Sony PS4 Pro review: T3’s official PlayStation 4 Pro review
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
T3 Verdict
It’s not for everyone, with PS4 Pro almost certainly being overkill for those without a 4K TV installed, however, if you are already equipped for 2160p, HDR gaming, or plan to be very soon, then PlayStation 4 Pro is a must buy.
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
Why you can trust T3
Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Join our newsletter
All the best features, news, tips and great deals to help you live a better life through technology
Thank you for signing up to T3. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
Sony PlayStation 4 Pro deals
687 Amazon customer reviews
☆☆☆☆☆
No price information
Check Amazon
powered by
Why should you buy a PlayStation 4 Pro in 2021? If you own a 4K, HDR TV and don’t want to fork out on a PlayStation 5 then this will be your best bet. Simple as that.
With 4K and HDR-ready TVs getting more affordable every week, pairing it with a powerful PS4 upgrade is a marriage made in gaming heaven. By drawing its extra power, PS4 Pro delivers a 4K, 2160p resolution with all the rich, deep and vibrant colour contrasts only HDR can deliver. It makes everything from Spider-Man to Assassin’s Creed Odyssey look absolutely incredible.
Your PS4 games need this in their lives.
Of course, if you don’t own a 4K TV, then a PS4 Pro might not be for you right now. But don’t be downtrodden, because there’s also the PS4 Slim, which packs in all the power of PS4 into a quieter and more streamlined form factor.
For those who want the full thing, and want to take their gaming to the limits, then read on…
- Best PS4 games
- Sony PS4 Pro news and updates
- PlayStation 4 Pro unboxing video
Games such as Red Dead Redemption II look incredible on a regular PS4, but they’re unbelievably pretty running on a PS4 Pro.
Some games simply deserve better presentation. Much like a PC gamer splashing big bucks on a meaty GPU and a sleek new monitor, console gamers need to be willing to do the same if they really want their chosen virtual adventures to look deservedly stunning. Because when you do, you get shots like this.
This shot, despite you not getting anywhere near the fidelity offered on T3’s £3,000 «best 4K, HDR TV on Earth» LG E6, sums up everything that PS4 Pro is about.
Super crisp 4K resolution, rich and vibrant colours and beautifully deep images in terms of contrast. Trust me when I say that the graphics delivered on the PS4 Pro look superb.
PS4 Pro might be a little on the chunky side, but that extra heft in size brings with it plenty of extra internal features.
Yes, the PS4 Pro is a graphical powerhouse of a system and, arguably, is the most impressive console ever made. As someone with a rich history in PC gaming, I can quite honestly say that I feel that the Pro, for the money asked, offers a gaming system that is comparable to 4K gaming PCs that cost five times that amount. The difference, in this reviewer’s eyes, is simply that small and when you consider the comparatively low price, best-in-class library of games and ease of use, you really do have to question as to why you would game elsewhere.
Unlike the first generation of vanilla PS4s, the PS4 Pro won’t start blowing like a jet engine after extended use.
Which, at first glance, I don’t think you would believe, as the PS4 Pro is certainly not a looker.
Here at T3 Towers we weren’t at all sure about the PS4’s slimmer redesign aesthetically, however with the larger, almost comically triple-tiered Pro our mind is set. While the overall shape has remained the same, the sleek, slab-like simplicity of the original system is now well and truly gone. Beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder.
Much like the previous model, the PS4 Pro comes with all the usual inputs and outputs, including additional USB slots at the back.
Asides from the extra tier though it is business as usual on the system itself. The one ‘new’ addition to the back of PS4 Pro compared to the PS4 Slim is the reintroduction of a digital optical port, which considering we are total audiophiles here at T3 Towers was definitely welcome. Seriously, if you can avoid running audio over HDMI then do so people!
In quick summary therefore, the PS4 Pro has a HDMI, digital optical, USB, network and power ports on the rear, as well as a brace of USB ports on the front.
The power and on buttons remain physical, a change made in the PS4 Slim originally, however now are outward-facing elongated strips on the console’s middle tier.
- PlayStation VR review: now on sale, but is it better than life?
Spider-Man is a real performance powerhouse, so if you really want to do Manhattan justice, PS4 Pro is the best way.
