Sony is Investigating PS5 Pro Leak, Leaker Says; Third-Party Developer Pool Could be Reduced

Sony has announced a limited period promotional offer on select older PlayStation 5 models in India. The “Summer Promo” offer will apply on the standard PS5, bringing a discount of up to Rs. 13,000 on the console. The discount, announced in the wake of the launch of the slimmer version of PS5 in India, will start on April 10. The disc edition of the standard PS5, which launched in India in February 2021, is currently priced at Rs. 54,990.

PS5 Pro specs have been the subject of numerous leaks over recent months, and the last couple of weeks in particular have shed a great deal of light on alleged details on the rumoured mid-gen console refresh. But with supposed enhancements like its proprietary supersampling tech dubbed PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution Upscaling (or PSSR), 45 percent faster rendering, and more, how exactly is Sony hoping developers will take advantage of the console’s more powerful hardware?

There have been two big stories on the ground at GDC this year: Xbox’s flatlining brand and the purpose of the PS5 Pro. Speaking as part of a podcast, GamesIndustry.biz’s well-connected reporter Christopher Dring noted that he didn’t meet a “single person” at the show that understood the point of Sony’s mid-gen upgrade, which is rumoured to release later this year.

The all-but-official PS5 Pro has been a prominent talking point over the last couple of weeks, especially with leaked specifications and the like only adding fuel to the fire. But from our perspective, it's starting to seem like Sony has a fairly hard sell on its hands — even if the mid-gen upgrade ends up being aimed squarely at hardcore PlayStation fans.

Amid a cascade of PS5Pro rumors, there's now a leak that points to the minimum requirements games will have to match in order to be eligible for the «PS5 Pro Enhanced» tag. These games would offer an improved gameplay experience, with better graphics and a higher frame rate, while running on the rumored Pro model of the PlayStation 5.

Recently on the GI Microcast, GamesIndustry.biz founder Christopher Dring discussed falling sales for Xbox in Europe and how the “majority” of its titles would come to PlayStation 5 at some point. During GDC 2024, he also spoke to different developers about the rumored PS5 Pro, whose specs recently leaked. The verdict? “I didn’t meet a single person that understood the point of it.”

There is mounting evidence that Sony is preparing to release a more powerful PlayStation 5 model, and sooner than you might think. Analysts have confidently predicted the new machine will launch at the end of 2024, while a series of leaks detailing its specs — sourced from official Sony documentation distributed to developers — gives us an idea of how big an upgrade it will be. The strategy seems very similar to that followed by both Sony and Microsoft one console generation ago with the release of PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X: deluxe versions of their console platforms with upgraded specs, released in the middle of the console generation.

The days of developers pushing for native resolutions feel like they’re coming to an end. The reality is that it’s a waste of resources, especially as upscalers like DLSS (or Deep Learning Super Sampling, to give it its full name) get better and better. It’s no surprise Sony is exploring similar technology with PS5 Pro, and it looks like this is all part of a long-term plan which will eventually expand to PS6 as well.

Sony's own upscaling tech for the rumored PlayStation 5 Pro - PS5 Pro PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution) - is said to offer vastly improved image quality for current PS5 titles.

Sony is reportedly undertaking an internal investigation to determine how exactly the specs for Trinity, the codename by which the colloquially-named PS5 Pro is internally known, leaked so entirely over the weekend. The incident occurred during a third-party developer rollout, and while we may never learn the culprit's identity, there will undoubtedly be additional security ramifications for other third-party devs moving forward.

According to all rumours and reports, Sony is working on its own reconstruction technology similar to DLSS, or Deep Learning Super Sampling. The feature, named PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution according to Insider Gaming, seems like a long-term play by the platform holder, with the first iteration planned for the PS5 Pro.

The heavily rumoured PS5 Pro will feature a GPU (graphics processing unit) up to three times faster than the PS5 model currently available, it's been claimed. Insider Gaming and YouTuber Moore's Law is Dead state PS5 Pro documents were posted to Sony's developer portal, and screenshots have been shared with them that suggest the upgraded console will deliver significant improvements over the original system.