Thursday, September 17th 2020
Sony Announces PS5 Console Pricing, Exclusive Games Launch Lineup
Sony yesterday at its PlayStation Showcase finally revealed pricing and exclusive launch titles for their PS5 console. First things first: the PS5 will be launching in two version, as we've known for a while, with different pricing according to the console version you choose. The "vanilla" PS5 which includes a 4K Bluray disc drive will be going for $499; its price-reduced cousin, the PS5 Digital Edition, forgoes the 4K Bluray disc drive to deliver a $399 pricing.
Alongside pricing details, Sony also announced the PS5 exclusive games we can count on the consoles' launch, which is set for November 12th. These include Astro's Playroom (Japan Studio), which will be pre-installed on the PS5 and is thus a free game; the highly-awaited next-gen version of Demon's Souls (Bluepoint Games / Japan Studio) - $69.99; Destruction All Stars (Lucid Games / XDEV) - $69.99; Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - $49.99; Marvel's Spider-Man: Mile Morales Ultimate Edition - $69.99; and Sackboy A Big Adventure (Sumo Digital / XDEV) - $59.99.
Sony has also partially committed to cross-gen releases for some of its first-party games, including Horizon: Forbidden West. The game is scheduled for a 2021 release, and Sony has said that it knows PS4 gamers will be making the transition towards the new PS5 at different times - and as such, want to provide the best experience for those who might transition slightly later. This also means that gamers who purchase PS4 versions of games that are also available on the PS5 will enjoy a sort of next-gen upgrade when they do make the jump towards the PS5, but with some hoops thrown in. Players who purchase digital versions of the PS4 games will be able to download the PS5 version when they acquire the console; however, gamers who purchase a disc-based version of the PS4 game will have to make sure that when they do buy the PS5, they go for the $499 version with the optical disk drive - the PS4 game disc will have to be inserted (and likely remain inserted) for the games to download and run.
The $499 price-tag for Sony's PS5 puts it in direct competition with Microsoft's Xbox Series X, which enjoys a hardware advantage that may allow it to more gracefully age (at least on paper). of course, we know that pure Teraflops aren't the only performance metric. Sony enjoys a (almost non-arguable) stronger position compared to Microsoft when it comes to their exclusive titles, whereas Microsoft doesn't even have real "exclusives" anymore - their games are now also available on the PC platform. Whether you agree with this sentiment or not, this means that some would-be console gamers who also own a gaming PC will almost always favor getting a PS5 instead of an Xbox Series X - that's the best way for they to increase their available games portfolio. Sony can also claim the comparably high price of the PS5 due to its Dual Sense controller (a $70 accessory, should you need to buy a second one).
Source:
The Verge
Alongside pricing details, Sony also announced the PS5 exclusive games we can count on the consoles' launch, which is set for November 12th. These include Astro's Playroom (Japan Studio), which will be pre-installed on the PS5 and is thus a free game; the highly-awaited next-gen version of Demon's Souls (Bluepoint Games / Japan Studio) - $69.99; Destruction All Stars (Lucid Games / XDEV) - $69.99; Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - $49.99; Marvel's Spider-Man: Mile Morales Ultimate Edition - $69.99; and Sackboy A Big Adventure (Sumo Digital / XDEV) - $59.99.
The $499 price-tag for Sony's PS5 puts it in direct competition with Microsoft's Xbox Series X, which enjoys a hardware advantage that may allow it to more gracefully age (at least on paper). of course, we know that pure Teraflops aren't the only performance metric. Sony enjoys a (almost non-arguable) stronger position compared to Microsoft when it comes to their exclusive titles, whereas Microsoft doesn't even have real "exclusives" anymore - their games are now also available on the PC platform. Whether you agree with this sentiment or not, this means that some would-be console gamers who also own a gaming PC will almost always favor getting a PS5 instead of an Xbox Series X - that's the best way for they to increase their available games portfolio. Sony can also claim the comparably high price of the PS5 due to its Dual Sense controller (a $70 accessory, should you need to buy a second one).
41 Comments on Sony Announces PS5 Console Pricing, Exclusive Games Launch Lineup
So far it's usually been the same value.
As for PS5 - I'm holding out for now. Majority of games are still designed for ps4 so there's no point in jumping in blind on the first batch of consoles. I'll consider it next year, but this year I'd rather invest in new gpu and display.
The games lineup? Considering Sony keeps harping on about their amazing exclusives, that is an outright disappointment.
Astro's Playroom? Barely qualifies as a game, guess it's fine as it's bundled. It's no Wii Sports though.
Demon's Souls? While cool, it's a remake, so already playable on PS3.
Destruction All Stars? Balances between derivative and interesting, but the look and presentation alone makes it come off as one of those games that shows up early every console generation, looks kinda intriguing, and ends up being utterly dull and soulless.
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales? Glorified story DLC. At least it isn't priced as a full game (though just $10 below where full games ought to be priced).
Marvel's Spider-Man: Mile Morales Ultimate Edition? Seriously? A second entry for an Ultimate Edition SKU? This is what their "impressive list of exclusives" contains?
Sackboy A Big Adventure? Probably decent - previous LBP games have been, though they fail to live up to genre staples (Mario games mostly) both in gameplay, charm and overall quality.
Console gaming is just not my cup of tea, I barely use the controller with 1-2 game types 'Walking slow paced games+fighting games' but for everything else its a big nope for me.
That and i Iike tinkering with my game settings/mods and whatnot.
ummmm....
N.O.ummm...
not no, but F*CK N.O.
It's s pretty much the same with series s but you also get a weaker console.
Still pretty shitty though. As mentioned above, up until now the standard way of doing this has been rough numerical parity, not monetary value parity.
But one essential Q - do someone know if you'll be able to claim the games they're giving away at launch...like one year later, Christmas '21 ? Highly interested in a YES/NO. Hopefully Sony is gonna make this crystal-clear, I don't wanna skip playing all the PS4 games, but I don't wanna loose this offer tho!!
Given that most of the European countries are much poorer and with much lower standard - purchasing power, this charging for more expensive on the European market screams discrimination and the EU Commission must take care of it via fines for the guilty and responsible Japanese/US corporations.
So, just to be clear, in Europe you'll be paying €whatever-the-game-is-announced-at, while in the US, depending on where you are, you'll be paying $whatever-the-game-is-announced-at + tax (which can range from nothing at all to definitely noticeable). Is that fair? That's debatable. Used to be that EU pre-tax prices were lowered due to higher VAT levels, but these days that's a rarity. Likely a consequence of ever-slimming margins in the electronics business overall.
Exchange rate between currencies in question is almost identical to VAT. 1€ = 1.18$
It is a complete rip-off. Because why not. There is no other reason which can be said with a straight face.