UPDATE: After publishing the article, I was pointed to a PushSquare article by Facebook group The Geek Fam debunking the report. The article noted a NeoGAF post where Absinthe Games founder Jack Sipich flatly stated that developers “are not allowed to charge you for patches or pro feature updates.” Polygon followed up with a statement by Sony stating that the company “will not charge consumers for patches.” They did not specify if third-party published games also apply.
Thanks again to The Geek Fam for the heads-up.
ORIGINAL STORY: I’m beginning to think we were better off without the PlayStation 4 Pro.
The new console, which made its debut during this past Tuesday’s PlayStation Meeting, has already received its share of criticism. Two of the features touted for the new console are HDR functionality and 4K upscaling. These features can be made available for older titles with a patch. That’s where things get complicated.
The Japanese website Game Impress Watch sat down for an interview with Sony Interactive Entertainment exec Masayasu Ito. Kotaku translated the Japanese text; this is what was said about 4K HDR patches for existing titles:
Game Impress Watch: For the 4K HDR patch for existing titles, will it cost money? Or will it be free?
Ito: It will be different for each title. I believe it will depend on the thinking of each licensee*.
*Note: Ito is referring to third-party publishers here.
Game Impress Watch: What about Sony Interactive Entertainment?
Ito: I think it will vary for each one of our titles.
Game Impress Watch: What you’re saying is that there will be titles that have a fee [for a 4K HDR patch] and [4K HDR patches] titles that are free.
Ito: That is correct.
Game Watch Impress: From here on out, we can think that all the titles from SIE will completely support PS4 Pro?
Ito: Right. The first party titles we put out are going to certainly support both [4K and HDR].
While I’m sure there are some that won’t be bothered by this, as it only affects older titles, I’m also sure there’ll be some that will call shenanigans on this. All I know is I wouldn’t wanna be around Grumpy Joe if Blizzard tells him he has to pay to make Overwatch 4K HDR compatible.
