The PlayStation 5 Pro is just around the corner, and even though it’s not the technological leap some envisioned, it still holds the power to transform the gaming experience for many titles. This generation has seen its fair share of games launching with subpar performance on the base PS5. The PS5 Pro offers a chance to rectify these issues and elevate visuals with features like PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR). While only 14 games have confirmed PS5 Pro support, there are several others that could truly shine with the enhanced console hardware. Here are five games that stand to benefit immensely from a PS5 Pro upgrade:
Black Myth: Wukong
The biggest video game of 2024, Black Myth: Wukong is an action masterpiece inspired by Journey to the West, developed in China. It’s found widespread success on both PC and PS5. However, on PS5, the experience falls short. Digital Foundry analysis revealed that Black Myth: Wukong struggles to maintain a consistent 60 frames per second in performance mode, experiencing frame rate dips and input latency issues. For an action game, a stable frame rate and minimal latency are crucial, making the PS5’s performance in this case a significant concern. The PS5 Pro could address this, providing a much smoother and more responsive experience, potentially catapulting the game to even greater heights.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Respawn Entertainment and EA’s Star Wars Jedi: Survivor was an outstanding game, but its launch was plagued by technical issues across both PC and consoles. While many of these issues have since been resolved, this action-adventure masterpiece could still use a PS5 Pro boost. During the PS5 Pro reveal, Mark Cerny showcased ray tracing on the base PS5 using Survivor, but a PS5 Pro update for the game hasn’t been confirmed. Considering Respawn successfully implemented it on PS4 and Xbox One, and its presence in the PS5 Pro reveal presentation, support for Survivor seems inevitable. Once it arrives, the PS5 Pro could very well become the definitive way to experience one of the greatest Star Wars video games ever made.
Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 has become notorious for its disastrous launch performance across all platforms. CD Projekt Red dedicated years to fixing the game, culminating in the acclaimed Phantom Liberty expansion. The game runs significantly better on the PS5 in 2024 than it did on PS4 in 2020. A PS5 Pro update, offering a smooth, high-fidelity experience, could be the perfect way for CD Projekt Red to conclude its journey with Cyberpunk 2077 as they move on to The Witcher. Currently, PC reigns supreme for Cyberpunk 2077. A top-tier PS5 Pro update for the RPG could change that.
Lords of the Fallen
Lords of the Fallen joins the ranks of exceptional action games that struggled to perform well on consoles at launch. This generation has seen numerous games requiring post-launch patches to achieve a playable level of stability on PS5. Games like Lords of the Fallen are perfect candidates to showcase the benefits of the PS5 Pro’s added power. It’s ultimately up to developers like CI Games to implement PS5 Pro updates, but we hope Sony encourages more developers to highlight their PS5 Pro-enhanced games soon.
Stellar Blade
Unlike the other games on this list, Stellar Blade didn’t suffer performance issues at release. It was a solid, if flawed, PS5-exclusive action game with stunning visuals. It came as a surprise to many when Sony didn’t use it as an example of a PS5 Pro-enhanced game. Hopefully, this is just a matter of time. In fidelity mode, I envision this action game running at a smooth 60 frames per second, while PSSR enhances the already breathtaking background environments. Sony needs to demonstrate the value of the PS5 Pro by ensuring all its published games support the new console. For this reason, a PS5 Pro upgrade for Stellar Blade is crucial.
