(Photo courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment) “The PS5 Pro was announced to negative opinions.”
Aaron Preziosi
Connector Editor
On Sept 10, 2024, Sony Interactive Entertainment revealed the latest model of the PlayStation: the PlayStation 5 Pro. It is meant to be an even more advanced version of the already-impressive PlayStation 5, boasting “super sharp image clarity, high frame rate gameplay, and advanced ray tracing,” according to Sony’s own press release. Sony also excitedly notes that the PS5 Pro has complete backwards compatibility with standard PS5 games, mentioning huge titles including “Marvel’s Spider-Man 2,” “The Last of Us Part II Remastered,” “Alan Wake 2” and more.
While it is very exciting to see a shiny new console hit the market, especially one as prolific as the PlayStation, some gamers are a bit skeptical. Stronger hardware is always great, but gamers are worried about the price point, and for good reason. In their press release, Sony presents the recommended retail price of the PS5 Pro as $699.99 USD. This has sparked outrage among fans and outlets alike. “The PS5 Pro Is A Badly Priced Console Presented Badly,” says a Paul Tassi video. IGN shares a similar outlook; “The $700 PS5 Pro is Too Much for Too Little,” and Mashable says, quite bluntly, “The price of Sony’s PS5 Pro is ‘brutal’, and the internet hates it.” $700 is a lot of money for most players, and while graphical fidelity, stronger hardware, and higher frame rates are great, they may not be enough. Furthermore, Sony Interactive Entertainment goes on to state that “The PS5 Pro console comes in a familiar look that blends perfectly with the PlayStation 5 family of products. It also provides an option for players to add an Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive (sold separately).” Inspecting the image shown in the press release, fans found that the PS5 Pro, in fact, does not have a disc drive included, meaning that any previously purchased games on discs would be unplayable on this new version of the PS5 without spending an added $79.99 on a suitable disc drive.
Needless to say, this information is contributing to many negative opinions regarding the console. IGN author Brian Altano compares the price point to the public reception of the PlayStation 3 back in 2006, saying “it’s probably the most sticker shock I’ve felt about a console price reveal since the PS3 was announced in 2006 to cost $599 US dollars,” also noting that “Sony was forced to drop the price by a hundred dollars months later.” Paul Tassi makes a poignant remark, saying “…the best argument people can come up with is like, ‘You don’t have to buy it. This is for people with unlimited disposable income…’ There’s a limit to that.”
Regardless of public online opinion, a new console is an exciting thing. If the PS5 Pro, with its in-built hard drive with 2TB of storage space, upgraded GPU resulting in 45% faster gameplay rendering, advanced ray tracing, and AI-driven upscaling is for you, keep an eye on Sony’s official website, direct.playstation.com, as well as participating retailers. Pre-orders are set to begin on Sept 26, 2024, and the console’s launch date is Nov. 7, 2024.
