Sony’s global head of marketing and sales has denied claims that the company is forcing parity between PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X games.
Speaking during an interview with Eurogamer, Jim Ryan was quizzed if the hardware giant was telling publisher specifically to maintain visual performance between both consoles, after news hit that the Xbox One X version of Destiny 2 would run at 30fps—the same frame rate as its PS4 Pro counterpart.
Destiny developer Bungie had previously said that the PS4 Pro lacks the necessary horsepower to run its sci-fi shooter at 60fps. The Xbox One X, however, packs significantly more power under its hood, leading many to believe that it would have been able to run the game at a higher frame rate than Sony’s high-end console. While that’s not the case, it’s not down to Sony.
“Not to my knowledge. Take the Destiny deal. The Destiny deal was actually done in February 2013, right? We hadn’t launched PS4. I might be wrong because great minds are at work in far-flung corners of Tokyo and San Mateo, but I don’t think anybody even thought of PS4 Pro at this stage. So, I think you’re trying to see some sort of nefarious platform-holder activity where likely none exists,” said Ryan.
The deal that Ryan is referring to is of course the timed-exclusivity partnership with Activision and Sony, which brings a range of Destiny and Destiny 2 content to the PS4 a year before any other format. Destiny 2, for example, will boast a range of extras such as new maps, weapons, ships, and an exclusive strike.
Microsoft fully unveiled its latest home console during E3 earlier this week, confirming the 4K-powered machine will launch on November 7, priced at $499/£449. The format holder wasted no time in taking a few shots at its competitor, claiming the PS4 Pro is not a competitor to its high-end system, but rather the Xbox One S.
We weren’t particularly impressed with Spencer’s words though, suggesting he is disingenuous for trying to compare the two consoles. Xbox One S, for one, does not support 4K gaming, only video; furthermore, the Xbox One X will also utilise the same checkerboard rendering and dynamic resolution trickery that PS4 Pro has employed since launch.
Sony held its own press conference on Monday evening, where it later admitted to holding back on new game announcements. Nonetheless, we got another spectacular glimpse at its 2018 slate, including God of War, Spider-Man, Days Gone, and Detroit: Become Human.