But to look at external details, deriving minimal change, and then questioning the PS4 Pro’s improvement over the PlayStation 4 is folly. In a process that started in its infancy generations back, iterative releases — such as you see in the smartphone market — now have full traction. System lifespans are getting shorter and shorter, with iterations on previous systems now the norm, rather than one in a decade wholesale changes.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey proved the AC franchise has plenty of life left in it, and in 4K and HDR, Ancient Greece has never looked so good.
You only have to look at how the original PS4 was transformed into the PS4 Slim, before then being augmented in terms of line-up with the PS4 Pro, to see a rapidly changing industry.
The fact that Sony is now approaching the console market without a one-console-to-rule-them-all mentality, offering multiple systems at the same time, shows that it feels the gaming market is diversifying.
Most new games come with support for PS4 Pros increased stats, such as the recent Devil May Cry V.
And, honestly, we think they are right. Gamers, in terms of age bracket and financial clout, are now massively diverse and while an 8-year-old child playing in his bedroom doesn’t need a 4K, HDR TV and PS4 Pro, a 34-year-old professional certainly could. We’ve been testing 4K, HDR TVs for years now in T3 Towers and while most of them have done pretty good jobs in upscaling 1080p console graphics, the difference to a proper 4K gaming machine outputting 2160p natively is incredibly marked.
Not only does Apex Legends look a treat running on PS4 Pro, but it’s also completely free-to-play!
I mean, again, just look at some of these images! Playing AAA titles like Red Dead Redemption II or Spider-Man on the PS4 Pro connected up to the LG E6 is just breathtaking and, for someone who always chases the best possible audio and visual fidelity, it has been incredibly satisfying to see both my newer and older games alike looking better than ever before.
- Treasure, tears and triumph: why you’ll love Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Sony has really been knocking it out of the park with exclusives on PS4, and God of War is one such example that’s a treat for the eyes on PS4 Pro.
Because if you pick up PS4 Pro, 2160p visuals are something that you will be getting use to. Indeed, in addition to Sony confirming that by the end of 2016 more than 45 titles will be optimised for PS4 Pro, making them run smoother and look better, every title we put in the system while reviewing the PlayStation 4 Pro ran crisper and looked better — let me tell you, Kratos and Arthur Morgan never looked so good!
With the huge number of Freaker hordes on-screen, having that extra performance grunt from PS4 Pro really makes a difference to Days Gone.
A good example is Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, a title that was released months ago. Since its release it has been patched to handle HDR and, despite me totally used to its already impressive visuals from two playthroughs on the original PS4, I was still wowed to see this title turned up to 11 and firing on some jacked-up new hardware.
NetherRealm Studios managed to get MK11 running at 60fps on Switch, so you can imagine how well it runs on PS4 Pro.
When talking to people up-close, facial and armour details — such as residual rain drops lingering on Jensen’s shoulders — were crystal clear, while as soon as you stepped outside into the dark and artificially lit streets of Prague, all pockets of neon blue, red and white, the colour depth and contrast was just stunning. You only have to look at some of these pictures, which as I’ve said don’t even give you the full experience, to see what the PS4 Pro can do in partnership with one of the best TVs can do.
As a PS4 exclusive, you can enjoy the added benefits of HDR when playing through the wonderful wilds of Horizon: Zero Dawn.
Now look, could you technically get a better visual experience on PC? As ever, the answer is of course yes, however you would have to spend thousands to surpass the fantastic fidelity offered by the PS4 Pro. The point is that graphics like this, where you look at the screen and can’t see where compromises have had to be made, is not the norm for console gaming and, right now, the PlayStation 4 Pro is the only system I have gamed on that does that.
Want to add a special PS4 Pro to your gaming setup? How about this Glacier White design packaged with Destiny 2?
Of course, the real test for the PS4 Pro’s hardware will come when we see upcoming AAA games launch and witness how it deals with more demanding particle effects and if more games can run closer to 60fps than 30fps, however if it builds in anyway on what it delivered during our testing, then that entry price point would become even more justifiable.
With PS4 Pro running beside it, PSVR performs even better. Love VR on console? This is the machine for you.
So, in terms of raw graphical fidelity, the PS4 Pro delivers. But what about user experience and the overall package? Before progressing any further in this PlayStation 4 Pro review, we suggest you quickly check out T3’s PS4 Pro unboxing video.
