Sony is releasing a “Limited Edition 30th Anniversary PS5 Collection” on November 21, pre-order window is Sept. 26 and it’ll surely sellout, but is it worth it?

If you’re a Nike fan, you know the drill: give a nod to the past with a retro colorway, keep it limited, charge a premium for said nostalgia, and…underdeliver.

My two biggest beefs:

How can you release a PS5 that harkens back to the OG PlayStation and not include a disc drive? (It will be sold separately, no bueno.)

Where’s the backwards compatibility? How cool would it have been to be able to play games from the PS1, 2, 3 and 4 on the PS5?

Here are some other issues I have with this retro ‘Anniversary’ collection:

1. Limited Availability

Extremely Low Supply: With only 12,300 units of the PS5 Pro available globally, the collection’s limited availability has frustrated many fans. The scarcity has led to concerns about resellers buying up consoles and reselling them at inflated prices, making it difficult for genuine collectors and long-time PlayStation fans to get their hands on one.
Pre-Order Process: In regions where PlayStation’s direct store isn’t available, fans have to rely on participating retailers, which can be unpredictable in terms of stock availability. This could lead to people missing out, sound familiar Nike fans?

2. Lack of Significant Hardware Upgrades

No Major Technical Advancements: While the Limited Edition PS5 is nice to look at with its nostalgic design, there are no significant hardware improvements over the standard PS5. Some fans expected a bit more, like new features, improved cooling, or additional system enhancements beyond the increased storage and Wi-Fi 7 support.
Not a “True” Pro Version: Even though it’s labeled as the “PS5 Pro Console” in the collection, this edition doesn’t feature any performance upgrades that justify the “Pro” title. Some users are disappointed that this is more of a cosmetic re-skin than an actual next-gen performance boost.

3. Price Point

High Cost for Aesthetic Changes: While currently unknown, the price of the Limited Edition PS5 will most likely be significantly higher than the standard versions of the console, but the differences are mainly aesthetic. Some consumers feel that paying a premium for nostalgia and branding rather than added value or functionality, especially since the additional accessories and collector’s items don’t necessarily what is sure to be a the steep price increase, I’d expect a 4-digit price.

Look Ma, a paperclip!

4. Bundled Items Are Underwhelming

Lackluster Collectibles: While the collector’s items (like the original PlayStation-style cable connector, stickers, and paperclips) are a thing, they have been seen by some as underwhelming, especially given the anniversary milestone. Fans expected more exclusive and unique memorabilia for such a significant release—items like custom artwork, unique in-game content, or more sophisticated collectibles would have better captured the spirit of the occasion.

5. Nostalgia Over Functionality

More Focus on Nostalgia than Innovation: While the retro-inspired design is a nice tribute, some fans feel Sony leaned too heavily into nostalgia rather than offering new, innovative features for the PS5 experience. They were hoping for something more groundbreaking, like new gameplay mechanics or additional capabilities that tie back to the classic PlayStation days.

6. Digital Edition Lacks Distinction

Fewer Features in the Digital Edition: Some criticism is aimed at the Digital Edition of the console, which lacks some of the high-end features seen in the PS5 Pro version (like 2TB storage or Wi-Fi 7). While this is expected given the nature of the Digital Edition, some consumers feel that the Digital version doesn’t offer enough bang for the buck, especially considering its high price.

7. Design Not for Everyone

Polarizing Retro Aesthetic: While the retro-inspired colorway appeals to long-time PlayStation fans, not everyone is a fan of the design. Some younger gamers or those who prefer modern, sleeker aesthetics may not appreciate the throwback gray look. It’s a specific design that may feel dated or out of place for those not nostalgic about the original console era.

8. Missed Opportunities for In-Game Content

No Exclusive In-Game Content: For a 30th-anniversary celebration, some fans expected the collection to include exclusive in-game content, such as special skins, themes, or early access to certain games. Including some digital goodies to match the physical collectibles could have elevated the overall value.

Overall, while the Limited Edition PS5 30th Anniversary collection successfully taps into nostalgia and offers a visually unique console, it faces criticism for its limited availability, high price for mostly cosmetic changes, and lack of significant new features or upgrades feeling more like a collector’s novelty than a substantial offering for the gaming community.

