Many gamers have been skeptical of the recently announced Sony PS5 Pro since the day it was announced, largely due to the high price and the perceived lack of meaningful improvements. It seemed to many as though the PS5 Pro was simply a meaningless mid-cycle cash-grab with a few extra features tacked onto the top, however, it looks like Sony and its development partners have put in the work to make the PS5 Pro experience fresh and worthwhile. According to a new post on the official PlayStation Blog, the new console will launch with at least 50 confirmed "Enhanced" games.

What exactly Sony means by Enhanced is rather nebulous, since many of the Enhanced games for the PS5 Pro have a mishmash of different Pro features. For example, Resident Evil Village gets the full 120 FPS treatment, while Horizon Forbidden West only gets a bump up to 4K at 60 FPS. Stellar Blade, on the other hand, only gets an FPS boost to 80 FPS or 50 FPS at 4K. It's likely that, like Stellar Blade, all the titles aiming for higher refresh rates on the PS5 Pro are using some mix of PSSR, dedicated AI acceleration, and traditional rasterization rendering techniques to achieve the increased frame rates. Both The Last of Us Part I and The Last of Us II Remastered will run at 60 FPS on the PS5 Pro, but they will render at 1440p and use PSSR to upscale to 4K output.

Sucker Punch, developer of the wildly popular Ghost of Tsushima, recently announced Ghost of Yōtei as the follow-up to Ghost of Tsushima and confirmed that this is only the beginning of a seemingly expansive franchise. Ghost of Yōtei is the first indirect sequel to Ghost of Tsushima to take place in what Sony calls the Ghost franchise and follows a new character, Atsu, on a quest for revenge in feudal Japan. It will launch on PS5 in 2025, although Sony has yet to reveal a firm release date.

In an interview with The New York Times, Sucker Punch revealed that it had already started planning Ghost of Yōtei as a follow-up to Ghost of Tsushima before the original game was even announced. It also revealed that it had already started working with Chad Stahelski, director of the John Wick franchise, on a cinematic adaptation of Ghost of Tsushima, and that there are other games coming to the Ghost franchise in the future.

Black Myth: Wukong is undoubtedly 2024's best-selling game, so far. Released in August 2024 and gaining 18M sales within two weeks, PC and PS5 users have been enjoying this game since its release, and Xbox gamers have just been sitting at the back seat missing out on all the fun. Now, GameStop has taken advantage of the situation, offering two options to the Series S users.

GameStop posted on X, offering Series S users a trade in price of $272.50 in exchange for their Xbox S, which is not far off from the price of a new Xbox Series S, $289.99. With no release date for the game on Xbox, players on the Series S might be tempted to jump ship. Either the gamers remain patient and wait for the game to come to the console, or they trade in their Series S, and perhaps use credit to purchase a PS5 and enjoy the game that has been making waves in the gaming community recently.

When it comes to live service games, it's not a new thing to hear of shutdowns, commercial issues, low player counts and player downturns. We've seen many games that have ended up the same way as Concord in the past, but now, it seems the record has been broken by Concord, the fastest game to get shutdown, and with a tech giant behind it.

Sony saw its 8 years of development and thousands to millions of dollars of investments crash within 11 days after its release. And it's kind of shocking because Firewalk started developing the game 8 years ago, in 2016. But when you realize that the 11 days Concord stayed in the market is actually shorter than other games who got shut down after their release, it's pretty shocking.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that the delay of Black Myth Wukong on Xbox is not due to the platform's technological limitations but something else entirely. Black Myth: Wukong is a widely known game, reaching a large amount of sales within few months after launch. This well known Black Myth: Wukong, is available for PC and PlayStation 5 players, however one direct competitor is missing. Microsoft's representatives reiterate that Black Myth: Wukong would launch on Xbox soon, but the delay is not due to technological limitations but a case of timed exclusivity by a direct rival, Sony PlayStation.