- PS4 Slim review: it’s the same gaming platform you’re used to, and that’s no bad thing
Metro Exodus has proved to be one of the best games of 2019 so far, and it looks and runs even better on PS4 Pro.
As aforementioned, the PS4 Pro — as the Slim did before it — is the same gaming platform that you are used to if you are PlayStation 4 gamer. The interface is the same, the store is the same and the feature set the same. The two major differences in package and speed are, firstly, the PS4 Pro comes with a 1TB hard drive — a smart decision as it keeps it in touch of the Xbox One S in terms of storage — and, secondly, everything else about the system boot and UI runs faster and smoother.
Want to take a drive down nostalgia avenue with your PS4 Pro? Give Crash Team Racing — Nitro Fueled for a spin.
Boot, from a rest state, is not almost instantaneous, with every time we went to power on the system, the PS4 Pro ready by the time the screen powered on. One button press to login to a profile and the XrossMediaBar is instantly available, with sub-menus and games slickly navigable. Yes, the overall speed increase in the UI is small, however we were surprised to see that it does actually make a noticeable difference, with no micro-waits while a section or title’s extended details loaded, or stuttering as you opened or closed menus.
Driveclub might be a little long in the tooth, but it’s still a very pretty game to play with the added power of PS4 Pro.
It may sound like we are being finickity here, but in our experience the devil is always in the detail and when you use a product everyday, its flaws (small as they may be) become more noticeable with familiarity, starting to grate over time. Luckily, the PS4 Pro has squashed these, with the console’s UI smoother and more pain free to operate in than ever.
Also, in terms of package, we feel it quite relevant to mention that the PS4 Pro does not come with a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player. Whether or not you think that is a blow will depend on what you want from a system such as this and, also, whether you also own a 4K Ultra HD-packing Xbox One S.
- Dishonored 2: T3 interviews Christophe Carrier, Arkane’s Level Design Director, about the red-hot new title
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice demands razor sharp performance, and PS4 Pro delivers when you need it most.
So, as you will have guessed by now, we really like the PS4 Pro here at T3 Towers. As you’ve hopefully seen throughout this review, as well as right here by gazing at Zlatan’s heroic visage, games look absolutely fantastic on Sony’s new, super-powered console.
There are caveats, however. Firstly, as mentioned right at the beginning of this review, unless you have the TV setup to make the most out of the PS4 Pro (or intend to upgrade soon), then it is not a worthwhile upgrade. This system should only be considered if you are invested in 4K. And secondly, if you are already invested in 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, then this system would have to sit alongside a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player such as the well-reviewed Panasonic DMP-UB900, or the only other consoles on the market capable of playing them, the Xbox One S, and the Xbox One X .
For those, however, who purely hunger for the best possible audio-visual console gaming experience on the market today, then PS4 Pro is unmistakably for you.
- Scariest games EVER: terrifying titles you need to play
While the DualShock 4 hasn’t changed, it’s still a great little peripheral when playing your favourite PS4 Pro games.
As Prometheus once crept into the workshop of the Greek gods to steal their power, so too does the PS4 Pro with PC gaming. For less than the price of a gaming PC’s 4K-capable GPU alone, the Pro delivers 2160p, HDR gaming in the most accessible plug-and-play way possible. It boots up almost instantaneously, has the best overall gaming ecosystem on the market today and, thanks to everything being smoother and faster, is a joy to use.
It’s not for everyone, with PS4 Pro almost certainly being overkill for those without a 4K TV installed, however if you are already equipped for 2160p, HDR gaming, or plan to be very soon, then PlayStation 4 Pro is a must buy.
- The very best new PlayStation 4 and PS4 Pro deals
Sony PS4 Pro: News, Updates
June 23, 2019 — As with any hardware that’s been out for a while, PS4 Pro’s price is slowly starting to creep down as more bundles are simultaneously introduced.
So if you want to pick up a 1TB PS4 Pro with Red Dead Redemption II, you can nab it for only £349 from Amazon . That’s dropped by almost £25 in a couple of months.
If you are prepared to buy a system used, though, then you can knock something around £100 off that new price, with consoles available right now on eBay for around £249.99. There are plenty of special edition PS4 Pro consoles available on eBay, too, right now, with a 1TB God of War edition and the very attractive Glacier White edition also popping up here and there.
