6 things to consider before buying a PS5

If you're planning to buy a PS5, you should consider whether it's the right move for you. Here are some points to consider before you spend a few hundred dollars on Sony's latest console.

1. Are you economically viable?

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Before buying anything, you should of course consider the price. PS5 is available in 2 models: a standard version with a drive for $500 or a digital-only version for $400. Both PS5 models are not too cheap to drop money arbitrarily.

Even if you can afford it, don't forget to consider the additional costs associated with the purchase. The PS5 comes with a demo called Astro's Playroom, but that won't bother you for long. Many titles published by Sony are currently available for $70. And if you want to play online, you need at least PlayStation Plus Essential, which equates to a cost of $ 60/year.

Therefore, buying just two titles and a year of PlayStation Plus can increase the initial cost by $200 - or 50% of the base price of the PS5 Digital Editon.

Games aren't the only extra cost, either. You may want to upgrade your headset, buy a second DualSense multiplayer controller ($70+), or buy a charging dock for those controllers. You should also factor those into your budget to consider.

Depending on how many accessories you want to buy, that initial $500 price can quickly add up to hundreds of times over. To help offset this cost, you might consider selling your PlayStation 4 to buy a PlayStation 5.

2. Have you played all the PlayStation 4 games yet?

PS4 is home to a ton of great games. Chances are you haven't had a chance to play them all yet. So you should consider whether you still have PS4 games you still want to play.

Older PS4 games are still completely playable even with newer consoles. Plus, as old PS4 titles go, you can buy them at a bigger discount than brand new PlayStation 5 games.

Once you upgrade, you'll be glad to know that PlayStation 5 is backward compatible with most PlayStation 4 games. You can use the PS4 controller to play PS4 games, and the PS5 also supports PS4 games from an external drive. And while some PS4 games run slightly better on PS5, the difference isn't huge.

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If you're not in a hurry to play certain PS5 games, you can also finish the rest on PS4. Given the PS5's limited SSD space, finishing them up before you upgrade means fewer games will be installed.

If you're mostly done playing PS4 games, it makes more sense to switch to PS5.

3. Are you interested in the available PS5 games?

Many of the top PS5 titles, such as Horizon Forbidden West and Elden Ring, are also available on PS4 or other platforms. Whether upgrading from PS4 to PS5 is worth it depends on the game you want to play. If you don't want to play PS5-limited titles like Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart or Returnal, you can wait.

If the next entry in your favorite series only comes to PS5, then you should consider buying a new console. Whether you should upgrade to the premium PS5 versions of cross-generation titles is up to you.

4. Waiting patiently will bring better offers

When you buy a newly launched console, you pay a premium price to get a device with no extras and very few games. If there are any unresolved hardware problems or errors, you must resolve them yourself.

Things will go in reverse if you buy a console in the middle of its life cycle. At that stage, the price usually drops, a small revision makes the console smaller and fixes any issues with the original release, and some of the best games are bundled in there as well. So if you wait patiently, you can get a slightly more advanced console, for less money, there are a lot of games to choose from.

Waiting any longer to get your hands on a PlayStation 5 can be tough, as you can only see all the newly released games and not be able to play. Whether or not this is worth your money right away is up to you.

5. Is PlayStation 5 the best choice for you?

Don't forget that the PlayStation 5 isn't the only gaming system available. Microsoft's Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S launched at the same time as the PS5. If you're a PlayStation fan, the decision is probably easy. But don't overlook other options.

The Xbox Series S is a less powerful console, but it's available for $300. If you want instant next-gen gaming while also spending as little as possible, that might be a better option for you.

Both new Xbox consoles are backward compatible with many original Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Xbox titles. If you're interested in old Xbox games, the new Xbox might be a better fit. And Xbox Game Pass offers incredible value with hundreds of high-quality games included at a monthly cost, making it the go-to for both Xbox systems.

Alternatively, you can build a decent gaming PC for the same cost as buying a PlayStation 5, although you may have to put a lot more money into that project if needed. PC gaming has a lot of benefits, such as more control options, better graphics performance, and being suitable for multiplayer. If you don't trust the PS5, maybe this would be a good time to try PC gaming.

6. You may not be able to find a PlayStation 5

The PS5 has been notoriously hard to buy since its launch in November 2020. While it's probably easier to get a PS5 in mid-2022, finding one in a store or ordering a console. online is still quite laborious. You may need to be a member of a paid service (like GameStop's PowerUp Rewards) to order a PS5.

In the meantime, check your favorite sites regularly, signing up for email alerts, if available, so you'll know right away when a new buying opportunity is available.

The article is not intended to prevent you from buying a PS5. This console is a huge improvement over the PS4 and in a few years it will have enough great games to make the PS5 worth buying. But before you withdraw your wallet, consider the above points to decide whether to buy now or not.

If you decide to wait, why not consider a handheld game console instead?

Jessica Tanner

Update 17 February 2023