This claim by the Microsoft representative may be true, after all, before the current generations, Microsoft boasted that their Xbox Series X would be the most powerful household console till date, that surpasses the performance of direct rivals. So that alone may clear the doubts about delay of the game due to platform limitations. Another reason to believe it is because, this isn't the first time we've heard that Sony signed a timed exclusivity contract with devs of a highly potential game title. To avoid competition with direct competitors and just watch the show from the front seat, it's possible that Sony may have done the same again. But then again, it could also be that the developers found out about the technological gaps between the two platforms and decided to hold back the game for a few optimizations before launch. And what the representatives are saying, is just a way to divert the attention from the platform's limitations.

Corcord, Firewalk Studios' hero shooter, released on August 23 for PS5 and Windows, was pulled from sale on Tuesday and will be taken offline later this week, all thanks to its disastrous launch. Sony announced on its Playstation blog Players who purchased Concord would be refunded as it "explores options" for the game, and "determines the best path ahead."

Game director at Firewalk Studios, Ryan Ellis, announced Concord's fate in a message to players, saying, "Aspects of the game and our initial launch didn't land the way we intended." He continues, "Concord fans—we've been listening closely to your feedback since the launch of Concord on PlayStation 5 and PC and want to thank everyone who has joined the journey aboard the Northstar." Ellis added,"Your support and the passionate community that has grown around the game has meant the world to us."

God of War Ragnarök will be coming to PC on September 19, 2024! Santa Monica Studio's development partner for God of War (2018) on PC, Jetpack Interactive, is back to help deliver the PC version of God of War Ragnarök. Alongside the release date, we'd also like to share a selection of the features that will be available (Account for PlayStation Network is required).

Unlocked framerates
Experience the epic conclusion of Kratos and Atreus' journey in the Norse saga at peak performance. Unlocked framerates and the option of true 4K resolution expand the full potential of the cinematic no-cut camera as you travel through the stunning vistas of the Nine Realms to do battle against deadly foes in the forms of Norse gods and monsters.

Independent game developer C2 Game Studio has today revealed that its upcoming third-person action-RPG Astor: Blade of the Monolith will launch May 30th on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms. The release date was revealed as part of the ID@Xbox Showcase, featuring some of the most exciting upcoming indie games from around the world. The announcement also comes in the wake of a recent title rebrand. Wield legendary runic weapons and magical abilities in fast-paced combat as you confront the source of evil found on planet Gilese, and enjoy a rich, immersive adventure as you guide a lone hero across the planet in a desperate search for answers.

"We're really excited to finally reveal our release date for Astor: Blade of the Monolith," said Luis Correa, Founder & game director at C2 Game Studio. "Myself and everyone at C2 are immensely proud of the game, and we can't wait for players to get their hands on it when it releases on May 30th."

The International Data Corporation (IDC) has been tracking sales of Sony's PlayStation VR2 virtual reality headset since launch time (February 2023)—a new report claims that a backlog of unsold units has accumulated. Bloomberg's analysis of IDC data reveals that PS VR2 sales have consistently declined each quarter, despite promising early numbers—the publication alleges that Sony Group Corporation has paused production of its ($550 MSRP) PS VR2 headset: "until it clears a backlog of unsold units, according to people familiar with its plans, adding to doubts about the appeal of virtual reality gadgets." Anonymous industry moles reckon that manufacturing facilities have pumped out over two million examples since launch time. Sony is unlikely to admit, publicly, that it is having a tough time shifting its second generation virtual reality headset—Bloomberg's network of insiders believe that "stocks of the device are building up."

The lack of AAA content, developed exclusively for the PS VR2's ecosystem, is cited as big stumbling block—Bloomberg (alongside numerous publications) reckons that sales have suffered due to an absence of system-selling titles. Horizon: Call of the Mountain (2023) was an impactful launch title, but the headset's software portfolio contains a lot of "novelty" items, casual experiences and glorified tech demos (according to community feedback). Late last month, Sony admitted that it was exploring options beyond the VR2's normal mode of operation (PS5 acting as host): "We're pleased to share that we are currently testing the ability for PS VR2 players to access additional games on PC to offer even more game variety in addition to the PS VR2 titles available through PS5. We hope to make this support available in 2024, so stay tuned for more updates." This surprising announcement arrived mere days before the firing of (around) 900 PlayStation employees. Company leadership revealed that Firesprite's headcount would be reduced. This VR-oriented studio collaborated with Guerrilla Games on the development of Horizon: Call of the Mountain. Sony's London Studio will be closed down—its team had previously worked on PlayStation VR Worlds (2016) and Blood & Truth (2019)—compatible with Sony's first generation headset.

