PS5 Pro review: The most powerful console ever made, but its high price limits its appeal

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The PS5 Pro is an upgraded version of Sony's popular PS5 gaming console. Rather than being a completely new system, the Pro is considered a "mid-generation" refresh. This means it plays all the same games as the PlayStation 5 but with enhanced graphical capabilities. So, while developers aren't creating any new games exclusively for the Pro, they are taking advantage of its beefier hardware to enable better performance on many popular PS5 titles.

In practice, this often results in something the standard PS5 has rarely been able to achieve: the ability to play games at 4K-level quality and 60 frames per second (FPS) simultaneously. On the standard PS5, many games offer two visual modes, either a performance setting, which often provides 60 FPS at a lower resolution, or a quality setting, which often targets 4K resolution but at a lower frame rate. With the PS5 Pro, gamers finally get the best of both worlds, with some titles now offering Pro-exclusive modes that enable sharper images and smoother gameplay at the same time.

However, the PS5 Pro's improved performance comes with some big caveats. Though the Pro succeeds at making many games look and play better, this kind of upgrade is best appreciated by hardcore players with large TVs rather than casual gamers who are less likely to notice every enhanced detail on the screen. Likewise, the Pro's extremely hefty $699 price tag doesn't do it any favors. It's also baffling that certain accessories, like a disc drive and even a stand, aren't included.

Much like the PlayStation Portal, I can only see the PS5 Pro appealing to a niche audience, particularly dedicated tech enthusiasts with deep pockets. If you fit that bill, it's an impressive console, but the standard PS5 is a better value for most gamers.

The PS5 Pro has a sleek design, but we wish it came with a disc drive at this price

The PS5 Pro's design is similar to other PlayStation 5 models but there are a few flourishes that help it stand out. Its overall build and size are reminiscent of the slim Digital Edition PS5 that's currently sold in stores, so it takes up less space than the bulkier launch PS5 that was released in 2020. But whereas the slim PS5 has one black groove toward the middle of its faceplates to separate the top and bottom, the PS5 Pro has three small grooves, and this aesthetic gives it its own sense of identity. The Pro is also slightly taller than the PS5 Slim.

Another minor change concerns the Pro's front-facing ports. Instead of one USB-C and one USB-A port, the Pro has two USB-C ports at the front of the console. This is not a huge inconvenience, considering that you still get two USB-A ports at the back, but having to reach toward the rear to plug in a USB-A thumb drive can be a bit annoying.

Though regular PS5 models are available with or without a disc drive, the Pro is only sold as a digital console, meaning it doesn't include a 4K Blu-ray drive to play physical game discs or movies. To play games, you must purchase and download them from the PlayStation Store.

While this helps shave off a bit of the console's bulk, this omission doesn't do its expensive price any favors. We prefer PS5 consoles that include a disc drive since they let you play used games and physical copies of PS4 titles you might already own. You can buy a separate disc drive to attach to the Pro after the fact, but it's hard to find in stock and costs an extra $80, pushing the system's eye-watering price tag higher.

Sony sent us a vertical stand with our PlayStation 5 Pro review unit, but this optional accessory normally costs another $30 on top of the console price. Again, considering the Pro's premium cost, it would be nice for the stand to come included. Buyers do get a regular DualSense controller in the box, which is fine, but if Sony had bundled the PS5 Pro with its more premium $199 DualSense Edge controller instead, the $699 price would be easier to accept.

Sony also plans to sell swappable faceplates for the PS5 Pro in different colors and designs. Unfortunately, existing faceplates made for the slim PS5 are not compatible with the Pro. This design decision feels a bit like a slap in the face to get you to spend more money.

One of the biggest hardware features that helps explain the Pro's price is that it sports a 2TB internal solid-state drive (SSD) as opposed to the 1TB drive that's currently included with regular PS5 models. This makes storing games on the Pro much more convenient as you don't have to constantly delete games to make room for new ones nearly as often.

The extra space is particularly useful for PlayStation Plus subscribers since this service offers an enticing digital catalog showcasing PlayStation's history, including PlayStation 4, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and original PlayStation titles.

Many games get performance boosts, but PS5 Pro-enhanced titles get the biggest upgrades

The PS5 Pro is built to improve the graphical fidelity and performance of many PS5 games. Sony says the PS5 Pro's hardware has 67% more compute units and 28% faster memory, which makes rendering games up to 45% faster than on the standard PS5.

By default, all PS5 games can take advantage of the PS5 Pro's beefier hardware through the system's "Game Boost" feature. This isn't something you need to toggle on or off; it's just something that's enabled whenever you play a PS5 game. In practice, Game Boost increases FPS performance on many PS5 titles, especially those that feature unlocked 120Hz modes when played on a 120Hz TV. That said, actual improvements vary from game to game, and some titles that feature modes capped to lower FPS may not benefit at all.

Ultimately, Game Boost can only do so much, and where the PS5 Pro truly shines is when playing genuine "PS5 Pro-enhanced" games. Rather than just tapping into the system's raw specs to automatically boost frame rates, developers have updated some games specifically for the PS5 Pro. These games now include new modes designed to use the console's extra power in more deliberate ways. These enhancements can include better-optimized frame rates as well as upgraded ray tracing and other graphical features.

