15 seconds. That’s all it took to load Spider-Man: Miles Morales, one of the showcase games for the all-new Sony PlayStation 5. For almost a decade now, the average upwardly mobile Indian consumer has upgraded their smartphones every 12-24 months. We barely notice the enhancements in performance. That’s the beauty of gaming consoles; the last time a Sony console was released (the PS4) the iPhone 5S and the Samsung Galaxy S3 were the reigning flagship smartphones. The PS5 takes a big leap over its predecessor and it’s not just a hardware story.

No conversation about the PS5 is complete without the supply challenges Sony has faced in satiating the huge global demand particularly in India. Just like all the elements of a Bollywood blockbuster, the PS5 Indian story has not been short of major emotions. Trolls fuelled by those who missed ordering their PS5 in what has to be the shortest online order window for any mainstream gadget and the unabashed gloating by the lucky few who snagged their consoles. After hours of gaming with the PS5, we have to say that the hype is not without reason.

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I love the design language of the PS5. At 15.4 inches, its tall (in a vertical position) and weighs 4.5 kg. It’s certainly not easy to ignore, the design itself is quite polarising. I think it’s both futuristic and future-proof, this might look trendy for a few years to come. We like the two-tone colour approach and the space age design aesthetic. While the console is likely to spark endless conversations and debates, the verdict might be more unanimous on the controller.

The Dual Sense controller is probably our favourite right now and for two good reasons –adaptive triggers and haptic feedback. As I parkoured and navigated the streets of Manhattan in Spider-Man: Miles Morales, I could feel some of the sensations of running across certain surfaces in the palm of my hand; brilliant. You can be sure that developers will leverage these features to create more engaging experiences. At a time when the future of gaming itself is full of possibilities with the likely emergence of platforms like Google Stadia and Apple Arcade, new features like this could create more longevity for console gaming.

We tested the Xbox S for MW just a couple of months ago and there were a couple of features that we totally approved of. There’s Quick Resume that allows you to jump back into the game without a fuss and Games Pass, Microsoft’s Netflix-style platform with multiple titles. Quick Resume was a feature I missed on the PS5 but when it comes to hardware, both these consoles are almost evenly matched. The PS5 is propelled by an eight-core AMD Zen 2 CPU clocked at 3.5GHz and an AMD RDDA 2 GPU clocked at 2.23GHz. This GPU delivers 10.28 teraflops of power. The SSD Storage is one reason for lighting quick game speeds and loading times. We wish Sony had packed more internal storage. There’s only 825GB onboard with only 667GB of usable storage.

The stellar and we might say future-proof hardware has a huge impact on game play. I opted for the Fidelity Mode while playing Spider-Man: Miles Morales. While it maxes out the frame rate at 30 frames per second, it activates ray-tracing that lends a great shine to virtual

New York. There’s also Performance Mode with a 60K frame rate and smoother animation that might work for some other titles. The User interface has also been refreshed. The PS5 vs Xbox X debate is clearly a cult thing but as a neutral observer, I’d say that I preferred the Dual Sense controller on the PS5. If you’re part of the PS camp, the challenge is sourcing one. Unfortunately Sony hasn’t announced when the PS 5 Digital edition (that’s slightly more compact and costs Rs 10,000 less) will be available in India. We’d recommend this version over the Standard Edition that we tested. I don’t think a disc drive justifies the price differential. Sony’s PlayStation 5 isn’t just future-proof but is a fantastic advert for console gaming with state-of-the-art hardware, ultra-smooth game play and a controller that keeps delivering the thrills.

The Sony PlayStation 5 costs Rs 49,990 while the PS5 Digital Edition costs Rs 39,990.

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