A reader offers his appraisal of the PlayStation 5, its controller, and its games, and explains why he’s glad he pre-ordered it.
Having managed to snag a pre-order I’ve been lucky enough to spend some time with the PlayStation 5 and some games. Here’s my initial thoughts.
The console
I don’t actually mind the design of the console or its size (my wife isn’t a fan though!). It also fits in the TV stand, which is good. The only issue is the stand. It just doesn’t seem to clip in well at all and has come loose numerous times. In regards to the system itself I’ve had no bugs or issues and like the new interface. Load times are noticeably better on the games I’ve played. Slightly surprised the console hasn’t come with a free PS Plus trial like previous generations but it isn’t a big deal.
The controller
The controller is honestly the best PlayStation controller yet. Even if you ignore the haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, it’s more comfortable and feels more sturdy than previous iterations. I hope that more games also make use of the other functions I mentioned.
3D audio
I’ve purchased the Pulse 3D headset and am happy with it. It’s a nice design that goes along with the aesthetic of the PlayStation 5 and other accessories. The headphones also feel comfortable and have decent sound quality. However, I can’t say I’ve noticed any particular difference in terms of immersion or been able to pinpoint direction of sound more accurately. Still its just nice to have some nice headphones and not worry about how loud the TV is when others are in bed.
The games
The first game I spent time playing is Astro’s Playroom. I’ve got to say I wasn’t disappointed. Having played Astro Bot on PlayStation VR it’s good to see it doesn’t have to rely on VR to keep the player entertained. The game is lots of fun and a great way to showcase what the console, and the controller in particular, has to offer.
I’m not a diehard Sony fan but more of a recent gaming enthusiast, but even so I enjoyed the many references and call backs to previous games, consoles, and PlayStation accessories. It’s short and didn’t take much time for me to complete the main bulk of the game but I can’t complain when it was free. I intend at some point to work through the things I missed, such as the collectables.
The next game I played was Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Having played the first game, I can’t say much has changed but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The fact the game is set at Christmas time in a snow-covered New York and that Miles has a slightly different skill set to Peter keeps it from being stale. Visually at first, I can’t say I noticed much difference between generations, until some scenes utilised ray-tracing. I remember the interior of a mall and some kind of computer lab standing out in particular.
Dirt 5 is also one of the games I’ve played a bit of. I’m not a fan of racing sims but more of arcade style racers. Though not on the same level, Dirt 5 reminds me somewhat of the Forza Horizon series. The game also has impressive lighting, environmental, and weather effects.
Finally, I also played a bit of FIFA 21, although at the moment it’s the PS4 version. What can I say? It’s much the same, which is fine but I hope the next gen version due early December is a noticeable difference. I think this might have been the first year in a while I might have skipped FIFA if I hadn’t been tempted by the next generation version.
Also, as a long suffering Leeds United fan I was looking forward to playing as them in the Premier League for the first time in ages, so am quite disappointed they are the only team in the Premier League not to have their official stadium featured. Hopefully they might patch this in at some point.
Overall, I am enjoying my time so far with the PlayStation and look forward to the next six or seven years of gaming. If Spider-Man and Dirt 5, being early cross-generational games, look this good now and Astro’s Playroom shows what features the PlayStation 5 can achieve I can only imagine what can be delivered later into the PlayStation 5’s life cycle.
By reader matc7884
The reader’s feature does not necessary represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.
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