PS5 Pro review
With the PS5 Pro having been out for a few weeks, there are less questions about it. We all know that it’s expensive. We all know that your mileage may vary depending on a lot of variables. And we all know that some games have had more attention than others. That said, we’re approaching the time of year when things like new consoles get purchased, and maybe first-time buyers are wondering if the PS5 Pro is the right first PlayStation for them. The answer is… complicated.
First up, some facts. The PS5 Pro comes with its own tiny stand if you’re laying the console down, but if you want to stand it up and show it off, that’s a separate purchase. Secondly, it’s a digital only console. If you do have discs, that drive is a separate purchase. It comes with a standard controller (the DualSense Edge being included is maybe a fanciful idea, but hey, it’d have been nice) and no headphones of any kind. On the plus side, it has a 2TB SSD inside it, which is a far improved amount of storage (especially after you start mounting things up with screenshots and video clips) out of the box, and means you can throw on a multitude of games, even when we’re at the point where titles regularly crest the 100GB mountain of size.
On the other hand, the unboxing experience leaves a lot to be desired. There’s no sense of occasion here like you get in say, a premium Apple product, or even other consoles. It’s the same very thin, easily rippable outer console box that the original PS5 had, and it’s just all dumped in the box, so to speak. Now that’s not a huge deal, because ultimately you spend hundreds of hours playing, not looking at a box. But when I spend £700 on any item, I’d like at least a little bit of theatre when it comes to the reveal. It’s a significantly smaller console than the launch PS5, though, and it may be recency bias, but the Wi-Fi speed is the fastest on any console in my house, aside a Steam Deck. It comes with Wi-Fi 7 enabled, but my router doesn’t do that, but nevertheless, it was incredibly fast.
The truth is, it’s still early days. I’m going to talk about specific games, and while there is an on-board PS4 boost mode that will smooth out textures, it doesn’t necessarily “fix” things that many might hope. You won’t be suddenly getting 60fps Bloodborne, basically, so get that out of your head right now. Moreover, while some of the games look utterly spectacular now, I do feel there’s a hefty level of future proofing going on with the PS5 Pro. There are games we don’t know exist yet, and perhaps some in 2025 that are coming and will make very good use of the new PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution). This technology may seem in its infancy, but I have to say, it’s close to things like DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), which is an impressive feat in itself. Long story short, PSSR is the console analysing what you’re seeing, and improving it with AI, upscaling it to look better, and is a first of its kind on a console.
Games, then. Let’s talk about games, as that’s why we’re all here, right? I want to start with No Man’s Sky, because that is genuinely one of the standout titles of the PS5 Pro launch. Although you can’t choose frame rate or resolution for No Man’s Sky, I have to say on both TVs I used for testing, it looks astonishing. The vibrancy of the colours, and crystal clear textures was a sight to be seen. It still keeps the 60fps frame rate, but it looks truly wonderful, and given the game is absolutely class anyway, it’s a no brainer to give it a try if you’re getting a Pro.
Stellar Blade looks unreal, as well. There are new modes that have recently been added specifically for the Pro, and it shows. The glinting neon lights stand out on an OLED TV with HDR enabled, and the frame rate is rock solid too. Even Dragon’s Dogma 2 has a better overall performance, while a new Pro patch for Demon’s Souls makes the textures look so clean, it’s really quite something.
Titles like Horizon Forbidden West or the recently released Remaster of Zero Dawn look ridiculously gorgeous, as you’d perhaps expect, while F1 24 has that driving game effect of making you wonder how much more realistic games could actually get in that particularly genre, and in 4K 120Hz it looks crazy. Likewise, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor now looks a lot better, but it still feels like it isn’t quite there. It’s a similar story for Silent Hill 2, which looks great, but still has some frame pacing issues.
But there’s a reason Sony has been showing Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth as the poster child for the PS5 Pro, because it almost looks like a remaster of the game I already put 65 hours into earlier this year. I will say up front: I was not one of those who found too much issue with the visuals in Rebirth to begin with. I accept it had a lot of blurring around the edges, but I still felt it looked great. But now? Bloody hell. Clean as a whistle, sharp, and with options to retain the high frame rate if you choose. I could replay this all the way through, it looks that good.
What I was curious about, though, is how games that haven’t been specifically patched for Pro perform. Does the console actually change things for base versions of games, or does it require the developer to add something later, like for Demon’s Souls, or Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. In truth, EA Sports FC 25 was one of the few games I felt like I had a cleaner image, and unless my eyes are playing tricks, the menus now seem to run at a better clip than before. Minor gains, then, but gains nonetheless. My overall feeling is that if you have a decent TV that’s 50 inches or above, you’ll gain a fair amount from these updates on the new console, though it depends on what games you’re going to play.
The question I found myself asking after a few weeks testing is: would I buy one? I couldn’t personally afford one at this moment, but I do know that after spending time with a PS5 Pro, I’d certainly want one. While games like Dragon Age: The Veilguard don’t look that much different to my eyes with the Pro update, there’s enough titles that do, to make it desirable. I haven’t mentioned every game, but throw in Alan Wake 2, Gran Turismo 7, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, The Last of Us, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and you’re suddenly getting a library of exceptional games that look their best on the new hardware, and I get the feeling the best is perhaps yet to come.
The PS5 Pro is a luxury item. I know, I’m as shocked as you to hear that. There’s no getting around the pricing of the item, yet the same could be said for the DualSense Edge, or the PlayStation Portal. But if you’re a first-time buyer of a PS5 then this is the model you’d want to get. The larger hard drive alone makes it a better purchase, but some of the upgrades for marquee titles are significant improvements, enough to make it worth it. Consider your TV size, your viewing distance, and financial situation; then think about what you’re going to play now, and what you’re looking forward to playing later: then make a decision. But make no mistake: this is the new “most powerful console” on the market.
