Reaction: Should Xbox Produce A Mid-Gen Upgrade If Sony Launches 'PS5 Pro'?

No, too early in my opinion, for both consoles.

Big fat no for both. Ps5 literally says on it's box "8K supported".

way too early the mid gen was in my memory launch almost three years before the end of the last gen, i hope not , i'm on series s and i want to see it's full potential realised.

I mean i am a power snob, so i would buy it, do i need it? Not really seeing as the Series X hasn’t even been push to any limits yet. Once the software starts to come out, then maybe we will see areas a Pro could improve. What i would like to see is a new Elite 3 or a new Xbox Controller to match Sony’s haptics. Not saying we will get that in 2023 or early 2024, but the timing is right for an Elite 3. Console wise they machines don’t need to push new TV tech like the PS4 and Xbox one did. Be better to save that time and money for PS6 and the next Xbox. I’d rather we go back to 6 year console cycles as all the games will scale and be BC.

We have yet to scratch the surface of features to utilize the current hardware. It would be a mistake from either company until they can produce games based on the current technology. It would come across to consumers that purchased the current consoles. It would show as though they made a mistake and the current generation were just a bunch of Beta testers that paid $500 to participate in.

I don’t think it’s needed. They haven’t tapped into the full potential of the series systems yet. Then having three different current gen systems with different amounts of power, rumors have it devs have a hard time getting split screen co op to work between the series S and X. (Again it’s a rumor) I think adding an upgrade will make it harder. Also, would it be two different upgrades? One with a disk drive and one without?

And I thought they did the upgrade last gen mid way due to the demand for something. Was it 4k or HD? I can’t remember. I’m not a tech person but there was another reason for the push of the mid gen upgrade.

@Green-Bandit
Totally agree give us a good few games first that push the power of the existing consoles as they are.
Power doesn’t always make good business, look at my little Switch doing ok.

My feeds are all ready filling with weird gloating via PSVR2 Quest 2 comparison screenshots and videos. Letting Sony be the only one with a midgen upgrade will be silly.

That being said I hope neither dose one this time. I loved my One X but it's partially responsible for the whole Cyberpunk mess and we're already seeing some problems with the Series S. I'd hate to see another game release look fantastic on the X2 and X but have content cut because it won't run on the Series S.

No. We haven't had a single game that's utilized the current hardware properly and folks are still saying it's hard to find an X in certain regions. Also xcloud is built upon the series x, they gonna just replace all of that with the new server blades already?

Sony always looked like it would be more likely to do a mod gen upgrade but I don't believe they will be doing that anytime soon either. They also haven't come close to utilizing it's power and are still heavily supporting the PS4.

I'd say in 3 years we might see something new or in Xboxs case they will likely plan to use the cloud to overcome any hardware shortages to extend the life of current hardware.

No, neither Microsoft or Sony should release these mid-cycle upgrades. The previous gen refreshes made sense because the PS4 and XB1 were slightly underwhelming spec-wise to begin with. PS5 and XSX haven't even begun to scratch the surface on what's possible. And at the rate things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if cross-gen releases are still common by the time a PS5 Pro does release.

Developers aren’t even using the power of the ps5 and XSX yet. What’s the use of a pro model beyond native 8K (which is barely a thing) or 120fps at 4K (which should be possible on the base models if optimization gets better)?

It's a no from me. We need more series x games and ps5 games. Not more consoles

Still want to know what price it would be - their PS5 is more expensive now with its 'current' specs and would need to really add 'something' to make a noticeable difference which won't be 'cheap. The PS4 Pro had more than double the GPU compute but was hampered by its CPU/RAM just to 'boost' resolution. CPU would need a boost and GPU a boost, maybe a RAM bandwidth Boost and a bigger 2TB Storage - But what cost?

They would be better off making a new Handheld PS4/5 to compete with Nintendo than make a Console that's likely to be over $6/700 and be taking a LOSS on every unit sold...

Time will tell of course but we will see...

