PS5 Pro?I don’t care if the rumors are true now

Another day, another rumor.The newest safe house, so it’s likely finally The real claim was posted from some dark corner of the internet, someone heard it on a Discord server and heard it from someone in a Twitter DM PlayStation 5 Pro It’s coming, and it’s coming sometime next year.

That’s probably a pretty safe statement. Mid-generation refreshes from Sony and Microsoft are now the norm, and if you look at the gap between the PS4 and PS4 Pro – three years – we’ll probably get a new machine within the next 18 months. Even if anonymous sources prove useless, this is a safe house prediction. We can assume it’s happening. But… I’m just not excited.

In previous generations, I always couldn’t wait to refresh it. The DS Lite, the PS4 Pro, the New 3DS, and even the Xbox 360 S (which did away with the Red Death Ring for good), these are the hardware launches that got me excited. This time though, this generation… I’m just not sure I can be bothered?

Part of it, I think, is the cadence of the generation so far. We’re three years in, but the combination of a bunch of cross-generational titles and the generally slow pace of the must-have new-gen titles really feels like the generation is just getting started. To be fair, the PS5 has had some really nice improvements – but compared to the same point in the PS4’s lifecycle, it feels like a serious step back.

Things are arguably worse on Xbox. The Series X, touted by marketers as “the fastest, most powerful console ever made,” was held back by its little brother, and all games had to be built to accommodate that. At the same time, Microsoft is generally trying to revitalize studios and undo the damage caused by closures and downsizing during the Xbox One era. The Bethesda acquisition will pay dividends for Starfield and Redfall this year, but despite this, the generation feels like it has far fewer stats.

The results are weird: I’m trying to figure out how much I’ll be hyping up for the PS5 Pro (or an upgraded Xbox, for that matter) next year. I feel like I’m barely seeing the full potential of the boxes I have. I’m not there yet where I can feel the hardware being stretched and ready to see the potential for better hardware scaling. I’m at that stage with the Switch – I’m ready for new things – but in a cost of living crisis, the idea of ​​spending a lot of cash on a mid-generation upgrade is hard to justify, especially so far with new A place exclusive to a generation of consoles.

In fact, the most exciting thing about this generation of console updates is seeing them get smaller, cooler, and quieter, and that doesn’t even warrant an upgrade model. The Xbox One X is smaller than most of its predecessors, but the PS4 Pro is bigger.

Apparently, part of the reason is not just a hardware issue. It’s about the Covid-related delays in game development that helped set the tone for the tortuous start of this generation. It’s also about the cost and time spiral of high-budget game development in 2023: everything takes longer. Development cycles seem to be lengthening, but the cadence of hardware releases doesn’t seem to be slowing down at the same rate. There is a mismatch.

Maybe, in 2024, I’ll change my mind. Maybe the next 18 months will release games that make me feel like I’m really getting my money’s worth out of a 2020 box. Maybe, I’m just spoiled by my top gaming PC. Maybe I’m just getting a little older and more boring.

But what I do know is that as someone who’s always been doing this sort of thing on day one, the thought of a current generation hardware update means absolutely nothing to me right now. I just want to kick this generation up a notch first. After all, it all starts and ends with a game.