There’s already been a few price drops now we’re past E3 2019, and there’s likely to be when we hit Black Friday and Christmas, too. We don’t know when PS5 is going to officially launch, but with Microsoft targeting a Holiday Season 2020 release for Xbox Scarlet, we wouldn’t be surprised to see Sony do something similar.
Prices are likely to drop even more — especially on Amazon Prime Day 2019 — in the run-up to this, so keep your eyes glued to T3’s best PS4 deals guide when the official announcement comes as it will be a great time to pick up some bargains.
- T3 Smackdown: Xbox One X vs PS4 Pro
Sony PlayStation 4 Pro: Price Comparison
687 Amazon customer reviews
☆☆☆☆☆
No price information
Check Amazon
powered by
Deputy Editor for T3.com, Rob has been writing about computing, gaming, mobile, home entertainment technology, toys (specifically Lego and board games), smart home and more for over 15 years. You can find Rob’s work in magazines, bookazines and online, as well as on podcasts and videos, too. Outside of his work Rob is passionate about motorbikes, skiing/snowboarding and team sports, with football and cricket two favourites. Feel free to contact him with any related products, events, and announcements.
Buy now or wait for the PS5?
Why you can trust Pocket-lint
(Pocket-lint) — Although Microsoft makes a song and dance about its powerful Xbox One X console, and justifiably so, it was Sony that beat its main rival to the 4K punch, with this, the PlayStation 4 Pro.
It is capable of playing games with resolutions up to 4K and with high dynamic range (HDR) visuals. It is also considerably better specced than the standard PS4, meaning that it improves many gaming experiences and, even, the user interface – adding speed and smoothness to an already decent platform.
But, with a major, albeit more expensive, direct rival available in the Xbox One X, does to the PS4 Pro have enough to warrant your wonga? And with the PS5 confirmed as arriving for ‘holiday 2020’, does it make more sense to sit it out and save up for that next extravaganza?
Our quick take
Caveats aside, there is absolutely no doubt that the PlayStation 4 Pro is the best PlayStation. Its graphical nous is on a par with the more expensive Xbox One X (well, most of the time) and, if you have the right TV for 4K and HDR, then what developers are eking out of this box is something special.
We wouldn’t imagine anyone without a capable 4K HDR TV will be that interested, although you can get the faster frame-rate benefit in some games.
But if you’re really dedicated to your gaming, it might be worth updating your telly anyway. And if you do, the PS4 Pro is no doubt the console to match it with – especially given the high quality titles that continue to launch year on year.
All that said, with the PS5 around the corner, you might want to get that 4K TV in place and hang back for the next-next-gen console. As we suspect that will be something truly special in the graphics department.
4.5 stars — Pocket-lint recommended
For
- 4K HDR gaming
- Well supported with enhanced games
- Provides better experience for PSVR
Against
- A beast in looks and size
- No 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray playback
- Only a 1TB HDD which will fill rapidly
squirrel_138763
Is it worth an upgrade?
- 4K resolution and higher frame-rates for many games
The answers to whether the Pro is worth considering over a standard PS4 really depends on what you want from your gaming and what home entertainment kit you have (or, at least, plan to buy).
Pocket-lint
In more simple terms, if you don’t have a TV capable of serving 4K resolution and high dynamic range (HDR) content and have no imminent plans to update, you really don’t need the PS4 Pro.
If, however, you are 4K HDR-ready then this is a formidable games console, regardless of what they are doing over at team Xbox.
Design
- Dimensions: 305 x 275 x 53mm
- 1TB hard drive (user upgradable)
- Optical Blu-ray drive (not UHD Blu-ray)
Although the PS4 Pro follows a similar design aesthetic to its smaller, slimmer brother, it is pretty out there on its own in looks. Presumably to house the extra tech or, more accurately, the airflow required to dissipate the heat, the Pro is massive. It’s even considerably bigger than the original launch PlayStation 4, which was hardly the smallest. It’s still not as big as the PS5 looks like it will be, though.
Pocket-lint
PlayStation players used to poke fun at their original Xbox One owning peers, citing that it looked like a Betamax player from the 80s.
Now Microsoft fans can get their own back. Not only are the Xbox One S and Xbox One X small and sleek these days, but the PS4 Pro looks like it’s not just been beaten by the ugly stick, but was shot in the face by the ugly shotgun and run over by the ugly steamroller.
