Like with the seasons, Sony loves to pull off some really predictable moves with their PlayStation systems. Ever since the first PlayStation, Sony would go out of their way to redesign their console a few years after its launch. Maybe it’s to spark renewed interest in the system. Maybe it’s to take advantage of better engineering techniques to make them smaller and cheaper. Maybe they just like slapping the Pro label on them so they get people who’ve already bought a PlayStation before to buy another console.

The current rumor circulating is Sony has been secretly developing a slightly more advanced version of their current generation video game console, the PlayStation 5. The rumored PlayStation 5 Pro, according to an alleged leaked document, states that the system will basically have better graphical capabilities. This would mean higher framerates for even 4K resolutions and allow for better upscaling for the lucky/rich gamers who have 8K screens. However, the biggest thing about this rumor is that some game developers have already received developer kits for the so-called PlayStation 5 Pro and it’s stated to be released sometime in the latter part of this year, possibly in November.

Now, we do have to take this rumor as what it is at the moment: a rumor. Sony has not confirmed anything about the PlayStation 5 Pro, let alone the fact that it exists. However, it is worth mentioning that this rumor is not without merit. After all, Sony released the PlayStation 4 Pro roughly three years after the PlayStation 4’s launch. And it just so happens it’s around three years since the original PlayStation 5 came out.

This is still very exciting news for gamers and Sony fanboys and I’m sure some of them are going to be getting a PlayStation 5 Pro if it does drop later this year or whenever it’s released. However, as good as these upgrades sound, I don’t think it’s really worth getting a PlayStation 5 Pro during this year’s holiday rush for your typical gamer.

For one thing, despite Sony having done a lot to finally boost production for PlayStation 5 systems, there are still a lot of gamers, including myself who haven’t purchased one yet. It’s not like I’ve been holding off for a Pro version of the PlayStation 5. No, I’ve just been dutifully waiting for the price to drop. I still remember the “dark ages” when scalpers would snatch up all the PlayStation 5 stock and ramp up the price of the system. Sure, that’s not what’s happening right now. But it did kind of scar me into thinking that I should wait for the price to get as low a possible.

Honestly, now would seem like a good time to get a PlayStation 5 as I don’t think prices will go down anytime soon… unless the PlayStation 5 Pro comes out in the near future. So, even this simple rumor of an upcoming upgrade to Sony’s current system, that may factor into some gamer’s decision to get a PlayStation 5 now because now you’ve implanted the idea that the system is going to be cheaper when the Pro version is released.

Also, it does feel kind of weird if the rumors are true because didn’t Sony just give the PlayStation 5 a makeover? The PlayStation 5 Slim was just released in November of last year… but not everywhere. In countries like, say, the Philippines where I live, the PlayStation 5 Slim didn’t hit shelves in time for the holiday rush. We are supposedly getting a shipment of PlayStation 5 Slim consoles sometime this week.

The dumb thing is that stores actually stopped selling the regular PlayStation 5 consoles! Stores had a sale of PlayStation 5 consoles around October of last year and then, poof! No more original PlayStation 5 systems for sale! Perhaps they really wanted to get rid of their old stock in preparation for the Slim models. So, even if you wanted to get a PlayStation 5 from between January to now, you couldn’t because, apparently, the PlayStation 5 Slim is now the standard model!

What does this have to do with the future sale of the PlayStation 5 Pro? Well, doing so would actually be a disservice to the PlayStation 5 Slim’s sales at this time. Sony has this new-ish upgrade to an old product and they’re just going to render it obsolete just a year after they make it available? Seems like a terrible business decision to me.

But the biggest reason why it feels unnecessary to release a PlayStation 5 Pro at this time is because not many people can really unlock its full potential. 4K resolution screens may have become pretty mainstream today and it great to future-proof your tech by making sure the Pro version will be able to handle 8K when it does become standard. But there are still a lot of games that have not really taken advantage of these higher resolutions. At least, not to the framerates we need for a smooth gaming experience.

Take Final Fantasy VII Rebirth as an example. The game is certainly beautiful and it’s great that you can choose from between two graphical modes: Graphics and Performance. In Graphics mode, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will add a lot of detail and fidelity but drop the framerate to 30 fps. In Performance mode, the game will run at a consistent 60 fps but the textures will look more dull.

You may say this issue might be alleviated with the PlayStation 5 Pro but it probably won’t. That’s because of the way Final Fantasy VII Rebirth was programmed to display its graphics. The developers even had to put out a patch to fix framerates for it. A future patch would have to be put out for these graphical and framerate issues to fully take advantage of the better graphics output of the Pro version, sure. But unless a game is developed with this in mind, I’m not sure if a patch is the best option. Basically, graphics is hard as it is. Learning how to take advantage of the upgraded GPU may actually hamper future games development.

I’m not saying Sony shouldn’t put out a PlayStation 5 Pro out ever. I’m just saying they really should give the PlayStation 5 Slim some time to breathe and find its footing in the world. Sony should give more time for developers to become familiar with the new tricks the Pro can do to fully showcase the performance enhancements. I don’t think releasing it this year would be helping those aspects. Perhaps next year would be better? I mean, what’s the rush?

Do you think it would be beneficial for Sony to release the PlayStation 5 Pro as soon as possible? Or would it be better to postpone it for a later time? Let me know in the comments section below!