The PlayStation 5 is an impressive bit of kit, and I love getting comfy on one of the best gaming chairs and playing, but Sony isn’t resting on its laurels when it comes to new hardware. Having already launched the PSVR2 in 2023, and with talk of an upcoming handheld (of sorts) Sony has certainly been busy, but the PS5 Pro rumours just won’t die – and we might already know when it's coming out.
Of course, the PS5 Pro hasn’t even been confirmed to exist, but Tom Henderson of Insider Gaming claims with a “100% degree of certainty” that it is in development. This suped-up version of Sony's console is supposedly separate from the rumoured 'PS5 with a detachable disc drive' – which Henderson claims will hit shelves this year. As for the Pro, we will have to wait longer, but apparently not too much.
According to Insider Gaming’s sources, developer kits for the upgraded machine could be in the hands of first-party devs in just a couple of months, and third-party developers are set to receive them by the end of 2023. Those devs best be working quickly, too, as they believe that the console will launch in the fourth quarter of 2024 (in time for the holidays, no doubt).
A late 2024 release would mark four years since the launch of the PS5 and with the current generation supposedly set to finish in 2027, that would give players at least three years of the upgraded console (barring any 'PS6' stock shortages). Interestingly the PS4 Pro launched just three years after the original PS4 and was Sony’s leading machine for four years.
While many are only just getting their hands on the PlayStation 5, if the 2027 deadline is to be believed, Sony does need to release the Pro version sooner rather than later. Of course, while some may be bullish about its existence, Sony doesn’t have to release a mid-generation upgrade, but it would feel like a missed opportunity.
Personally, I would welcome not having to choose between performance or graphics modes on the best PS5 Games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. Playing at both a consistent 60fps and with ray-tracing hopefully will no longer be a pipedream soon.
