Four years after launch, PS5 is the worst generation of PlayStation yet

After four years on the market, the PlayStation 5 is easily Sony’s worst console generation. PlayStation is part of the so-called “Big Three” in gaming, a trio of gaming giants comprised of Xbox, Nintendo, and Sony’s very own PlayStation. They ensure that the gaming world goes round thanks to new consoles every decade or so, provide online platforms for players to play and connect with each other, and also have their own exclusive titles that define their brands.

PlayStation is arguably one of the most important brands in gaming thanks to how it pushed the industry forward for decades. The PS2 is the best-selling console of all time and put developers like Rockstar Games on the map and introduced fans to new franchises like God of war. Although there were some missteps with the PS3, it still ended up outselling the Xbox 360 by a small margin and laid important foundations for the future with new IPs like Uncharted. Unfortunately, the PS5 doesn’t measure up to past generations.

The PS5 has lost all the momentum gained by the PS4

A lack of true PS5 exclusives is a problem

The PlayStation 4 has a huge amount of momentum behind it. It felt like a magical era for gaming as a whole with incredible exclusions on a regular basis, like God of war And Marvel’s Spider-ManTwo generation-defining games that were released six months apart. Even during this gap, there were other exceptions, viz Detroit: Become Human. It was hard to go more than a few months without some incredible new PS4 game to play. The PS5 hasn’t had the same luck, much to the dismay of its owners.

By the end of 2024, there will have been about 25 first-party exclusives on PS5. About Half of these are also available on PS4 and/or PC, seven of which are remakes/remastersAnd one of them was not released less than a month after it came out. There are also some third-party exclusions, such as Final Fantasy 16 (now on PC) and Silent Hill 2 (coming to PC on day one), but they may come to Xbox in the future depending on contracts.

For a brand that was previously defined by its prestigious exclusive games, the PS5 is severely lacking in must-have games. Games like God of War Ragnarok And Marvel’s Spider-Man 2Even with their issues, these are examples of the kind of premier titles that would have satisfied fans on the PS4. However, they are too few and far between now, especially as PS5 will go an entire year without a massive AAA release. As big as Astro Bot Well, it’s not the kind of big-budget killer app that pushes people to buy a console.

On top of that, there are reputable rumors that PS4 games Horizon Zero Dawn And Days gone Get “remasters” soon. Both games have had PC ports in the past four years and play great on PS5 thanks to native patches that optimize them for the hardware. It’s hard to imagine what remasters could even do for these two games, and this just highlights a major problem with the development pipeline. PlayStation is struggling to get new games through the door, so it has to fall back on remastering more recent games to have something to release.

But why would anyone even want to upgrade from a PS4 to a PS5 or get a PS5 in addition to their PC when they’ll mostly be getting the games they have access to, but with some extra sparkles. If some of the biggest releases of PlayStation in 2024 are The Last of Us Part II Remastered, Days gone, Horizon Zero DawnAnd Until thenWhy in the world would anyone rush to buy a PS5?

PlayStation has also released most of the PS5 exclusives on PC now. The only big ones that haven’t been ported to PC are Devil’s souls, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, FF7 RebirthAnd Astro Bot. However, it seems pretty likely that at least FF7 Rebirth And Spider-Man 2 Will end up on PC along with its predecessors in about a year or so.

It wouldn’t be a big deal if Sony was releasing games more often on PS5, but if players are going to be stuck waiting years for new games, maybe they should just do that waiting on PC instead, because they’re going to end up anyway transported.

PS5 is filled with failures

Not all exclusives have sold well

On top of a lack of games that demand players buy a PS5, this generation is littered with some notable failures. This article probably doesn’t need to spend too much time on the tragedy of Concord, a game that was unable to capture any audience to the point of being erased from existence in a few weeks. However, it is easily one of the most devastating blows from PlayStation this generation, especially after starting to try and carve a name for itself in the live service genre.

Despite these ambitions, it didn’t stop PlayStation from scraping a live service game that people really wanted: The Last of Us Online. Naughty Dog claims that it made this choice on its own because it wanted to focus more on single-player games, but there were reports of behind-the-scenes meddling that led to the project stalling. Both things may be true, but that doesn’t change the fact that fans have been waiting years to play this game only to have it cancelled.

so too, PlayStation’s investment in Bungie has been messyTo say the least. The developer has laid off tons of staff and is reportedly in dire straits with many worrying that the beloved studio could go under completely with one misfire. If Bungie’s upcoming reboot of Marathon Is not a slam dunk, it could lead to one of PlayStation’s biggest studios and expensive investments crumbling.

Hardware didn’t help the PS5 generation

PSVR 2 is big tech, with little support

In terms of hardware, it was a really notable disappointment. The PlayStation VR2 is a great piece of tech, but Sony hasn’t put too much effort into supporting it since its release. The headset drops with a brand new game in the Horizon franchise, but there have been no notable first-party efforts since then. Why wasn’t there? Uncharted Or The last of us VR spin-off? Even something like a short one Spider-Man Experience would show that PlayStation is an effort with VR, but it may not be a priority.

This is particularly frustrating because the PSVR2 cost $550 at launch, even more than the console itself. To ask players to spend that much and then walk away from it is aggravating. Of course, there are plenty of third-party VR games on PSVR2, but this goes back to an earlier point: Why not just get a different VR headset? There are significantly cheaper options for VR gaming and companies like Meta seem to care more about crafting exclusive experiences for their owners. It is brand new Batman Arkham The game is coming exclusively to Meta Quest this fall, but there’s been nothing like it for PSVR2 since launch.

In terms of other expensive hardware, PlayStation also recently announced it’s $700 for the PS5 Pro without a disk drive or vertical stand. While this is obviously an optional upgrade, it feels like a particularly outrageous price when it was demoed with The Last of Us Part IIA game coming out in 2020. It would be easier to swallow if Sony could show fans it has a bunch of great new games on the horizon that will take advantage of the hardware, but the gaming giant hasn’t been able to do that.

If the games were there, it would be easy to wave the PS5 Pro, but it’s just frustrating to see Sony trying to do an expensive mid-gen hardware refresh when it feels like the base PS5 hasn’t even started. Perhaps it will be a major second wind for PlayStation in the second half of the generation with Marvel’s WolverineNaughty Dog’s next game, and hopefully, ghost of tsushima 2, But it may be too little too late.

There will always be missteps, cancellations and controversial strategies, but ideally, they will feel like bumps in the road rather than the bulk of the journey. PlayStation used to market itself with the tagline “Big Awaits.” It no longer feels like greatness is waiting for players when they hear theirs PS5 Console beeps as it powers on. It’s just a vapid home screen. Hopefully, PlayStation can return to what made it great.