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00:00How the heck has it been two years since the PS5 came out?
00:03It feels like yesterday.
00:05Although it might have actually been yesterday for some of you guys
00:07because it is still a bit of a struggle to actually get your hands on one.
00:10So for the PS5's second birthday, now seems like a good time
00:14to reflect on what Sony got right, got wrong,
00:17and also what goodies year three may have in store.
00:21And if you do enjoy this video and want to see more gaming stuff from me,
00:24then a cheeky like and subscribe would be lovely.
00:26Okay, now cards on the table.
00:28I love my PS5.
00:29But I also love my Xbox Series X for Game Pass, for Flight Sim, Forza,
00:33and more importantly, the fact that it matches my drinks cooler.
00:36But for me, it's games like this, the exclusives,
00:39and also things like the DualSense controller,
00:41the fact that all my mates play on PlayStation,
00:43which they didn't used to be, they all used to be on Xbox,
00:45means that nine times out of ten,
00:47I am firing up my PS5 rather than my Series X.
00:50But as you guys know, it has not been smooth sailing for Team Blue
00:53as actually being able to get your hands on one of these
00:55has been incredibly frustrating over the last two years.
00:58I mean, it's not surprising coming out of the pandemic with the chip shortages
01:02and the fact that Sony reckon they've shifted around 25 million of these bad boys.
01:06But then just as things start to get better,
01:09Sony goes and increases the price.
01:11In the UK, it's £30 more expensive,
01:13it's 20% more expensive in Japan,
01:15and it's the same price in the US for some reason,
01:17which is a bit frustrating.
01:18And really at this point, you'd be expecting to see discounts
01:21or a PS5 slim model come out,
01:23which is still rumored for the end of next year, 2023,
01:26perhaps with a detachable Blu-ray drive to keep the costs down.
01:30But the process of actually buying a PS5 has been a bit of a mixed bag.
01:34Anyway, let's move on and talk about the software.
01:36What has changed over those two years?
01:38Well, to their credit, we have had quite a few significant updates,
01:41although they have taken a while to roll out.
01:43For example, it took a year for Sony to enable the internal M.2 SSD
01:47so you could expand the storage
01:49and also to roll out VRR support for smoother gameplay,
01:52assuming you have a compatible TV or monitor.
01:54And it took them nearly another year to finalize 1440p support,
01:58which is great if you're gaming on a QHD monitor,
02:01but the Series X had that since day one.
02:03As for hardware, we've had some nice new controller colors
02:06with matching and also quite pricey console covers.
02:09There's even a new DualSense Edge controller,
02:12Sony's answer to the Xbox Elite,
02:14which at $200 or about £210
02:17is basically half the cost of a PS5 Digital Edition.
02:21Ouch.
02:21And we've also had two new PS5 SKU revisions
02:24that are a touch lighter,
02:25thanks to smaller heatsinks and motherboards.
02:28Although frustratingly, Sony has stuck with the same 825GB SSD
02:33in the console itself,
02:34meaning you're pretty much guaranteed
02:35that you're going to have to pay extra
02:36to expand it with an M.2 SSD
02:39or at the very least plug in an external SSD
02:41to offload your PS4 games.
02:43One thing that did surprise me though
02:44is when I did my initial review of the PS5
02:46and even like a year later,
02:48I was adamant that people should buy the physical edition,
02:50the one with the disc drive,
02:51because as many PS5 games can be upwards of £70 or so,
02:56it can be very expensive actually buying the games
02:58and I figured the used market,
03:00being able to buy and sell it or buy used games
03:02would be a big deal for most people.
03:04But surprisingly, according to Sony,
03:05by mid-2022,
03:07almost 80% of PS4 and PS5 games were purchased digitally.
03:11And I'm guessing that's mainly down to a convenience thing.
03:13You don't have to physically buy the game
03:15and then also put it in the drive.
03:16You can do it all from sitting on the sofa
03:18and also you can sometimes get some quite good deals on games
03:21even buying it through the PlayStation Store.
03:23Now speaking of games
03:25and obviously consoles live or die by these games
03:28and particularly the exclusives.
03:29And I think over the last two years
03:31and also looking forward,
03:32the PS5 does come out on top in terms of games.
03:35Although to be fair,
03:36many exclusives have found their way to PC
03:38and arguably there aren't as many true exclusives
03:41as maybe you'd hope after a couple of years.
03:43But when we do get them,
03:45they're fantastic.