The sandwich-style, three deck casing does nothing to hide its girth and the only blessing is that it can lurk in a TV cabinet, mostly hidden thanks to the matte black finish.
We do like the light strip around the front, to show what mode the console is in – which is missing on the standard PS4 having featured on the original model – and the latest DualShock 4 comes bundled, the one with the additional light bar on the touchpad.
But it’s what’s inside that really counts. The Pro’s appeal is in its components – and although it has been surpassed by the One X, the internal tech makes a massive difference for what you can get out of it.
Specifications
- AMD Jaguar x86-64 octa-core CPU (2.1GHz)
- 4.
2 teraflops of GPU power
- 4.
- 8GB DDR5 RAM (218GB/s), plus 1GB DDR3 RAM for system apps
As we’ve said above, the Pro isn’t as powerful as the Xbox One X in spec terms, although it is a bit cheaper and trounces anything else on the market in the console space.
The Pro’s CPU is similar to that in the standard PS4, but has been clocked at 2.1GHz (over the PS4’s 1.6GHz) so is around a third faster. The RAM is also faster – there is 8GB of GDDR5 RAM, as before, but it has a bandwidth of 218GB/s. There’s also an additional 1GB RAM for system applications to not interfere with the core, which allows develops to use more oomph during processes.
Pocket-lint
Finally, and most significantly, the graphics processing is seriously upgraded. The new AMD Radeon GPU has 4.20 teraflops to play with – considerably more than double the power of the graphics chipset in the standard PS4.
That’s what drives the PS4 Pro’s headline features and its main raison d’être: this is a console entirely designed for higher fidelity graphics and better image representation.
It plays the exact same games as any other PlayStation 4, with exactly the same user interface and control system, but it runs them better.
That’s because it is capable of presenting a game’s graphics in 4K – not always native 4K, as we’ll explain in a bit – up to the required 2160p to make the most of that shiny new 4K TV.
More importantly, perhaps, is that it does so with high dynamic range (HDR) playback. The combination of higher resolutions, brightness and a much wider colour gamut makes for some stunning visuals. There are many games that have been patched to offer enhanced graphics for PS4 Pro and the difference in quality is palpable.
4K HDR games
Different developers utilise the PS4 Pro’s extended technical abilities in different ways. You even get different options in the same games. For example, you can play some titles in 4K at 30 frames per second or opt to stick to the original 1080p at a higher frame rate of 60fps. The latter is smoother, of course, but the former is crisper and has more detail.
The HDR element is generally constant regardless.
Pocket-lint
HDR is arguably an even better tech than 4K, in terms of visual impact at least. Most games we’ve seen with HDR enabled simply look stunning. They use lighting effects beautifully and if you have a TV capable of displaying both the wider colourfield and higher brightness, game graphics with HDR often explode with colour and tingle the back of your eyes.
It’s worth noting that other PS4 hardware (i.e. not the Pro) is also capable of HDR presentation. But these earlier consoles can’t throw the extra detail into the mix, nor the extra frames. That’s where the PS4 Pro comes into its own.
Checkerboard 4K explained
Of course, considering the GPU isn’t as powerful as a 4K PC graphics card (which would set you back much more than the entire Pro) developers invariably cut a few corners when rendering at 4K resolution. Many games use checkerboard 4K rendering, which is better than upscaling, but not quite native.
Pocket-lint
A full Ultra-HD 4K resolution (3840 x 2160) contains almost 8.3-million pixels, which is four times the 2.07-million displayed by a Full HD (1920 x 1080) TV. To render every single pixel independently, the amount of data flowing through the processors would be enormous. Instead, developers can cleverly utilise checkboard 4K rendering, which takes a small 2×2 block of pixels and extrapolates it to a 4×4 equivalent, thereby upscaling the image but adding extra detail in the process. Many developers adopt this dynamic scaling system.
However, there are several native 4K games, such as The Last of Us Remastered. And since that major launch there have been many more, too, as developers have gotten their teeth into the PS4 Pro in more detail. Now you can play Horizon: Zero Dawn, Hitman, Rise of the Tomb Raider and many more in that top-notch res.
Does PSVR benefit?
PlayStation VR is another beneficiary to the extra processing power on offer.
