PS5 Pro Is Becoming One of the Worst PlayStation Consoles Ever, But It’s Not All Sony’s Fault

We need to have a serious conversation about the PlayStation 5 Pro. It has now been nearly one year since Sony released its upgraded version of the PS5, and like many other PlayStation fans, I was eager to get my hands on the console. My experience with the PS5 Pro has been generally a positive one, as I’ve appreciated its larger SSD and more compact design. Actually playing games on PS5 Pro, though, has been a different story.

Despite having more power at its disposal and the magic of PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) to improve games, most experiences on PS5 Pro are failing to meet expectations. These inconsistencies, when contrasted against the ever-increasing price of the PS5 Pro, have resulted in the hardware being one of the most disappointing that Sony has ever released, even though many of its shortcomings don’t fall squarely on the company’s shoulders.

PS5 Pro Is a Mess, But Sony Isn’t Fully to Blame

There’s no question that PS5 Pro is an impressive piece of hardware. Its upgraded GPU and the implementation of PSSR are a big deal. PSSR, in particular, seems to be the cornerstone of Sony’s future console tech and will surely end up being iterated and improved upon for PlayStation 6. When done right, PS5 Pro makes some sizable differences in terms of performance and fidelity on games thanks to these upgrades. Even if the leap in quality from PS5 to PS5 Pro is shorter than in past generations, the improvements are noticeable if you have the right TV/monitor setup.

The main issue with PS5 Pro is simply that developers don’t seem to know how to best take advantage of what Sony has unleashed. Over the past year, there have been numerous games that have released where the PS5 Pro version of a given title is actually worse than the base PS5 version. Out of the gate, this was seen with games like Alan Wake 2, Silent Hill 2, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and has since been seen again with Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and Borderlands 4. Stuttering, flickering, and other performance-related struggles have happened with all of these games on PS5 Pro, but not necessarily PS5.

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So what gives? Why exactly is this happening? Well, the answer is a complicated one. For starters, PSSR seems to be giving developers fits as there has been a learning curve when it comes to best implementing Sony’s latest gaming technology. PSSR was the core issue tied to games like Jedi: Survivor and Metal Gear Solid: Delta. It’s also again a problem this week on the PS5 Pro version of Silent Hill f. Even if PSSR is here to stay for the long haul, developers don’t know how to best use it just yet.

It also seems like PS5 Pro versions of games simply aren’t being tested as much internally before being pushed out to players. Many of these games mentioned that have had problems have had struggles that haven’t been seen on any other platforms. This indicates that games optimized for PS5 Pro perhaps aren’t being vetted as much at gaming studios before they see the light of day. This makes some sense given that PS5 Pro is a niche console that a fraction of video game players own and use, but it’s still a bad look on the platform as a whole.

PS5 Pro’s Price Is Only Making Things Worse

All of these issues that the PS5 Pro is having are only made worse by the fact that the console is pricey, to say the least. PS5 Pro received a fair amount of pushback from PlayStation fans when it released last year to the tune of $700. Those complaints have grown louder as Sony has since had to increase the cost of the platform to $750 as a result of tariffs.

This is where I have to defend Sony a bit, at least on the price increase. Virtually all gaming and tech companies at the moment are feeling the squeeze as a result of these tariffs. Nintendo has increased the cost of many of its Switch games and accessories (with Switch 2 potentially to come), while Microsoft just had to bump up the price of its Xbox consoles yet again last week. Sony being forced to jack up the value of the PS5 and PS5 Pro is surely something it didn’t want to do for a litany of reasons.

Still, this environment hasn’t made it any easier to sell PlayStation fans on picking up the PS5 Pro. Why would anyone look to throw down over $800 (after tax) on a video game console that seems to be worse than the base model? It would be one thing if the PS5 Pro had nothing but praises being sung from the likes of Digital Foundry

Don’t Expect a PS6 Pro

In short, I have to imagine that Sony might be having regrets about the PS5 Pro. I’m sure it’s helpful to the hardware team at Sony to release “Pro” versions of consoles like this that naturally segue into next-gen consoles, but this type of tech seems to be losing value in the eyes of consumers. Even if developers weren’t struggling to optimize their games for PS5 Pro, Sony failed to sell most PlayStation fans on why they needed to consider picking up this hardware upon its reveal. Those doubts have only been further amplified as time has gone on.

Moving into the PlayStation 6 generation, I would be shocked if we end up getting a PS6 Pro. Not only will the leap in quality from one platform to another continue to diminish further, somewhat eliminating the need for a PS6 Pro in the first place, Sony’s silence when it comes to promoting the PS5 Pro right now speaks volumes. Compared to the PS4 Pro, which Sony talked about often, the PS5 Pro seems to be an afterthought in the company’s marketing plan. If it’s not trying to move units of the PS5 Pro right now, why would it continue this Pro model trend with the PS6?

The best thing that can be said about the PS5 Pro is that there do seem to be better days to come. Reports indicate that there is a sizable upgrade for PSSR with the console that is planned to be pushed out in 2026. Hopefully, this update will improve the value proposition of the hardware further, although it will likely still live and die based on the support it receives from developers around the globe.