At least the PS1-themed controllers can be purchased separately, which I suspect many people, myself included, will opt to do.

Will you try to pick up the Anniversary edition PS5? Let us know here.

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Thursday at 9:57 PM #1

Cnowledge

stay lurkin said:

Damn we flipped quick in here 😆

I did

Thursday at 10:05 PM #2

slaughterx

I might try for one to resell to one of you fanboys. Maybe if I make double the cost I can justify buying one for myself... but I would probably just pay a bill.

Thursday at 10:17 PM #3

you go boy

I'll take the controller and thats it...

Thursday at 10:22 PM #4

T0INE formerly toine2983

stay lurkin said:

Damn we flipped quick in here 😆

Nah still out on the PS5 Pro but need some anniversary console covers for my basic ***** OG PS5.

The eyes on my Astrobot controller watching me trying to get that 30th anniversary DualSense though:

Thursday at 10:41 PM #5

po2345

Yeah I’ll try to get the controller too.
Hope Amazon or someone does pre order.

PO.

Thursday at 10:59 PM #6

mr j 858

Ricky D said:

Sony giving us a 30th anniversary PS5 Pro to distract us from the fact that they have nothing to offer first party wise. They really about to show off a remaster for both HZD and Days Gone :smh:

That said, I’ll only get a Pro if I can get that 30th anniversary joint. If I can’t get it (which I probably won’t), I’ll hold off for PS6.

Friday at 6:12 AM #7

D Double

T0INE said:

Nah still out on the PS5 Pro but need some anniversary console covers for my basic ***** OG PS5.

The eyes on my Astrobot controller watching me trying to get that 30th anniversary DualSense though:

Forgot about the PS5 they gave to Jim Ryan when he left.
Same Duelsense but the fat console so there might be hope for OG plates.

Friday at 6:24 AM #8

Sinner

So, like I wondered earlier, that USB plug with the OG housing really will block the other USB port. 🤔

Friday at 7:37 AM #9

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

Combat in this joint looks fun as hell :smokin

Friday at 7:53 AM #10

dhart48

said:

- Monster Hunter Wilds
- Astro Bot-
-Metaphor: ReFantazio
- Dynasty Warriors Origins
- Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater
- Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake
- Sonic x Shadow Generations
- Dragon Ball Sparking! ZERO
- Neva- Infinity Nikki

PS5 Pro demo games:
- FF7 Rebirth
- GT7

Friday at 6:44 PM #11

mr j 858

Friday at 8:27 PM #12

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

The Future of PlayStation? I guess that’s why we don’t have any update to first party titles; they figured everyone would be playing Concord :{

This gen is an interesting one for sure.

Friday at 8:33 PM #13

Bend_The_Knee formerly gotholesinmysocks

@Bad Religion

How are your My Chemical Romance stickers holding up on your ps5?

Yesterday at 12:43 AM #14

Beruseruku Desu

Supporter

after about 2 hours of trying, kai cenat finally beat lady butterfly in sekiro lol.

Yesterday at 2:03 AM #15

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

I tuned in and saw he was fighting Genichiro 😆

Yesterday at 2:24 AM #16

Beruseruku Desu

Supporter

Ricky D said:

I tuned in and saw he was fighting Genichiro 😆

he just beat him. died like 20+ times lol. not bad honestly.

this one girl I saw died 180 times to genchiro before beating him lol

Yesterday at 2:52 AM #17

Beruseruku Desu

Supporter

:rofl:

Yesterday at 8:48 AM #18

D Double

The Concord development cost keeps increasing. First it was $250 million and now it's 400. Next week, someone would say it costs $600 million to make. 😆

Somehow we're supposed to believe Concord cost $100 Million more to make than Spider-Man 2 which who also need to pay license fees to Marvel.
Also from the FTC trial, we know:

Horizon Forbidden West - $212 million
The Last of Us: Part 2 - $220 million

Concord did not cost nearly as much as 2 of Sony's biggest hitters combined.

Yesterday at 9:11 AM #19

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

If the game was really in development for 8 years, I believe it’s possible. I just don’t see how nobody at Sony could see that the game was DOA after the initial reveal. It’s an unfortunate situation and sucks for the developers but I doubt that the studio is going to be around much longer.