03:47I loved Spider-Man Miles Morales,
03:49Returnal and Demon's Souls looked fantastic
03:51and played even better
03:53and Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart was a ton of fun.
03:55Although I have to admit,
03:56I did fall off Gran Turismo 7 faster than I'd hoped.
03:59It still feels a bit soulless.
04:00But my all-time favorite games this generation
04:03are Ghost of Tsushima
04:04and Horizon Forbidden West.
04:06Although I have a feeling God of War might join those ranks.
04:09Ragnarok looks incredible,
04:11especially when you consider this is a cross-gen game.
04:14And that is one problem we're still seeing.
04:16You're not going to get the full potential out of the PS5
04:19when you still have to develop the game for a PS4.
04:22I mean, it's no bad thing for PS4 owners,
04:24but if you shelled out on a PS5,
04:26you want at least some true next-gen games
04:28that really push the hardware to its limits.
04:30I mean two years in,
04:31I was hoping for some full fat PS5 only titles,
04:34something like that Matrix Unreal 5 tech demo,
04:37but perhaps just not at 15 FPS.
04:39But hey, at least there's a ton of exclusive games
04:41just around the corner, right?
04:43Well, apart from Spider-Man 2,
04:46Wolverine, and FFXVI, and a handful of others,
04:48and of course the PSVR 2,
04:50there aren't that many big exclusives
04:52due to arrive over the next year or so.
04:54Obviously though, more may be announced
04:56and there's still plenty of cross-platform games
04:58that look really promising.
05:00But does the PS5 really make that much difference
05:02to your games anyway?
05:04Well, generally PS5 versions of cross-gen games
05:06will have better image quality,
05:08higher frame rates, or both in many cases.
05:10Although in most games,
05:12you're still having to choose between visual fidelity
05:14that gets you that crisp 4K,
05:16highest graphics options, maybe a bit of ray tracing,
05:18or higher frame rates for a smoother gameplay experience.
05:21There's still a compromise to be had.
05:24Things are getting better though,
05:25like the updated RT performance mode in Spider-Man
05:27and in Ragnarok,
05:28playing on a 120 hertz capable TV in balance mode
05:32bumps the FPS to 40 up from 30,
05:34which is a noticeable difference
05:36while maintaining image quality,
05:37although of course 60 FPS is hard to beat.
05:40Having said all that though,
05:41if you don't own a 4K HDR TV
05:44that also perhaps supports 120 hertz and VRR
05:47and all those gaming features,
05:48you're not really going to get the most
05:50out of your PS5 anyway.
05:51I mean, you're going to have your console
05:52for probably 10 years,
05:53so eventually you're going to upgrade your TV,
05:55but if you're still on a basic smaller full HD TV,
05:58given how many games are still coming to PS4,
06:01you're probably best off sticking with that.
06:03But then again, it's the quality of life stuff
06:05that makes the biggest difference
06:07when I play my PS5.
06:08And I think for me, it's the ultra-fast load times
06:11that have been the biggest single upgrade on the PS5.
06:14It's even changed the way I play games.
06:15Spider-Man and Ratchet and Clank
06:17load in a handful of seconds
06:19and Horizon Forbidden West takes seconds
06:21versus literally minutes on PS4.
06:23Fast travel is basically seamless,
06:25which makes a massive difference
06:26in keeping the action going in Ghost of Tsushima
06:29and particularly in games like Elden Ring
06:31where you die every five seconds,
06:32faster respawns are a lifesaver.
06:35Well, figuratively, I still die every five seconds,
06:37but there's just less of a gap between it.
06:39I also really enjoy using the DualSense controller.
06:41The adaptive triggers and haptic feedback
06:43can be great for adding resistance to weapons
06:46or adding an extra layer of immersion
06:47like when you move around different surfaces
06:49in Astro's playroom or Tsushima.
06:51And the thump and fizzle of Returnal's crackly guns
06:54make great use of both.
06:56Although I must admit, in many games,
06:57the implementation can still feel a bit half-baked.
07:00And also, if you're playing online
07:01in competitive shooters like Call of Duty,
07:03then you're going to want to turn all that off anyway.
07:06Then there's the PS5's 3D spatial audio tech,
07:08which is pretty cool.
07:09I mean, technically, it actually works
07:11with any speakers or headphones
07:12as it's processed by the PS5's Tempest audio engine,
07:15but for the best effect,
07:16you'll want to pair it with the official Pulse 3D headphones
07:19or one of the third-party alternatives
07:20that officially support the tech.