Rather than add HDR or 4K resolutions, neither of which are displayable on the headset, virtual reality developers can up the frame rates of the games, improve in-game draw distances or details, or generally enhance textures. We played Farpoint on a PS4 Pro, for example, and it looks better than the standard version.
Create the perfect gaming setup with the Govee Glide Hexa Pro Light Panels By Pocket-lint Promotion ·
These panels are perfect for making your gaming setup unique.
- Best Sony PS VR games you must play: Farpoint, Batman and more
What’s missing?
Less positive is how the PS4 Pro works as a media player. You get Netflix and Amazon Video at 4K with HDR support, which is great, but there’s less good news about 4K Blu-ray playback.
We’re sorry to say that the PS4 Pro is not capable of playing 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays at all.
Not only is this baffling considering Sony is a main driver of 4K video content and was a big proponent of the new disc format at launch, it hands a considerable advantage to the console’s current major rivals, the Xbox One S and One X.
That said, the UHD Blu-ray market hasn’t exactly been successful, so not having it here isn’t the be all and end all – this is a games console after all.
Pocket-lint
As we’re handing out negatives, we’re also dismayed that Sony settled on a 1TB hard drive for its Pro console edition. Considering many games are weighing in at over 80GB these days, with the likes of Call of Duty: Warzone hogging huge amounts of space, plus with 4K updates, you’ll soon fill your drive. You could only store around 16 triple-A games on it, for example.
Indeed, we upgraded our drive for a 2TB 2.5-inch Samsung equivalent for under £100 extra. Thankfully, the process to swap drives is quick and simple, the longest part is downloading and reinstalling the system software.
But surely for a true pro gamer machine you’d want the very best already in place?
- How to upgrade your PS4 hard drive
squirrel_widget_138763
To recap
A fantastic 4K HDR games console that has a full year ahead of any similarly capable rival. It would have been nice to have 4K Blu-ray playback and a larger hard drive, but PS4 games look distinctly better when played on a Pro and, for gamers, that’s all that matters.
Writing by Rik Henderson. Editing by Stuart Miles.
PlayStation 4 Pro: testing problematic games from Digital Foundry
Platforms:
PS4
Categories:
Interesting
Tags:
Battlefield 1
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
PS4 Pro
Digital Foundry
Watch Dogs 2
Skyrim
The Last of Us Remastered
FIFA 17
PlayStation 4 Pro
Source
Games in material
- Comments
- Forum
We continue to test the PlayStation 4 Pro within the walls of Digital Foundry and so far our impressions are very positive.
Especially on what the result is when you connect the console to 4k -screen. But in terms of performance, we’ve found several games that run worse than the standard PlayStation 4 , and we assume it’s because of the higher resolution. These results don’t match Sony’s developer specifications, so to be honest, we didn’t expect to see this issue in the final code of these games.
This does not affect all games for Pro, and the severity of this problem depends on the specific game and the scene taking place in it. However, in general, in games such as: Skyrim , The Last of Us , Mantis Burn Racing performance will be better on standard model PlayStation 4 . [ UPDATE 11/19/16 6:24pm: Mantis Burn Racing has received a new update and now runs smoothly as well]. In Deus Ex: Mankind Divided , things are somewhat more complicated: in some scenes we experience drawdowns, while in others we have more stable performance than on the base version of PS4 .
When connected to a 1080p TV, the Pro downscales from 4k and offers better picture quality thanks to SSAA anti-aliasing. However, in those projects where performance has suffered, the owners of the Pro will not be able to do anything in order to somehow get a more stable frame rate. In fact, the standard PlayStation 4 runs smoother in these games, at the cost of slightly less beautiful graphics overall. nine0003
Probably the biggest surprise for us was The Last of Us Remastered by Naughty Dog . The team has earned such a high reputation not only for being one of the most advanced developers in the industry, but also for their excellent optimization skills. To be honest, we were excited to see The Last of Us on the PS4 Pro . You get 3200×1800 resolution in 60fps mode or native 4k in 30fps mode.
Also, there is very good support for HDR technology — one of the best we’ve seen so far. So if you have a 4k- display, you gain a lot more, but at a loss of 2-5fps in 60fps- mode.
Rich describes the situation with PS4 Pro . Most games show visual improvements without any negative consequences, but some of them experience significant performance drops that call into question the whole point of a «supercharged» console. nine0105
Also when you connect the Pro to a 1080p TV, you have the HDR turned off and the increased resolution redirected to improve anti-aliasing through downsampling. In this case, losing fps is clearly not worth it and we would like the game to run as smoothly as possible.