Launching today, our latest wireless headset, Pulse Elite, brings crisp, immersive audio to the gaming experience on the PS5 console; to PlayStation Link supported devices including PS5, PC, Mac, and PlayStation Portal remote player; and to Bluetooth compatible devices such as smartphones and tablets. Pulse Elite follows the launch of our first wireless earbuds, Pulse Explore, with both audio devices featuring planar magnetic drivers to further enhance the PS5 console's Tempest 3D AudioTech. When combined with PlayStation Link, the planar drivers precisely deliver the output of the 3D audio algorithms directly to the player's ear without loss, and nearly no distortion or delay. Here's our quick-start guide on setting up and using the Pulse Elite wireless headset, along with Pulse Explore wireless earbuds.

Set up and use sidetone and 3D audio features on PS5
A tour of the headset appears when you first connect the Pulse Elite wireless headset or Pulse Explore wireless earbuds to your PS5 console via the included PlayStation Link USB adapter. Before diving into a game, I recommend personalizing 3D audio settings and adjusting sidetone volume (changing this adjusts how loudly you hear your own voice in your ear when you talk). It's also possible to create a custom name for the headset, with standard letters, symbols, and even emoji. After the tour, you can change settings at any time while the headset is connected by navigating to the Settings menu and selecting Accessories, followed by Pulse Elite wireless headset.

Kenichiro Yoshida—Sony Group Corporation Chairman, President And CEO—appeared as a guest on Norges Bank Investment Management's Good Company videocast late last year. News outlets have sluggishly picked up on some interesting tidbits from the November 2023 interview—the Sony boss has discussed his gaming division's ambitions in the recent past, but (host) Nicolai Tangen managed to pry out a clearer picture of PlayStation's ambitions for the future. Yoshida-san has an all-encompassing vision for the brand: "In short, it will be ubiquitous wherever there is computing users will be able to play their favorite games seamlessly, gamers will be able to find a place to play in different spaces, while PlayStation will remain our core product, we will expand our gaming experiences to PC, Mobile and Cloud." Gamers on the PC platform have to wait roughly two to three years for PlayStation exclusive titles to breakaway from home consoles origins—it is encouraging to hear that a greater number of conversions could be in the pipeline (with shorter lead times...hopefully).

The discussion moved onto game subscription services—a hotbed talking point as of late—Yoshida seemed to be happy with his company's normal mode of operation: "Well, we do subscription business model. At the same time, people usually play one game at the time, so an all-you-can-eat type of many games may not be so valuable compared with video streaming services. We have kind of balanced a hybrid service on PlayStation Network: subscription as well as paid content." Microsoft is a market leader with its Xbox and PC Game Pass services, now bolstered with a takeover of Activision Blizzard—the Sony CEO remained calm regarding his firm's main rival: "Healthy competition is necessary for the Games Industry to grow and at Sony we believe it is important to provide gamers with different options to play so we will continue our efforts to achieve this."

As the holiday season approaches, we are excited to share that we have a new PS5 model launching. To address the evolving needs of players, our engineering and design teams collaborated on a new form factor that provides greater choice and flexibility. The same technology features that make PS5 the best to play are packed into a smaller form factor, along with an attachable Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive and a 1 TB SSD for more internal storage.

The new PS5 has been reduced in volume by more than 30%, and weight by 18% and 24% compared to the previous models. There are four separate cover panels, with the top portion in a glossy look, while the bottom remains in matte. If you purchase the PS5 Digital Edition, you can add the Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive for PS5 later, as it will also be sold separately for 79.99 USD | 119.99 EURO | 99.99 GBP | 11,980 JPY.