Yesterday at 10:17 AM #20

flyeed

Yall know if they’re exploring a f2p model for it?

Yesterday at 10:29 AM #21

Bad Religion

Bend_The_Knee said:

@Bad Religion

How are your My Chemical Romance stickers holding up on your ps5?

Well. Looking for deals on Etsy for more.

Yesterday at 11:24 AM #22

D Double

Ricky D said:

If the game was really in development for 8 years, I believe it’s possible. I just don’t see how nobody at Sony could see that the game was DOA after the initial reveal. It’s an unfortunate situation and sucks for the developers but I doubt that the studio is going to be around much longer.

The idea for the game was 8 years ago. The studio was only formed 6 years ago and even then it would've been a few devs until they go into full production mode and scale up the employees.

It's like how Final Fantasy Versus XIII was announced in 2006 but didn't go into full production until 2012.

Also, the Insomniac leak gives you a good idea of how much money scales up during production. This are the costs for Spider-Man 2:
50 people average were working on the game pre-production and it peaked at 380 people. That's a lot of salaries to pay out
Firewalk is around 150 employees so unless they outsourced most of the production . I don't see how they get to $400 Million.

Spoiler content hidden.

Studio is dead weight though. Other studios have gone for less. They've given Sony the biggest black eye. I bet the word Concord will be banned in Sony headquarters. 😆
I can't see it coming back.

Yesterday at 4:02 PM #23

Cnowledge

D Double said:

The Concord development cost keeps increasing. First it was $250 million and now it's 400. Next week, someone would say it costs $600 million to make. 😆

Somehow we're supposed to believe Concord cost $100 Million more to make than Spider-Man 2 which who also need to pay license fees to Marvel.
Also from the FTC trial, we know:

Horizon Forbidden West - $212 million
The Last of Us: Part 2 - $220 million

Concord did not cost nearly as much as 2 of Sony's biggest hitters combined.

I believe it because if you listen to the initial interview, the guy said that they outsourced most of the work the last two years so they had to pay all those companies for the outsourcing work and they also had to pay sweet baby inc prob 30 million to go over the game and make sure it was DEI ready.

Yesterday at 5:07 PM #24

D Double

Cnowledge said:

I believe it because if you listen to the initial interview, the guy said that they outsourced most of the work the last two years so they had to pay all those companies for the outsourcing work and they also had to pay sweet baby inc prob 30 million to go over the game and make sure it was DEI ready.

I don't believe Sony paid $400 Million for development, bought the studio and paid DEI consultants $30 Million on top for a brand new IP from an unproven studio.
That's half a billy.

When you compare the credits for both games, to include outsourced work, Spider-Man 2 has double the amount of people.

Concord credits (PlayStation 5, 2024) - MobyGames

The official game credits for Concord released on PlayStation 5 in 2024. The credits include 1,982 people.

www.mobygames.com

Marvel Spider-Man 2 credits (PlayStation 5, 2023) - MobyGames

The official game credits for Marvel Spider-Man 2 released on PlayStation 5 in 2023. The credits include 3,812 people.

www.mobygames.com

Concord didn't even get the top tier 1st party marketing treatment. Where I live, when Spider-Man, God of War, Uncharted or The Last of Us are coming out, Sony will let everyone and their aunty know. The adverts are plastered everywhere. Billboards, subways, buses, Champion's League TV spots, etc. Concord didn't get that treatment.

Only Colin is saying it cost this much. Other industry people are saying the opposite. No one is corroborating his story.

Yesterday at 6:49 PM #25

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

I don’t put anything past anyone these days but I don’t see what Colin has to gain from blatantly lying. It’s very possible that his source was wrong but not sure why people acting like Colin couldn’t possibly have any inside scoops on PlayStation of all things 😆

Yesterday at 7:00 PM #26

Bend_The_Knee formerly gotholesinmysocks

@thapointguy how’s your journey in Black Myth Wukong going?

Haven’t had any time the last few weeks to play.

Today at 3:10 AM #27

Sinner

Today at 3:55 AM #28

Beruseruku Desu

Supporter

kai crying because he can’t get past demon of hatred 😂

Today at 8:54 AM #29

ill juan86

Gamestop taking instore pre orders on October 10th?