And frankly, we shouldn’t be discussing any compromises at all with the PlayStation 4 Pro . Our gaming experience must be protected thanks to the technical requirements of the company Sony , which apply to all developers without exception. All games under Pro should run at the same or better frame rates regardless of the increased resolution or any other additional features. The Last of Us Remastered is the most obvious example, as for the most part, any drawdowns on the standard PS4 get noticeably worse on the Pro . At the same time, most of the time the game runs in stable 60fps on a regular PlayStation 4 , while Pro may experience drawdowns of fps .
The Last of Us Remastered stands out because the number of frames very often differs from the base version. The rest of the projects show only slight fluctuations of fps during the game and, for the most part, the performance is at the same level.
For example, Skyrim works very similar to the standard version, it also has a limit of 30fps , and fps mostly stick around this mark. But on top of that, we get improved foliage, draw distance, and four times the resolution of the standard PS4 , which means true native 4k . However, in heavy scenes with a lot of alpha effects, the frame rate may drop, while on the base system this is not observed.
SSAA for PS4 Pro adds an improvement in image detail, but the anti-aliasing improvement is actually quite hard to notice, as AA native anti-aliasing was very cleverly implemented from the start. Although the picture still looks a little washed out, so again we have a choice between 1080p and 4k . We prefer to play the Pro on the Ultra HD HD displays and enjoy the increased resolution and improved picture clarity while sacrificing some of the performance.
nine0025 But on a standard 1080p TV, it is better to play on a regular PlayStation 4 model , which keeps a more stable frame rate and, in general, provides a smoother game . But again, we shouldn’t have this problem at all in any game on the PlayStation 4 Pro .
Analysis The Last of Us Remastered . The volume describes the essence of the performance issue on the PS4 Pro .
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is a very interesting game. After testing the first mission in cut-scenes on the game engine, we got unusual results. The high resolution mode is based on dynamically changing resolution, which is subsequently scaled up to 4k using a checkerboard rendering method. The Prague scene is known for its poor performance on the standard PlayStation 4 model, while on the Pro we get some improvements — higher frame rates and the elimination of screen tearing.
But, judging entirely by the entire dead mission, then, in places, we are seeing a drop in frame rate by Pro sometimes even up to 20fps which is absolutely unacceptable for this console. The first mission is full of alpha effects, which drastically reduce the performance of the Pro version of the game, which cannot be said about the base PS4 , where the frame rate is firmly kept around the mark of 30fps .
We will continue to test various games for PlayStation 4 Pro and will try to provide you with the results for each as soon as possible. Before that, we were limited to having a console. Now you can see the first tests, as well as our impressions of games at YouTube channel Digital Foundry . Even though only a fraction of the games are affected by this problem, we are sure that the Sony needs to start solving it as soon as possible.
We shouldn’t see any downgrade of games on the PlayStation 4 Pro compared to the standard model. We are well aware that launching a new system is always difficult for game developers, but reducing the technical requirements is a bad idea, especially given what this system is really capable of. The performance of the game is closely intertwined with the quality of the gameplay, so PS4 Pro should have similar or even better performance than the standard system. All in accordance with the technical requirements.
While we are very concerned, we are clear that this is only the first introduction of the developers to the new system. We’ve already seen enough designs that match or even exceed the performance of the standard model while adding visual enhancements. However, a deeper analysis shows that even some 1080p projects optimized for Pro have problems. Rise of the Tomb Raider The offers various modes of operation with 1080p TVs and still looks great in 4k .
But after a promising start to the game, we found that more demanding levels had performance issues. Take a look at this screenshot. The base PS4 runs at stable 30fps with perfect frame sequence. AT PS4 Pro version 4k mode as well as enhanced graphics mode have very poor frame order and run at a lower frame rate than the original console. Enhanced performance mode is faster, but it still has the same problem — the frames match worse than in the standard 1080p30 version PS4 .
True, it’s worth emphasizing that most games work as well as they should, bringing visual improvements and stable frame rates, but we still would like to be able to use the full potential unlocked CPU and GPU in base mode PS4 . Well, or at least be able to play with a more stable frame rate. As for The Last of Us , for example, we want to see a 1080p60 mode that guarantees a stable frame rate throughout the game (maybe reducing the resolution from 1800p to 1440p would help?).
