Since I’ve gotten mySteam DeckOLED, it’s become the console (I’m using that term very loosely here) I use the most. It allows me to play games on the couch, in bed, on the plane, on the bus – I could go on. If I’ve decided to play a game, there’s a good chance I’m checking for Steam Deck compatibility before deciding which platform to buy it on. In all the time I’ve had it, I’ve never wished for a newer version.
To be fair, I have the OLED, and not the original LCD model. This is the most recently released version, and I got it because the display is better and it has far more battery life. It isn’t perfect, but runs triple-A games just fine, and while I’m sure we would all love a Steam Deck with infinite battery life and even higher resolution graphics, the OLED was already a significant improvement on the first version.
The PS5 Pro Was A Step Too Far
I could say the same for myPS5, the console I default to for triple-A games with more demands on hardware. The console is a powerhouse, games look incredible, and unlike myPS4, it doesn’t sound like an airplane taking off in my living room every time I boot up an open world RPG.
And yet, whileValvehas explicitly stated thatit will not be releasing a new Steam Deck every yearbecause it’s “not really fair to your customers to come out with something so soon that’s only incrementally better”, Sonyisreleasing a PS5 Pro that is, by all accounts, it’s only incrementally better.
Judging fromthe details we’ve learnedabout The Last of Us Part 1 and Alan Wake 2’s PS5 Pro enhancements, the Pro will scale resolutions to 4K with PSSR and simultaneously reach a frame rate of 60 frames per second. For most people, this will be entirely unnoticeable, an almost insubstantial upgrade that, at a mind-boggling price point of $699,most people aren’t going to purchase at all.
In fact, the reaction to the PS5 Pro’s announcement wasdownright hostile, with fans furious over the price and the fact that there are barely any games on the platform thatwilltake advantage of this slight tech upgrade.
To be fair to Sony, the PS5 was released in 2020. The PS5 Pro will be launched this November, in 2024. That’s not ayearlyrelease, and yet that doesn’t make it any less egregious a product – the PS5 is barely dated and doesn’t even have that many big exclusives. Sony is no stranger to mid-gen tech refreshes – it also released a PS4 Pro, but that console, at least, was a substantial upgrade necessary to support more demanding games. The upgrades that the PS5 Pro offers aren’t nearly as drastic or as necessary.
Valve Isn’t Fleecing Its Customers, And Sony Shouldn’t Either
According to Valve designer Lawrence Yang, Valve wants to “wait for a generational leap in compute without sacrificing battery life before we ship the real second generation of Steam Deck”. That is, of course, the way that companiesshouldbe approaching hardware releases. To release a mid-gen refresh at the PS5 Pro’s price point with barely any technological improvements is ridiculous.
Of course, they’re just supplying the product. There are customers who will still buy it, and it’s not up to me to decide whether those people feel like they’re being ripped off or not. But the whole thing is just deeply anti-consumer, creating demand for a more expensive product without all that much use. I can’t help but think that Valve is doing the right thing here, and yet this is just the bare minimum. Once again, capitalism wins, and we lose.