Piranha Games revealed MechWarrior 5: Clans today, a new stand alone MechWarrior game coming to PC, Xbox and PlayStation consoles next year. MechWarrior 5: Clans, while retaining the MechWarrior 5 designation, represents a transformative step forward in the MechWarrior 5 franchise. MechWarrior 5: Clans linear campaign will be an evolution of gameplay and storytelling in the MechWarrior series, experienced from the perspective of Clan Smoke Jaguar in the pivotal conflict known as the Clan Invasion starting in the year 3050.

MechWarrior 5: Clans follows Piranha's 2019 hit, MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, which was a campaign-based, open ended, procedural experience, selling more than 1.5 million units with a current 9/10 Very Positive ranking on Steam from more than 7,500 user reviews.

Greetings readers. I'm Mårten, the Game Design Director at Hadoque, a collective of creatives in Sweden. I co-created the core concept of the game and oversee the game design. We've been working on Ultros - our first game together - for the past few years, and today, we're thrilled to show you the core gameplay and a new boss.

To recap from our reveal at the PlayStation Showcase earlier in the year, Ultros is a mystical and poetic adventure where you fight dangerous space insects and plant seeds to create an alien garden. Our protagonist, Ouji, wakes up stranded on an overgrown sarcophagus in space. She has no memory of who she is and how she got here. But the world feels familiar, and it seems to react to her - like she has some sort of connection to it. Naturally, this is when you start to explore the depths of the sarcophagus.

Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC ("SIE") announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Audeze, a leading audio technology brand and pioneer of high-end gaming headphones. The acquisition will strengthen SIE's efforts to continue innovating when it comes to the audio experience of PlayStation games. Audeze will continue to operate independently and develop multi-platform products, while benefiting from being a part of the PlayStation ecosystem.

Based in Santa Ana, Calif., Audeze develops award-winning headphones for the professional audio, audiophile, and gaming markets. These headphones use Audeze's patented technologies and unique planar magnetic drivers to deliver an outstanding sound experience for consumers as well as recording professionals, including sound engineers at many game development studios. Audeze designs and manufactures its planar magnetic drivers and professional headphones in its California facility.

Back in May Sony officially revealed what was then known as Project Q, its first streaming only handheld gaming device. Since then, there have been multiple rumours about the specs and what the device will deliver and now, Sony has finally decided to launch the device as the PlayStation Portal. However, it appears that Sony is still keeping things under wraps, as not much new was announced in terms of the actual specs of the device, although we now know that the 8-inch, 1080p60 display is a touch display and it can act as a virtual touchpad. Other details that Sony shared in today's announcement was that the device will feature a 3.5 mm headset jack. With a US$199.99 MSRP it might end up being a popular accessory though, as Sony is asking for far less than the rumours suggested the PlayStation Portal would cost.

Sony also unveiled a pair of new headsets for the PS5, the Pulse Elite and the Pulse Explore. The latter was shown back in May. What was not known back then, was that Sony will be adding a new wireless audio specification to the PS5 called PlayStation Link. This will require a new USB dongle that ships with the headsets and can apparently also be used with PCs and Macs in a rather unusual move for Sony. PlayStation Link is said to be a low latency and lossless wireless audio solution, but the good news is that both headsets also support Bluetooth connectivity and can connect to a PlayStation Link dongle and a Bluetooth device simultaneously. Both the the Pulse Elite and Pulse Explore will feature planar magnetic drivers, which is a not common in gaming headset and even less so for earbuds like this. The Pulse Elite has a US$149.99 MSRP and the Pulse Explore will retail for US$199.99 when they launch later this year.

HyperX, the gaming peripherals team at HP Inc. and brand leader in gaming and esports, today announced the release of the HyperX Cloud Stinger 2 Gaming Headset for PlayStation and the officially licensed CloudX Stinger 2 Gaming Headset for Xbox, both in white colorways. Offering signature HyperX comfort and durability with soft memory foam and premium leatherette, Cloud Stinger 2 gaming headsets for consoles offer lightweight comfort with impressive audio, ideal for long gaming sessions and chatting with friends.