Not every patch for Pro should bring global visual improvements, first of all, it should ensure that all Pro games will run with the same or even better performance. Otherwise, the very essence of the Pro version of the console disappears.
We reported this to Sony and received this comment: « We are aware of this issue and are currently investigating it «.
UPDATE 11/15/16 9:20am: We got great performance results from PS4 Pro in games like: Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare , Battlefield 1 , FIFA 17 , but unfortunately our latest testing of Watch Dogs 2 showed mediocre results.
Watch Dogs 2 looks great on the move, but has slower performance than on a standard console.
This is the main problem.
Most of the time the game keeps stable 30fps and shows excellent picture in 1800p with checkerboard upscaling. However, performance stability is definitely an issue with this game. Periodically, there are various kinds of frame breaks, the so-called screen tearing, as well as a drop in performance to an unacceptable level while driving around the city. During the chase with the police, various kinds of alpha effects appear, which further exacerbate the situation. Surrounded by police cars, as well as helicopter spotlights, the PS4 Pro begins to noticeably slow down and cause screen tearing while the standard PS4 keeps stable 30fps .
For a console marketed as the High-End equivalent to the standard model, it is simply unacceptable to have lower performance and demonstrate such a result. This is discouraging. The bottom line is that owners of the PS4 Pro with 1080p screens may well get a nice improvement in image quality thanks to super-sampling, but any performance degradation under such circumstances can only raise doubts and the need for a more powerful console.
nine0003
Author: Richard Leadbetter
Translation: SpykeSIK
Editing: ACE .
Subscribe to our Telegram channel, where we publish what does not fall into the news feed, and follow us online:
Telegram channel
Google News
Yandex
News
Yandex Zen
nine0003
Latest news
-
12/18/2022
Epic Games Store Christmas giveaway: 4 out of 15 free games now available -
12/18/2022
Best Soundtrack & Best Game with Outstanding Story: The first nominees for the 2022 Steam Awards have been announcednine0020
-
12/18/2022
Sony: 2023 will be a big year for PlayStation 5 -
12/18/2022
New remake? Capcom trademarks Resident Evil Director’s Cutnine0020
-
12/18/2022
Death Stranding 2 doesn’t seem to be bringing back one of the original characters -
12/18/2022
Microsoft files patent for personalized in-game ads for Xboxnine0020
| Battlefield 4’s fast-paced online shooter, on the other hand, delivers consistent, fluid 60fps without stuttering during a 64-player match, which is not uncommon in base mode. Mirror’s Edge Catalyst, which uses a similar Frostbite engine, starts at a steady 60fps, never dropping below that. Boost mode in heavy scenes of Battlefield 4 In racing games aimed at 60 fps, the increase also varies greatly in different projects. In Project Cars, it is 35-38%. Playing Assetto Corsa on the base PS4 shows a very unstable frame rate, and the Boost mode sets it to the required level of 60 frames / s. In F1 2016, the new mode allows you to achieve an increase of 7-8 fps. nine0003 PS4 version of BioShock Infinite also produces a smoother picture in Boost mode As a result of reviews of a number of games, journalists made a preliminary conclusion: those games in which the graphics accelerator acts as a limiting factor show relatively low growth — at best 14%. Project Cars sees one of the most impressive results in Overdrive At the same time, games that lack CPU performance get a much bigger boost, with PS4 Pro’s 8-core CPU frequency boosted by 31%. In Assassin’s Creed Unity, performance grows almost linearly: instead of the minimum frame rate of 22 frames / s, the game produces at least 29fps The impressive result of Project Cars is probably more of an anomaly and combines both CPU and GPU gains. Killzone Shadow Fall is an example of a well-optimized game that gives a gain of exactly 14% of Boost mode unpacks the resources necessary for a particular project. 
|
It seems that the resources of half the GPU (the PS4 Pro has 36 compute units versus 18 for the original console) are simply not used, but the operating frequency is increased to a maximum of 911 MHz versus 800 MHz for the base PS4 — this gives a relatively small increase of 14%. It is possible that in future implementations of the Boost mode, Sony will begin to use the full power of the GPU of the new console in at least some older games. 