Still feels like the xbox one generation is going on. There's nothing which screams next gen. So I don't see why a pro version of these consoles would be needed? What gap would it even fill? Except greed in these corporate companies

Pro models would be absolutely ridiculous right now given as how neither of the consoles have yet to actually use their full potential.

I mean, what bottlenecks have we really seen? Sure, games aren't running at native 4K/60, but with upscaling technology being so good, it's not necessary.

Current-gen really has yet to truly "start" and there are already talks of mid-gen refresh? So dumb.

Hell no. The series X is yet to get a game to justify it's existence, let alone another console on top of that. The same goes for Sony too.

@Dezzy70 i agree, i mean power matters to a certain degree. I would not be mad at a more powerful switch 2. But in the Xbox and PS5 case, there are few games on either that scream we are maxed out and need more power. Would more power give us better RT, frames and textures , sure it would, but is that enough for the average player to spend more or wait to upgrade? I don’t think so, i am in the small crowd of players that will pay to get more power on console, so it targets me, but i am a small percent of console owners and shoppers. Get more games out and let the more casual players ask for more power before investing all the R&D time and money it takes to make these. That time and cash could be going to the next gen.

Categorically, no! They can barely justify the existence of the current ones as is.

Devs haven't really pushed the current version of the series x yet imo.

They have added a lot of fancy effect such as RT for example but that's all they are fancy effects. Some are still struggling to balance that against performance (looking at those 30 FPS games, for shame!)

I am not sure changing specs again and then splitting development between potential new Xbox version and also still supporting current series S/X (I will assume last gen is dropped by this point) is going to do anything but add to workload and increase delays. I mean some devs are apparently struggling with just the current two so adding a potential third, Yikes!

Everyone in the comments section saying no to it, yet I guarantee you everyone here would buy it day 1.

I won't be buying any mid gen consoles for either

It's in their best interest to maintain the position of having the most powerful console available and the most affordable. If the series x is no longer most powerful then they should respond.

Wasn’t it just last week a developer was whining about the S causing issues with X games coming out …. So perhaps we are all last gen already….. or Sony has no cloud success so they are dependent on a console ATM

The only reason for an upgrade would be for VR which is still niche and I seriously doubt if it'll ever replace flat screen gaming as the core experience. It's great for certain games, rubbish for most. And it makes a lot of people feel pretty sick. First time I used a VR headset for an FPS it made me feel wrong for a couple of hours afters. Not good when I usually don't suffer with motion sickness.

120fps is a nice but not as game changing as 30 to 60fps. Native 4K or upscaled 8k might be nice but there's nothing yet to really justify an upgrade for flatscreen gaming as early as next year especially as 8k panels might not be in widespread use by then.

Too early for both, but xbox will still have to develop for the low benchmark of the S, which seems to be the highest attach rate for the new console

Problem of this generation is that they borrowed the concept of 60FPS and 120FPS gaming from PC space. But in PC world you have highly-powered GPUs and NVIDIA DLSS which allows you to have high graphical settings and a high framerate.
In these consoles the 60FPS choice dictates a big hit to visuals, and many gamers don't find 30FPS as an acceptable trade-off. Therefore we are in a bit of pickle here. Having consoles that can give you 2160p + raytracing at 60FPS is a tantalising prospect. For gamers obsessed with visual fidelity it is cool to have and it will find an audience. The real question is, with the rising costs of everything, what are they going to charge for it? 600? 700?
Also, just like base PS5 and Series X, it is a question of how much you are truly pushing it and using it well. Rather than how much raw power it has.

as everyone else said this gen feels like it's barely gotten started. It's going to be tough for MS and third parties too trying to develop across series s, x and a possibly more powerful console. To be fair i'm sure i'd buy it but i dont think it's necessary

I am going to be a bit different and say that it is needed.

Primarily because of ray-tracing. Current gen consoles are struggling to hit performance targets with ray-traced features. As ray-traced lighting becomes more the standard, it is going to get even worse. Granted, not everyone cares about that but many do.