The Cloud Stinger 2 for PlayStation and CloudX Stinger 2 for Xbox are built on the foundation of the original HyperX Cloud Stinger. The headsets feature large 50 mm drivers for clear audio and rotating earcups for a comfortable fit with easy-access audio controls and a swivel-to-mute microphone for added convenience and clear voice quality.

We launched PlayStation 5 in November 2020 and the world was in a strange and different place than when we announced the console in 2019. Despite the unprecedented challenges of COVID, our teams and our partners worked diligently to deliver PS5 on time. We continued to face headwinds with the pandemic, and it took months for supply chains to normalize so we could have the inventory to keep up with demand. For more months than I care to remember, we kept thanking our community for their patience while working through these issues. But now PS5 supply is well-stocked and we are seeing that pent up demand finally being met.

With the support of PlayStation fans, we have reached a milestone of 40 million PS5 consoles sold through to gamers since launch. Thank you so much to our community of gamers - without you this would have been an impossible task. PS5 launched with the best catalog of games in our history and the momentum for great content keeps getting stronger. From innovative indie games to AAA blockbusters, there are more than 2,500 PS5 games now available, and it has never been a better time to experience PS5 In the last two months alone, we have seen incredible new games from our partners, including Final Fantasy XVI, Diablo IV, and Street Fighter 6.

Hey everyone, today we are celebrating the launch of Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart on PC. Back in 2002, Insomniac Games released the first Ratchet & Clank game on PlayStation. It's been two decades since the series first evolved into an iconic franchise on PlayStation consoles, and now for the very first time, Ratchet and his friends and foes are making the jump to a new platform.

On behalf of everyone at Nixxes Software, we can't wait to hear about your experiences with Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart on PC and look forward to seeing your Photo Mode results. You can help us find your posts by using the hashtag #RatchetPC when sharing your experiences and creations on social media.

After a slow week of new releases, we're in for an extremely packed week this coming week, as we have no less than two AAA titles and several other big releases. The first AAA title this coming week is a sequel from Gearbox with the second AAA title having been out on the PlayStation consoles for quite some time, but it's been given some new sparkly features on PC. We also have a space game that we know some of you have been looking forward to, as well as a time travel game and a few other little gems.

Remnant II / This Week's First AAA Title / Tuesday 25 July
Remnant II is the sequel to the best-selling game Remnant: From the Ashes that pits survivors of humanity against new deadly creatures and god-like bosses across terrifying worlds. Play solo or co-op with two other friends to explore the depths of the unknown to stop an evil from destroying reality itself. To succeed, players will need to rely on their own skills and those of their team to overcome the toughest challenges and to stave off humanity's extinction.

Sony Corporation was in a boastful mood back in March of this year—Hiroki Totoki, the firm's executive deputy president and CFO declared that a $5+ billion (JP¥700 billion) budget had to been allocated for strategic investments across several departments in 2023. At the time it was not made clear how much of that pot would be assigned to Sony Interactive Entertainment/PlayStation, but a new report published by Nikkei Asia's Business section has revealed that the Japanese multinational conglomerate is set to open up and reach deep into its "war chest."

As its battle with Microsoft/Xbox heats up, Sony has designated a 300 billion yen (converting roughly to $2.13 billion) to research and development for its game division for the fiscal year ending in March 2024. This is reportedly 40% of its total R&D spending, which will exceed its investments in two other key interests—namely electronics and semiconductors. Nikkei notes that "earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for the company's game business was about 337 billion yen ($2.4 billion) last fiscal year, up more than 60% from five years ago." Sony anticipates that the live service gaming market will hit a high of $19 billion in 2026, so it is shifting priorities from its traditional hardware-based model to an online system where customers are expected to buy add-ons for streamed content. Its $3.7 billion buyout of Bungie in 2022 formed a central pillar for this new strategy—the MMORPG-specialist studio is reportedly serving as a consultant on several live service projects in development at other SIE-owned outfits. The main goal seems to a targeted launch of 12 live service titles by the fiscal year ending March 2026.