Perhaps most notably, PS5 Pro-enhanced games have the option to use Sony's new AI-upscaling process called PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, or PSSR. This process enables the system to create a 4K-quality image from a lower resolution while often holding a steady 60 FPS or higher. So far, Sony has confirmed a little over 50 PS5 Pro-enhanced titles that leverage features like PSSR, with more games being supported later. It's a good start, but there's definitely room to grow.

PS5 Pro-enhanced games look prettier and run better

I tested a mix of first- and third-party PS5 Pro-enhanced games to see how these new features stack up. I downloaded the games on both my launch PS5 and PS5 Pro. Then, I switched back and forth between both consoles to see how they compared to one another in terms of graphical fidelity and performance.

For Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the PS5 Pro's increased power was immediately evident. On my launch PS5 console, I was hit with the "Please Wait" text on the game's splash screen before I reached its title screen. However, on the Pro, the game loaded much faster. I didn't see the "Please Wait" text and I arrived at the title screen within a few seconds. For such a big game (145GB), these small changes are quite noticeable and can save a lot of time in the long run.

On the standard PS5, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth offers a Performance mode that prioritizes frame rate, but this setting has been criticized for making the game's graphics blurry. Thankfully, the PS5 Pro almost entirely fixes this issue. The new Pro-exclusive Versatility mode essentially brings together the best of the game's original Performance and Graphics modes, along with PSSR to achieve an upscaled 4K resolution at 60 FPS. The environments look much sharper and more detailed than on the launch PS5. I could see the individual crevices of rocks and the light reflecting off the water much more clearly. It truly feels like a substantial upgrade.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is also a good showcase of the PS5 Pro. The game offers new Performance Pro and Fidelity Pro modes, with the latter prioritizing visual quality and the former focusing on holding a steady frame rate. Both are fantastic, but Performance Pro is the clear winner for me. The high frame rate and sharp resolution gave me a huge rush while swinging at blisteringly fast speeds through New York.

Meanwhile, Demon's Souls now has a mode called PS5 Pro. I switched between the standard PS5's Performance and Cinematic modes to compare. Similar to Final Fantasy VII Rebirth's Versatility mode, I could see a solid improvement. In the old Cinematic mode, rotating the camera caused a nauseating motion blur effect due to the lower frame rate, while Performance mode would alleviate that at the cost of some visual fidelity. The PS5 Pro mode makes Demon's Souls look sharper while completely diminishing the distracting motion blur. It's the best of both worlds.

I also tested Stellar Blade, which received two new display modes on the PS5 Pro: Pro and Pro Max. Of the games I tested, Stellar Blade was the most inconsistent in terms of performance. Pro mode kept 60 FPS while utilizing PSSR to produce great image quality. However, the Pro Max mode was confusing. The settings menu states that it provides a higher frame rate while also prioritizing resolution, but my experience was the opposite. When in combat, the frames drop a bit when set to Pro Max mode. That wasn't the case in Pro mode. In this instance, Pro mode was better since it was more consistent.

The last PS5 Pro-enhanced game I tested was Resident Evil 4 Remake. The PS5 Pro allows you to unlock the game's frame rate, enabling it to run above 60 FPS while still offering a high resolution, ray-tracing, and other advanced visual options. Alternatively, you can disable the advanced graphics features to boost the game to nearly 100 FPS, which is very helpful in such an action-heavy title.

Some PS4 games also look improved, but the upgrade is subtle

Beyond PS5 games, the PS5 Pro can also enhance PS4 games when you enable a toggle in the system settings menu called "Enhance Image Quality for PS4 Games." This feature doesn't need to be specifically added by a developer and instead simply uses the Pro's increased power to offer a bump in image clarity. Among the games I tested were Bloodborne, Nier: Automata, and Yakuza 0. While Bloodborne's gothic environments looked a bit sharper, its frame rate was still locked at 30 FPS. Nier: Automata and Yakuza 0 felt smooth and responsive, but that was mostly because they were already optimized well for the console.

The notes for this feature say it only applies to "some games" but don't mention specifically which ones. They also mention turning the feature off if you experience unexpected issues. While this option is nice to have, its benefits have been negligible in my experience.

Should you buy the PS5 Pro?

The enhancements that the PS5 Pro offers are quite nice, but that doesn't mean much to the casual gamer who only plays a few sports titles and a new Call of Duty every year. The Pro is meant for hardcore PlayStation fans and tech enthusiasts who want the best experience out of their games and don't care what they have to pay to get it.

The biggest issue the Pro has is its $699 price point, especially since it doesn't have a disc drive. For what is Sony's most powerful console, in some ways, I feel like I'm paying more for less. At $499, the regular PS5 with a disc drive simply offers more value to the everyday gamer. Admittedly, the Pro's expanded 2TB internal storage is very convenient, but it won't be a selling point to a vast majority of people, especially when you can upgrade a base PS5 with a larger drive later on.

If you're someone who hates having to choose between high frame rate and high graphical fidelity modes on the regular PS5, the PS5 Pro could be for you, so long as its price isn't a barrier. But for most gamers, the PS5 Pro simply isn't an essential upgrade.