Also, the predicted date is the end of next year over 18 months from now so of course the situation will change before now and then.

I agree with @BrilliantBill that there is a market for such a console.

There isn’t really anything like a next gen anymore. What we see now is upgrades after upgrades. The days of next gen that we saw with 16bit to 32 bit and so on are long gone. These kid cycle upgrades are not really necessary and this time around not at all. Let’s just focus on the games.

@BrilliantBill i agree with your post for sure. The consoles want 60 frames but they are taking hits elsewhere to achieve it. Hence why if Sony and Microsoft came out with Pro models i would sell mine off and upgrade. I know not many would, but i am a power snob and want it all, without having to build a PC. But not sure there is enough people like me that care enough this gen to make them worth the cost to development time to Sony and MS. I would for sure snag one and it would give some extra power for sure. Smaller less demanding titles would run PC high settings on Pro consoles i would assume with bigger demanding titles maybe landing on the higher middle to low high modes. Certainly not ultra settings.

I would rather have more special editions like the X for Halo. I hope they do that for Starfield.

Think they will ,both are not capable of 4k @60 at high settings. both MS and Sony have been misleading on what the current gen boxs are capable of.
PC gaming sets the bench mark and at the moment is way ahead of the consoles , even a mid gen upgrade wont get close to what nvidea is currently putting out never mind what they will be releasing in 2024.

sony desperately needs "PS5 Pro" because PS5 is at least %20 weak for native 4K... On the other hand Xbox Series X is strong enough with it's CPU and GPU but somehow (some) games runs worse than weaker PS5 (such as Elden Ring and Calisto Protocol)
So... Microsoft does not really need new console but, sony needs it, as it is the weaker hand... Therefore, Mİcrosoft can not stay idle after if they hear sony goes for "PS5 Pro"...
If one goes, other has to...
Besides, both needs larger size ssd (including xbox one s)...

If Sony does it? Of course but Microsoft knows it would pretty much mean the death of the Series S for next gen only games at that point. That would be very bad publicity for MS.
I don't game on PC so yes I do want Sony and MS to do a mid-gen console upgrades in 2024/2025

No.

Has any game pushed the series x yet? No, no it hasn't. Let's have this conversation In a few years time.

@KaijuKaiser The Xbox series x outperforms the PS5 in raw numbers other than transfer speed. Which is blindingly quick on the PS5. Mark Kerny knew what he was doing there. The xbox should be out performing the ps5, especially with multi platform games available at release on PC too. But I strongly believe the talent isn't there for bespoke optimisation of games and ports will be developed around the weaker specs of the PS5. The transfer speed will be the Trump card when the historically more successful PlayStations specification are being aligned with. The series S is a concern, clearly effecting modern day gaming production.

Why can't they release games explicitly for the series x? If it has to release on the series S then yes MS are going to fall way behind, as its way weaker than both the PS5 and xbox series x.

Remember how the fanboys gloated 24/7 when the PS4 could produce a whole '180' pixels more than the Xbox One with Sony even going as far as to claim "1080p makes you a better Gamer" ?
MS put a stop to that with the release of the One X which made Sony suddenly lose intrest in pixel counting or mentioning terraflops ever again, the Series X continued that theme.
The last thing you want is to go back to that kind of nonsense so yes MS should release a mid gen machine.

I really don't see the reason. Xbox One needed an upgrade because it was abnormally weak for an Xbox. Series X is a beast.
Besides, Xbox One X made sense because of 4K. What would an X Pro do better? Ray tracing?
I think they should focus on getting a disc less Series X out or a Stream only option.
In fact, when next gen comes Series S2 should be stream only or portable imo.
Playstation could release a Pro though.

I would say no.

Releasing a Xbox series pro is pointless Microsoft haven’t released anything that shows what the series x is capable of yet

What would be the point

Yes, give me graphics mode at 120fps with ray tracing in all these games that I'm turning down the graphics for frames on my series x. People pretending games right now aren't pushing the xsx hardware are delusional. It can only handle the most basic RT lighting and reflections compared to good Nvidia cards, and even then at a huge cost.