Nick Maguire, VP of Global Services, Global Sales and Business Operations at SIE states: "A year has flown by so quickly since we rolled out our new PlayStation Plus tiered plans, ushering in new benefits to the service such as our Game Catalog and Classics Catalog, along with Game Trials for blockbuster titles. Whether you subscribe to PlayStation Plus Essential, Extra or Premium/Deluxe, it's been great to see the positive feedback we've gotten from players around the world for the quality titles that we offer monthly. Today, we're celebrating this wonderful milestone with 10 days of activities for the PlayStation community. It's also our way of saying thanks to players everywhere for supporting us in this new era for PlayStation Plus.

First off, we have very exciting news for PlayStation Plus Premium members. We're currently testing cloud streaming for supported PS5 games - this includes PS5 titles from the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog and Game Trials, as well as supported digital PS5 titles that players own. When this feature launches, cloud game streaming for supported PS5 titles will be available for use directly on your PS5 console. That means as a Premium member, it'll be easier to jump into your favorite games without downloading them first onto your PS5 console. Our goal is to add this as an additional benefit to PlayStation Plus Premium as part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the value of PlayStation Plus."

Kenichiro Yoshida, the chief executive at Sony Corporation has recently sat down with the Financial Times for an interview discussing his company's plans for the future. He touched upon his PlayStation division's early experiments in the cloud gaming sector - arch rival Microsoft has already carved out a strong position here with its Xbox Game Pass subscription service. Yoshida-san discussed numerous issues (latency is major point of contention) that the Sony gaming arm continues to battle with, but the team will persevere: "I think cloud itself is an amazing business model, but when it comes to games, the technical difficulties are high...so there will be challenges to cloud gaming, but we want to take on those challenges."

Sony has looked at competitors in order to learn lessons in advance - most notably in the area of high and low traffic periods: "The dark time for cloud gaming had been an issue for Microsoft as well as Google (with their now defunct Stadia platform), but it was meaningful that we were able to use those (quieter) hours for AI learning." stated Yoshida. The company has been figuring out ways to get the most out of idle/low activity cloud gaming periods - an AI agent called GT Sophy has been tasked with figuring out ways to beat human opponents during periods of low activity.

Julian Huijbregts, Online Community Specialist at Nixxes Software states: "Hey everyone, the intergalactic adventurers Ratchet & Clank are making their debut on PC this summer! At Nixxes Software, we are all very excited to announce our next project in collaboration with Insomniac Games. The Ratchet & Clank franchise recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. We are thrilled and honored to bring this iconic franchise to a new audience. If you haven't played a game from this series before, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is an excellent one to start with.

The game is a visual spectacle that is perfectly suitable for newcomers thanks to a standalone storyline and the introduction of two brand new characters: Rivet & Kit. We can't wait for you to meet these intergalactic heroes and start your multidimensional adventure when the game launches on July 26. Today I can share the first details on the PC features for Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart that our team has been working on and tell you more about the pre-purchase bonuses."

Sony has showed off some new accessories for the Playstation 5 during the PlayStation Showcase event and the most interesting one goes under the internal development name of Project Q. The device is pretty much a dual sense wireless controller that has been split in half and each half has been strapped to either side of an 8-inch HD display. Sony didn't go into much in terms of technical details, beyond that Project Q will have built in WiFi for streaming games from the PS5. The display will support 1920 x 1080 resolution at 60 Hz, which is most likely not what most potential buyers were hoping for.

Sony also showed off a pair of new PS5 branded earbuds, which the company says will be compatible not only with the PS5, but also PCs and other mobile devices, courtesy of Bluetooth 5.3 multipoint support. Sony is also promising some new type of wireless technology here which the company claims will deliver lossless audio that is said to deliver outstanding sound quality and low latency audio. Sony didn't reveal when either device will be available, but promised to release more details "soon".

[Editor's note: Updated with a snippet from the official press release below]