of the day we'd still rather be playing on the Pro than not, because while the difference can be minimal there is still a difference.
Image: Push Square When Mark Cerny first revealed the Pro he stated that it aimed to “eradicate the need to choose, or at least narrow the gap” between Performance and Fidelity modes. Our biggest surprise when testing out games was how inconsistent its Pro options were.
Some games like the aforementioned The Crew Motorfest or The Last Of Us Part 2 had singular PS5 Pro options. Others like Spider-Man 2 and Hogwarts Legacy had a choice between Quality, Balanced, and Performance Pro modes. Then titles like Alan Wake 2 simply stuck with Quality and Performance modes. Every game has different options, and they all seem to call it something different, too.
What is most disappointing of all however, is how often 30fps options continue to crop up. Going back to Alan Wake 2, it sees a bump in internal resolution and the introduction of ray tracing for its quality mode, but it’s running at 30fps. For a frame rate Cerny labelled as “choppy”, it’s still showing up a lot on the Pro.
Certainly there are some examples that take away the need to choose but for the most part you still need to pick between graphics and performance — the difference being the graphics are shinier and performance runs faster.
Should You Buy a PS5 Pro or PC?
Image: Push Square The PS5 Pro’s price range does bring up a very valid question for some people: should you just buy a PC instead? The eye-watering $700 price tag does push the Pro into a new price barrier — especially when you consider that if you have a PS5 physical games collection, you’ll need to shell out another $100 for an attachable disc drive.
Speaking from a pure monetary standpoint, will $700 buy you a PC that plays games at the level of the PS5 Pro? No, it won’t. However, unlike consoles, you will be able to take that $700 as a foundation, and steadily upgrade your PC over the years — not to mention you’ll have a functioning computer for regular life stuff to boot. So while the Pro gives you the instant bang for buck, switching to PC could be seen as a long-term investment. Eventually it will offer higher resolutions, higher frame rates, and more bells and whistles, but it’ll cost a pretty penny in the process.
Image: Push Square The elephant in the room, however, is the life cycle of the PS5 Pro. We are more than half way through the typical lifespan of a Sony console, with the PS6 presumably landing sometime between 2027 and 2028. That leaves you about 4 years of prime time with the Pro before a better option is on the market. Last-gen support does typically last a little longer these days, so you could easily squeak out a few extra years before you’re left behind for the new generation.
Ultimately, though, we think it comes down to whether you are here for convenience or you want to get into the nitty gritty. If you don’t mind steeping yourself in the world of drivers, graphics cards, RAM, and processor chips, then maybe PC is for you. However, the PS5 Pro offers a high level plug and play experience straight out of the box that the PC simply cannot compete with at this price level.
Should You Buy the PS5 Pro? Saying whether the PS5 Pro is worth purchasing is dependent on a few things. On the basis of the screen you watch on, televisions without VRR are going to miss out on a lot of that extra power, with consistently higher frame rates being one of the biggest surprises of the Pro. We played on an LG OLED television, and quite often the capabilities of the television itself amplified the PS5 Pro experience.
Secondly, the upgrades for the games differ greatly. We can’t say we were too blown away by any changes in Alan Wake 2, whereas Lords of the Fallen was one of the most impressive and useful upgrades. So with that you should be considering the types of games you plan to play on the Pro. Is your PS5 an EA Sports FC 25 machine, or are you someone that tries to keep up with the latest releases? Have a think about the games you’d sink the most amount of time into, and how much of an upgrade they’d receive — if any at all.
Image: Push Square Lastly, something we have to consider but can’t bet on just yet is the future. While the current enhanced game line-up is fairly extensive, all of these games are retrofitted with PS5 Pro support. Looking to 2025 and beyond, we can imagine the possibilities of the Pro expanded upon with games developed with the unit in mind. We can think of one particular release coming next year (hopefully) that could prove the Pro’s worth, and show the cracks of the base model's performance in the process — but we’re just speculating at this point.
As for the here and now, do your games run better on the Pro? Yes. Do they look better than ever? In many cases, yes. But does that mean it's worth the upgrade? We imagine that if you’ve read this far you’re going to know the answer to that question for yourself.
The PS5 Pro is a niche product for the tech enthusiasts out there with the best displays to play their games on. In this instance, that’s us, and for the most part we've enjoyed our time with this specced up PS5. However, if you’re still happy with what your base PS5 has to offer, and maybe you don’t have a 120hz display, you’re better just holding out for the inevitable PS6.
Have you picked up the PS5 Pro? Which games have you been testing out on it? Let us know down in the comments section below.
Did you buy a PS5 Pro? (5,300 votes)
Yes, I had one pre-ordered 38 %Not yet, but I plan on buying one this year 4 %Nah, but I'll probably buy one later down the line 10 %Nope, I'm still waiting to be sold on the console 14 %No, I have zero interest in the PS5 Pro 33 %
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