Nah, the Series X will still be the more powerful console regardless of what Sony does. Also, I don't believe consoles should be the main focus for Microsoft. I think they should continue to dominate the gaming industry with Game Pass. That seems to be working great. And just hold off on another console until the next gen. Although, I would run out and buy another Xbox tomorrow if it was a new one.

@KaijuKaiser John from DF has said more games that they've tested head to head run better on Xbox. You saying that 90% of games tested on DF run better on PS5 sure seems like a weak troll attempt considering the man himself stated otherwise.

My opinion is that consoles should move closer to the smartphone model, not yearly, but perhaps upgrading every 4 years. Nov 2024 would be a good point.

I would say these upgrades should not be "pro" models, but instead mini-generational leaps. Xbox should allow developers to make a game that has, as "minimum requirements" Xbox Series S² and XBox Series X² for example.

At first, I would expect almost no game to do this, but at the tail end of the generation, they would likely appreciate it.

Alternatively, XBox could retain a mandatory transition window where no game launched by 2027 (7 years lifespan) can ignore the baseline X|S, but 2028 and forward they are allowed to make the games require X²|S².

For the most part, anyone that wants as large an install base as possible would likely continue to support the baseline X|S for until about 2030, but it would allow for some cutting edge spec games.

PS5 definitely needs a slim model that could include some improvements like storage size and a web browser like the PS4 has.

More powerfull mid gen versions were needed last gen to extend the life of a gen that started weak for both Sony and MS. This gen maybe not needed.

I don't see why Microsoft should...the Series S is a bigger seller than the Series X. Also they are clearly all-in with xCloud development, which does not require any such hardware upgrade.

No, because last is hold the current gen back, xbox and Sony need to ditch xbox one and ps4, so developers can fully concentrate on series X/S and PS5 to tap into the power of the current gen

Sure. Why not have options?

Mid-gen? They have just barely started making the current consoles readily available lol, this talk should be far off from now. If they thought about it this soon, it would be underwhelming and in a few years time people would be wanting a real upgrade.

@BAMozzy you can go the handheld rout with the backbone. I just bought one, they’re £99 in stores but got mine on offer for £60. They’re incredible. Only played my PS5 games on it so far, only had it a day, but it works on Series X too. Will prob try it tomo. Ya do of coarse need an iPhone too.

Oh Boy Jimbo rly what to increase price on games up to + 30$)))
Like What am gonna do? i've got an idea ps5 pro))) clean and nice totally fair 100$ per game, development just got more complicated)))

I would probably get it if it did exist as I cannot help myself! However, I am curious as to how they would improve upon the Series X...?

@jordan1992 Point I was making is that Sony should make their own PSP/Vita follow up to play PS4/5 games on the Go natively and tie in to PS+ top tier to stream games from their 'older' gen systems. I'm sure with Nixxes handling PC ports, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to 'port' games to a handheld device.

Nintendo obviously has their Hand held hybrid device and MS are looking to bring more games to 'mobile/mobile devices' - not just 'cloud' but Steam and their Steam Deck and AyaNeo have a Windows Handheld gaming device. Point is, Nintendo and MS (through 3rd Party Hardware) are offering games to those 'on the go', want that portability and Sony don't. Even their PS5 is hardly 'portable' like a Series S is for example.

Therefore a 'dedicated' Playstation based handheld makes more sense to me - something they could probably make for a reasonable cost - not competing with their 'own' PS5 hardware (chances are if they buy a PS5, they won't buy a Pro, but maybe would buy a Handheld) and has more chance of being a 'success' than putting out a Pro console that's either too expensive or doesn't offer much of an upgrade. I wouldn't pay £700+ for a PS5 Pro to play 'Spider-Man 2 at 4k/60 with RT, maybe be charged $80 for the privilege as a 'Premium' upgrade over the $70 PS5 4k/60 no RT or 4k/30 with it - just wait a year, play it on the PC at 4k/120+ with RT for less money LOL.