Today at 9:41 AM #30

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

Beruseruku Desu said:

kai crying because he can’t get past demon of hatred 😂

Man that boss had no business being in Sekiro 😆

Dec 5, 2020 #1

souljaman22

souljaman22 said:

Finally picked up Ghost of Tsushima and played for about 1 hour before the wife went into labor. So no PS5 for a while. Platinumed Miles and Spidey Remastered first so I'm good. Here's to a healthy baby boy in a few hours.

He came through this am

Nov 26, 2020 #2

SolesNGoals99

My girl called me at 8:30 this morning and told me to come outside. Mind you she was supposed to be at work or at least on her way to work. I get my *** outta bed and go outside. About a minute later she comes flying thru the parking lot and tells me open the backdoor. I open the door and there’s a PS5 chillin in the backseat. She says Happy Thanksgiving and I said “that’s not mine” because I was in complete disbelief 😂

Feb 16, 2022 #3

treewing

Sup! I haven’t posted on NT in years but I recently shared on Twitter that I got to voice a few characters for Horizon Forbidden West. Here are a few pics from the recording booth and screenshots from gameplay!

Dec 16, 2021 #4

iheartboost

I GOT A PS5! I GOT ONE, OMG I GOT ONE1! MERRY ******* XMAS OT ME DAMMIT SO DAMN WLDI I FINALY OWN ONE AFTER 8 BILLION TRIES SHIIIIIIIII I PICK UP IT ONE MONDAY SON

Nov 26, 2020 #5

Bad Religion

My wife got me a new snow shovel. So I will, "shovel the driveway better".

:stoneface:

Nov 15, 2020 #6

freeze

Dec 25, 2020 #7

mr s j king

Merry Christmas PS5 thread 🎅🏾🎄⛄
A few more hours and I'll get to see my two boys in complete shock that they actually got a PS5 for Christmas :nthat:

Apr 7, 2021 #8

jetpacunlimited

Added some of those “Streamer” star lights to the man cave. They came out good.

Tonal workout system came in as well.

Excuse the mess, got a couple more pieces coming and then it’ll be complete

Feb 5, 2021 #9

Bad Religion

My wife and I welcomed our first child 8 days ago. I genuinely believed not much would change in terms of gaming.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

I'd trade my PS5 for 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

That said, Destruction Allstars is awesome and I can play while holding him.

Nov 15, 2020 #10

617collector

mr j 858 said:

Someone on Reddit PS5 posted this:

Damn that's almost $50 in credit at Gamestop :wow:

Dec 25, 2020 #11

Lee And His Sneaks

:pimp::nthat::nthat::nthat:

Dec 5, 2020 #12

souljaman22

Finally picked up Ghost of Tsushima and played for about 1 hour before the wife went into labor. So no PS5 for a while. Platinumed Miles and Spidey Remastered first so I'm good. Here's to a healthy baby boy in a few hours.

Apr 16, 2022 #13

Master Zik

This **** came dumb fast!

🔥

Dec 25, 2020 #14

Ricky D formerly centex hogg

D Double said:

Lots of unhappy kids out there I'm guessing 😆

Nov 27, 2020 #15

GrizzlyAnimal

Nov 7, 2022 #16

slaughterx

Well... he came a couple of days early... but welcome Logan Atreus Slaughter to the world!

Dats my BOY!

Nov 17, 2020 #17

matrix

Just picked my son’s up. He got a little excited. Between this and his bear hug that gave me a bloody lip.

Nov 30, 2020 #18

addict4sneakers

Cussing out the manager works. Big Karen energy.

Dec 25, 2020 #19

jopx

Waited for all our visitors to leave tonight then gave the kids the PS5. The in-shock moment was priceless.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays everyone!

Dec 25, 2022 #20

needsomejays

Welp, I am now part of the ps5 fam. My brother got me one for Christmas. Totally out of left field. Still shocked :lol

Apr 14, 2022 #21

Master Zik

FINALLY!!!

FINALLY!!!#

******* FINALLY!!!!!

I see the charge on my card and everything. Just waiting for the confirmation email.

No more playing my friends ps5

YES CONFIRMATIOIN THERE!

YEEEEESSSSSSSSSS