The PS5 Pro has made me realize that I hate choices.

As I have grown, I have started to question the excess of options available in everyday life. While I appreciate having some alternatives when choosing a drink at a bar or deciding how I want my meat, it increasingly seems to me that the number of options can be overwhelming. Choosing what to watch on streaming platforms, for example, has become a true challenge.

However, what really bothers me is the constant need to decide between performance and graphics on next-generation gaming consoles. This situation is relatively new in the console world, marked by the arrival of the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X in the last generation, and I think it has taken away joy from the experience of playing on consoles.

My experience with the PS5 Pro highlighted this duality of choice. Although I was lucky enough to acquire a PS5 at its launch, I haven’t felt the need to upgrade to this enhanced version. While I recognize the advantages in power, storage, and design, I don't consider them enough to make the switch; the increase in graphical fidelity of already impressive PS5 games feels to me like a case of diminishing returns. And the high frame rate isn’t something that concerns me much; when I’m relaxing on the sofa, I don’t need an extremely quick game response.

However, where the PS5 Pro really shone for me was in the ability to enjoy many titles at 60 fps without sacrificing graphical quality, thanks to PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) technology. For example, while playing Horizon Forbidden West, I achieved a smart balance between performance and visual quality. When reviewing The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, I simply opted for the PS5 Pro mode and started playing without having to experiment with other graphical settings. This was refreshing, as it relieved me of the stress of deciding which mode was best, allowing me to enjoy the game as it was intended.

In the end, what I really want when playing is to experience the game as it was conceived by the developer. I don’t care if that means 30 fps with ray tracing lighting or 60 fps with less defined shadows; I just want to play without having to make tedious choices. For me, adjusting and optimizing graphics is an activity that should be reserved for PC gaming, which I consider a completely different experience.

With the PS5 and Xbox Series X, every time I start a new game, I end up wasting time trying to decide which graphical mode is most appropriate, closely observing my LG C1 OLED television to discern if a slight texture adjustment is worth sacrificing frame rates. With the PS5 Pro, this burden of choice was lifted, allowing me to jump straight into the game without complications.

However, this experience has led me to reflect that the PS5 Pro should have been the console that Sony launched from the beginning. This may sound strange, as it would imply waiting four more years for a new console and extending the PS4’s life beyond ten years. Nevertheless, considering that the PS5 debuted amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused console shortages and development issues, I think we could have waited a bit longer for a new generation.

I would also like to see consoles that truly represent a significant generational leap, something I feel neither the PS5 nor the Xbox Series X have fully delivered. I appreciate the loading speed thanks to SSDs, and some features of the DualSense controller are impressive. Nonetheless, I haven’t encountered many games that truly feel next-gen, not just in visual terms but also in innovative systems. This was reflected in the fact that many games were released as cross-generation titles in the first two years of this generation.

Native 4K gaming at 60 fps still seems a distant goal in this generation of consoles, and it’s understandable given the enormous processing demand that 4K requires. With the PS5 Pro and advanced scaling techniques, we are getting closer to what could be considered perfection in console gaming.

My solution to this situation lies in what happened during the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 generation. That era lasted eight years, offering a considerable leap in graphics and capabilities, bringing us closer to Full HD gaming, and was considered a long generation, without 'Pro' models in the middle. As a result, developers really pushed the limits of these consoles, creating exciting experiences.

I hope that this current generation of consoles doesn’t end until we have the necessary hardware to deliver a significant advance in visual capacity and performance at a reasonable price. And if that means both the PS5 and PS5 Pro run at full power, even making noise like a jet engine, so be it.