If Sony does it then yes it’s needed. The power narrative was one of the many things holding Xbox back last gen. Best not to have that same narrative again so Sony can build even more of a gap in user base.

Well put it this way. I'm not buying one if they do.

Honestly, the only upgrade Series X needs of the moment is to its storage which is too low considering how big games will get as generation progresses. And not many people can handle the cost of the extenders. And before you graphic lovers start with the whines not everyone haves 4K TVs or likes high fps counts to enjoy their games

@uptownsoul MS want to get their games to as many people as they can with reason. They don't want to be confined by a console, because then there is a $500+ gateway tax. It artificially limits the amount of software units they can sell, the performance, and the conduit to potential customers.

There will be people that want consoles for the foreseeable future, so they need to keep that pathway open. So, I'd say they care about selling as many consoles as it takes to satiate the customers that want to play on consoles.

things are differnt this generation as this gen hasnt really started yet. There was a mid gen refresh last generation because of 4k which the original consoles couldnt do but the current generation can and cost the pro and one x came in at the original launch price because the launch consoles had gone down in price the opposite has happened this gen they have gone up so upgraded consoles would be more expensive that the current models

How many people have a TV capable of displaying 4K 120fps? If so maybe then it might be worth it down the road to make a machine that can output native 4K 120fps. Otherwise I would rather resources be put towards making great games.

No, wat is the point!!?? PS4 pro an Xbox One X was justified, 4K TV’s had just taken off. What are they gonna improve this time? Not a cat in hells chance i’d pay another £560+ for more fps an slightly better visuals. It’s just not worth it. People harp on that PC’s are way better than PS5 an XSX. I really don’t see it, the difference is minimal! I’m 💯 satisfied with the performance my consoles have now. I think an upgrade now would be a cash grab, they haven’t released anything that can push the machines yet!! If they release one an it’s 8K, 240 fps, has a 4tb hard drive, improved haptic pad, half the size an cheaper than PS5/XSX then maybe.

Yes! Current consoles are weak compared to the 30 series and brutally weak compared to the 40 series graphics cards. Too many 30-fps games last year so definitely time for more muscle.

@BAMozzy yeah, PS Vita was great but Sony dropped it.

A mid gen pro console only happened last gen because of the rapid adoption of a 4K TV's and therefore there was a need to offer a version of the console that was able to to use a 4K display.
There is no such pressing need to have a 'pro' version this gen, and though it might not be a popular opinion round here, there's no question that having multiple sku's is not ideal and has its own issues.
With this gen only really gaining momentum now from less limited supplies, there's no need to consider this.

as someone that has a gaming pc , xbox is really in a weird position. u can play xbox games in a boosted fashion on gamepass PC

or atleast i think so , & achievements are combined with achievements on steam

@Sebatrox I know but it makes more sense to me than making a 'Pro' console in the next year or so and able to play PS4/5 games on the go.

As I said, both Nintendo and MS can reach gamers who don't want to be constrained to a TV for all their gaming. Sony are more limited, relying on Steam Deck pretty much and their 'PC' ports to reach those - but with their own Handheld Platform, as a 'compliment' - buy GoW:R 'digitally', maybe get the portable version - like buying digitally on MS and get the PC version too.

I think it has a 'greater' potential for Sony and maybe wouldn't need to lose money on each unit to sell at a 'reasonable' and/or Competitive price - unlike a Pro.

I'd like to see a smaller, cheaper, more efficient version of the Series X like we got with the slimline Playstations.

I think a new, more expensive, console model in a time of recession and parts shortages would be a bad idea.

To me personally, I don't think it should have mid gen upgrades for either console makers. Consoles are powerful enough as they are.

But if sony release a more powerful PS5 Xbox will have to follow suit or the "world most powerful console"slogan will stop making sense.

No. I'm happy not spending €300 every 2 or 3 years. People seem intent on getting rid of their money as fast as possible.

What MS should do is to venture where no PS will go aka create a handheld XB based on series S’ specs. I’d buy it in a heartbeat

Definitely not. There should be one focus only: games, games, games.

