As was announced on September 10, the PlayStation 5 will be receiving a mid-generation upgrade, the PS5 Pro - and, in a controversial move, the upgraded console will cost buyers $699.99 USD, making it the most expensive console of the current generation. The staggering price of the PS5 Pro has placed more attention on some of the console's other perceived problems, like a general lack of exclusive games when compared to previous generations.

The PS5 Pro, as revealed in a 9-minute tech presentation, boasts some considerable upgrades to the base PS5, mostly in the form of an upgraded GPU and PlayStation's proprietary upscaling feature, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, or PSSR. The promise of the PS5 Pro is that players won't have to choose between fidelity and performance. But while the console may have impressively powerful specs, the almost $700 price tag for a mid-generation upgrade, without the inclusion of a console stand or disc drive, has drawn unfavorable comparisons to a past PlayStation mistake.

The PS5 Pro Is Repeating The PS3's Mistakes

The $700 Price Tag Of The PS5 Is To Blame

After the relative success of the PS4 and base PS5, the PS5 Pro seems to be repeating the history of the PS3's infamous launch, where the console was priced at $599 when it released in 2006 - a year later and $200 more expensive than the Xbox 360. Notably, the PS3 launch price is actually significantly higher than the PS5 Pro's when ing for inflation, making it the most expensive console overall in PlayStation history, and subsequently, the console had its price reduced by $100 less than a year after its release.

Two and a half console generations later, after the relative success of the PS4 and base PS5, Sony seems to be repeating the same mistake, as the PS5 Pro's high price has drawn significant backlash from players shortly after its reveal, with some even likening it to the disastrous launch of the Xbox One in 2013. It's hard to say whether, in light of the largely negative reception, the PS5 Pro will continue to follow in the PS3's footsteps and see a price drop shortly after release, but pre-launch impressions don't paint a good picture for the new console.

How The PS5 Pro's Value Compares To The PS3's

The PS5 Pro Is A Less Valuable Upgrade In 2024 Than The PS3 Was In 2006.

While the PS5 Pro is seemingly repeating the mistakes of the PS3, a direct comparison might even paint the newer console in a more unfavorable light - the PS3, after all, was a completely new console, released at the start of a generation, with a very noticeable advancement in hardware capabilities from the PS2 and the added bonus of an integrated disc drive that could play Blu-rays.

In contrast, while the PS5 Pro does have considerably more power than the base PS5, the actual effects of that enhanced hardware have stagnated, becoming significantly less noticeable with each new advancement.

The PS5 Pro's lack of an integrated disc drive only makes the comparison worse, as, without the $80 PS5 disc drive sold separately from the console, physical game discs, DVDs, and Blu-rays are essentially incompatible with the console. And, while the PS3 at launch had seven years of before the release of the PS4, the PS5 Pro is set to launch just under four years into its console generation - giving it, presumably, a max of three or four years until the release of a prospective "PlayStation 6" renders it obsolete.

Even outside the consoles themselves, the general landscape of the gaming industry has shifted significantly in the time between 2006 and 2024. Unlike in 2006, only three years after the launch of Steam, PC and especially mobile gaming have a significant hold on the market, and while the PS5 Pro is still generally cheaper than a PC of comparable power, the value proposition of the console as opposed to that of a PC is arguably worse than it's ever been.

The PS5 Pro Shows Sony's Continued Focus On Power

PlayStation's Focus On Graphical Fidelity Hasn't Always Had Good Results

Outside comparisons to the PS3, the PS5 Pro's increased price and power also show a continued focus by Sony on cutting-edge graphical fidelity. This is an approach that's had mixed results in the current generation, partially contributing to significantly inflated development times for games that are uncertain to see success.

Just recently, Concord, a game with impressive visuals that spent eight years in development, failed so disastrously that it was shut down only two weeks after launch, while the smaller-budget title Astro Bot has seen significantly more success with a fraction of time spent in development.

Even in the case of successful games like God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarök, the focus on increasingly bigger, more spectacle-heavy and graphically intensive games can have downsides. In an interview with IGN, director Cory Barlog explained that the games' long development cycles contributed significantly to the decision not to make the story a trilogy instead - a decision that debatably leads to some of Ragnarök feeling like its rushing to conclude the Norse storyline before the next God of War can start a new one.

Of course, the PS5 Pro's development would have been finalized long before any lessons could be taken from games like Concord or Astro Bot, and long development times aren't a Sony-specific problem. But, with a diminishing pool of exclusives to entice new buyers, enhanced performance that might only make a noticeable difference on a handful of games, and a price point that's starting to approach PC territory, it's starting to seem like the PS5 Pro will be a console purely for enthusiasts with money to burn.

Because of its price point, the PS5 Pro arguably has even less going for it than the PS3 did in 2006, making the almost $700 cost hard to justify for many potential buyers. While it has the potential to be a worthwhile pickup for players who focus heavily on graphical fidelity, the PlayStation 5's mid-generation upgrade might end up having to follow more in the footsteps of the PS3 with a reevaluation of its pricing after it releases in November.

Source: IGN