PS5 Pro needs a reason to exist that isn’t just GTA 6

polygon.com:

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.

There is a crucial difference, however, between then and now. When those two mid-generation consoles launched in 2016 and 2017, respectively, TV manufacturers were pushing 4K (or “Ultra HD”) displays hard — and people were buying them. There was an obvious need for consoles that were capable of outputting images at 4K resolutions, which neither the base PS4 nor Xbox One could do. This meant Sony and Microsoft had a clear marketing peg to hang their new machines on.

Eight years later, it’s harder to find similar external factors compelling PS5 Pro to exist. While higher-resolution 8K screens are already out there, there isn’t much 8K content available, and even at huge screen sizes, it’s tough to tell the difference from 4K; consumer take-up has been slow. Sony has reportedly told developers that it’s working to add 8K support to PS5 Pro, but it’s not guaranteed.

There is one other thing on the horizon that might help Sony sell PS5 Pro, an even rarer event than a new generation of TV technology: a new Grand Theft Auto game. It’s telling that the analysts who predicted PS5 Pro’s 2024 launch to CNBC framed it as preparation for GTA 6’s release in 2025. With Microsoft apparently skipping a mid-generation console upgrade this time (a potential new model of Xbox Series X has leaked, but it’s not more powerful than the current Series