MS should take this chance to ditch the series S and upgrade it so its no longer holding the series x back be it in delays cause devs cant or wont put the time in to make the series x as good as it can be... if MS didnt release the series S as a weaker system maybe

i think it is harder for Microsoft due to the S, that would be 3 consoles a game has to run on. i dont think there will be one. last gen was an outlier. outside of a minority of people who come on games sites, its not needed or wanted.

No, then Xbox will have 3 consoles with different power specs?
Series X is already more powerful than the the PS5.

To have developers make 3 levels of the same game for 3 Xbox consoles will be ridiculous.

I didn't feel the mid-gen upgrades were needed last gen either. However, when I was able to trade in my day 1 PS4 for a Spider-Man PS4pro with the game for just a couple hundred bucks more I was pretty happy with the pro.

So I think the upgrades are nice if your current xbox or ps needs replacing before the next generation is out or if you are adding another console to your household it is nice to have an update, but they totally aren't necessary.

They haven't even scratched the surface of what the current models will do. If they release an updated model, I don't know if consoles are worth it going forward. It would feel like I paid $500 just to be a beta tester. I'm sorry, I'm not in that business.

A better alternative would be a program to upgrade from a Series S to a Series X, and destroying the Series S as part of the process.

I can see the headlines already...
Developers are going to be b*tcvhing about "ALL OF THE DAMN SKU'S THEY HAVE TO DEVELOP FOR!!"

LoL I swear that is all a bunch of BS. If they did not make these games for PC as well as console, where they have to be compatible with a whole mess of different spec'd machines.

PC is always the lowest spec, even lower than the "potato" Series S (joking obviously) and you never hear them complain about having to make games for PC... at least not like they do for the Series S anyways haha.

@shoeses
look at my comment above this, dont buy into the BS that the Series S is so much harder to develop for. Its not the lowest spec and its not a potato

Still playing on series s, I don't understand why they think of a pro console when developpers continue to make games for the PS4, and don't take advantages of all the capacities of the ps5 and xbox series.

Concentrate on getting more games out. Surely developers haven't got the best of out of the Series X yet?

No, this is too soon.
Xbox One and PS4 were technically unimpressive from the start, and usually had to settle for 30fps to get a decent level of fidelity.

Series X and PS5 had a much better start, and have been able to run most games smoothly without sacrificing too much visually. No, they can't do max graphics + 4K + ray tracing + 120fps all at once, but sacrifices will ALWAYS have to be made, regardless of hardware. Once you have a machine that can do all of the above, someone will come up with new games that bring it to its knees all over again.

It is a little concerning that we're seeing 30fps games again, however, and the calls for truly "next-gen" experiences probably aren't helping. If more games are going to be technically compromised like this, then we will need a mid-gen refresh.

@Stoned_Patrol I agree that the complaints about multiple SKUs seem strange and unwarranted, considering the same games have to run on PC.

However, Series S sometimes is the lowest-spec machine: a few PC games now have minimum specs above those of the S.

It's admittedly a lot less common for consoles- even the S- to fall short of minimum PC specs these days, compared to about 3-5 years ago. But it does happen.

My guess is Sony will release around a 13TF pro model and Xbox will rival it with their next mid gen upgrade. Kinda same story as PS4 Pro and Xbox One X. Let the p155ing contest begin between them.

I wish there was a day in the gaming media where there were no articles comparing Sony with Microsoft and vice versa.

No, not at all. Xbox One was pretty much under powered, so MS needed to release the One X. But this generation, the Series X is very powerful and I don't feel the need. Adding I did have an Xbox One and the One X. I loved the updates on the One X, including the ones that didn't involve the actual power improvements, such as built in power supply, super quiet operation, etc... But this generation, MS has made the Xbox with all of these updates while adding more.

I feel this gen could go for more than 8 years. Like if we got a 5 year “mid gen upgrade” and the ninth gen systems go for 10 years before the tenth generation hardware comes out.