A year ago, Sony made the leap to the ninth generation of consoles with the PlayStation 5.
Once we put the white giant to the test, We commend your initiative for innovating the gaming experience rather than focusing solely on the graphics. However, is this still our opinion a year later? Let’s say there have been reconsiderations.
Below you will find our current views of Sony’s ninth-generation console, the news it has received throughout its first year, and a brief recommendation of the best games to get exclusively for PlayStation 5 (PS5).
How has the PlayStation 5 (PS5) aged?
Interface
As we mentioned in our original review, the interface of the PlayStation 5 – even if it may take those who have been browsing the PS4 menus for almost a decade by surprise – is very intuitive. As such, it hasn’t received many changes. However, the few that it has had have made it easy to distinguish between games that take advantage of PS5 features and those that don’t. New customization options have also been added for the interface.
DualSense
When we first tested Sony’s ninth-generation console, the feature that surprised us the most was the DualSense controller. Astro’s Playroom It was a spectacular demonstration of the haptic feedback potential of the control. We immediately fantasized about the possibilities. Unfortunately, exactly what we feared happened.
With the exception of a handful of titles that can be counted on the fingers of one hand, among which stands out Returnal
In our PS5 review, we stated that the DualSense’s battery lasts around 10 hours. Although multiple gaming sessions over the last year have confirmed that this is still the case, a clarification is worth making. Duration varies considerably between titles that make prominent use of haptic feedback and those that don’t. Players who prefer to enjoy longer gaming sessions should choose to disable haptic feedback. Ironically, this ends up undermining one of the PS5’s charms.
Last but not least, there have been multiple reports that the DualSense suffers from the dreaded ‘drifting’. Although some players may be tempted to disarm the controller to fix it, we do not recommend doing so. Not only is it not a simple task, but several pieces are difficult to come by. For the moment, the only thing we can advise is to send the DualSense to the technical support of PlayStation 5 (PS5). However, the high cost of the controller does not justify it having such an intrusive failure less than a year after its launch.
Capture
We said it then and we repeat it now: the ease of capturing images and videos is one of the strengths of PS4 and the same applies to Sony’s ninth-generation console.
Performance
This is another feature that remains intact, as well as our opinions on it. Although it does not apply to all PlayStation 5 titles, the option to prioritize graphic quality (Resolution Mode) or game performance (Performance Mode) is still appreciated. However, the greatest strength at the performance level of the PlayStation 5 (PS5) is still its speed. After all, it’s a feature that even PS4 games take advantage of.
Storage
The limited internal storage of the PlayStation 5 (PS5) was our main criticism of the Sony console at its launch. Although it has an internal storage of 825 GB, more than 100 GB are dedicated to the correct functioning of games and other applications. In total, the players have 667 GB. Although our observations at that time remain, it is worth mentioning that several updates have been in charge of mitigating this deficiency.
Below we will list the most important improvements that PS5 received in its first year.
What news has received PlayStation 5 (PS5)?
Although PlayStation 5 (PS5) has received several updates throughout this first year, a couple stands out above the others. The first –Released April 14, 2021– implemented the ability to move PS5 games to expanded USB storage, new social features, customization options, and new features for the PlayStation App. The second –Released September 15, 2021– also introduced new social features and customization options, as well as various changes to the PS5 interface. However, its most important addition was the ability to expand the console’s internal storage.
While the latter technically solved the annoying internal storage problem that had plagued the PlayStation 5 (PS5) since its launch, this solution is misleading because of its complexity. Although nothing cheap, the option to expand the storage of Xbox Series X / S is more accessible to the casual audience. Still, it is preferable to having nothing. If you want to expand the internal storage of your PlayStation 5 (PS5), follow these instructions.
What could be improved?
Putting aside the technical flaws of the DualSense controller and the console itself, it’s a shame that the PlayStation Plus collection – originally advertised as a response to Xbox Game Pass – hasn’t received any updates in a year. While the games contained in said collection are good, it would be nice to update or the lineup of downloadable titles.
What are the best PlayStation 5 (PS5) exclusive games?
Although the number of PlayStation 5 exclusives is still higher than its competition, Sony cannot boast that the PS5 has a vast library of unique games. In fact, that has been a growing criticism of ninth-gen consoles. What’s the fun of buying a PS5 if most of your games are available on older-generation platforms? Of course, this decision is intended not to alienate the community of PS4 players and that Sony continues to profit from the eighth generation. The shortage of units has also contributed to the aforementioned situation. However, this is a bottleneck for those studios looking to get the most out of the PlayStation 5 (PS5) hardware.
Leaving aside that criticism, which may well be solved in the coming years, it must be recognized that most of the PlayStation 5 (PS5) exclusives are very solid experiences. Next, we will leave a list of those that we have reviewed throughout this last year:
What were the most played games on PS5 during this first year? Just follow this link to find out. Ironically, only one is one of the exclusives mentioned.
What is your opinion of the latest Sony console? Will they buy it for the Christmas holidays or do they prefer to wait for it to drop in price? Respond in the comments!
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