07:22And this lets you hear pinpoint environmental sounds
07:25around you accurately,
07:26and it's also just much more atmospheric.
07:28So plenty of hits then, but what about the misses?
07:31Well, for one thing, I still can't quite figure out
07:33why we can't have quick resume on the PS5.
07:36The Xbox has had it since day one,
07:38as switching on the PS5 requires a cold boot each time,
07:41whereas on the Xbox, you can quick resume
07:43between a handful of games instantly.
07:45I'm also still not the biggest fan of the UI.
07:48It's certainly better than the Xbox,
07:49but I think there's definitely room for improvement,
07:51and I also think the three tiers of PS Plus
07:53and also PS Now can be all a bit confusing.
07:56I do still love the design of this thing, though,
07:59although the glossy black trim shows up dust
08:01and scratches very easily, especially around the ports,
08:04and it is still bloody massive.
08:06And also, the PS5 box does still come
08:08with a nice big 8K logo,
08:10but unsurprisingly, support for 8K
08:12has never really materialized.
08:14Now, I know my wife is very excited
08:15for the new Harry Potter game.
08:17That'll be coming, I think, early next year,
08:18but as well as that, one thing I am looking forward to
08:20is the PS VR 2,
08:22something that Team Green with Xbox
08:23just don't have anything like,
08:25and although on paper, it does seem like
08:26it's gonna be a big step up over the original PS VR,
08:29and I do like the idea of Resident Evil
08:31and Horizon Call of the Mountain,
08:33but I am still a bit skeptical
08:35because the usual problem with VR
08:36is maintaining quality releases over time,
08:39and Sony will have to keep supporting studios
08:41over the long haul,
08:42and I hope it doesn't divert too many resources
08:44away from regular first-party games.
08:47Oh, I've got to talk about PS Plus, haven't I?
08:49Let's get it over with.
08:50Okay, PlayStation Plus.
08:52The rollout of the three tiers was definitely confusing
08:54and which got what content,
08:56but I think it is a little clearer now.
08:57Having the option of a Game Pass-style game library
09:00with the mid-level extra tier sounds great,
09:02as is being able to stream games,
09:04including some classic PlayStation titles
09:06with the top premium tier.
09:08But in reality, the library just doesn't get
09:10the day-one AAA releases that you get on Game Pass,
09:13even for a similar price per month.
09:14And I know it's subjective,
09:16but there are barely any classic titles
09:17that I'd actually want to play.
09:19So all in all, I'd probably recommend the extra tier,
09:21as having the game library is a great way
09:23of trying out new games,
09:24and it's not that much more than the base tier,
09:27which still gets the usual two or three free games per month.
09:30So let's wrap up, and I think two years in,
09:32happy birthday, by the way, PS5,
09:34I think it's just starting to hit its stride,
09:36and usually, if you look back
09:37at previous console generations,
09:39it's usually year three, four, and five
09:41that it really starts to get good,
09:43with the best games that really push the system
09:45to its limits.
09:46What I would say, though, is if you are looking
09:48to get a PS5 now,
09:49I would also budget for a M.2 SSD to expand the storage,
09:52and also a second DualSense controller.
09:54And actually, speaking of peripherals and accessories,
09:56I did make a big top 10 list of things
09:59that you should buy and things that you shouldn't buy,
10:01which I'll leave a link to up there
10:02and also at the end of the video.
10:03But I guess my main problem with the PS5
10:05is that if you do already have a PS4
10:08and you're having a great time,
10:10given that games like Ragnarok are also coming to the PS4,
10:13you could probably still hold off
10:14for another six months or a year.
10:16I mean, sure, the PS5 offers quality-of-life improvements,
10:18better controllers, faster load times,
10:20better graphics with higher frame rates,
10:22but I think when all's said and done,
10:23when we look back, it's the games,
10:25the stories, the narrative, the innovative gameplay
10:28that we really appreciate,
10:29and not that it has ray tracing
10:31or it's 40 FPS instead of 30.
10:34But what do you think?
10:34Do you have a PS5?
10:35And what's your experience so far?
10:37And what's your favorite game?
10:38Let me know in the comments below.
10:39And if you don't yet have one, why not?
10:41Let me know.
10:42Thank you so much for watching, guys.
10:43I hope you enjoyed the video,
10:44and I'll see you next time right here on The Tech Chat.