tl;dr We definitely need to get the word out to people who are buying new Pros to use ROTTR (Rise of the Tomb Raider) as a benchmark to test if you got a bad Pro or not.I don’t want to repeat what others have said about the system. It’s awesome. If you are reading this, you probably already know if you want one or not. With “Boost Mode” (Firmware 4.5) incoming, it’s almost a no-brainer for an avid gamer. What I do want to share is my experience to save as many headaches as possible.
I originally purchased a used PS4 Pro on Warehouse Deals and saved myself $60. Yay! Until I started playing. I soon discovered why it was used – It would crash all the time on Pro-patched games. So, back it went. I still wanted one and decided to buy new this time to avoid anymore hassle. I didn’t want to risk losing my 1-year warranty either, which I would soon need.
Long story short, my next brand spanking new PS4 Pro started crashing as well. I was convinced it was software related and Sony just working the bugs out. Nope! After doing a lot of research, all the games that were crashing on me (Diablo 3 and ROTTR were the biggest culprits) were being played without hitch by most PS4 Pro owners. I was outside my return window so I had no choice but to send mine to Sony for repair. This was a hard decision as most games still ran just fine (including most PS4 Pro patched games – Skyrim SE, FFXV, AC Syndicate, Shadow of Mordor, Uncharted 4, etc), and I didn’t want to replaced a perfectly working system with a refurbished one, but what choice was left? So many others were playing these games without crashing.
Well, I got my warranty repair back. Credit to Sony, they sent me a brand new one! Couldn’t be happier about that, but the important thing – No more crashing on ROTTR, Diablo 3, or anything else! The fan sounded much quieter and less erratic as well. Without a doubt, the crashing was definitely hardware related as many people had suggested in forums. It happens, I understand. What is surprising to me is how many people this is happening to in the forums. I think most people are okay, but I wonder how many people have defective Pros and haven’t realized it yet.
If I had to guess (and this is just pure speculation on my part) I would say the problem stems from a very large batch of bad PS4 Pro GPU’s. Half of the GPU is always being used. The other half is completely dedicated to Pro-enhanced/patched games only to be used in tandem with the other half (which some games might not fully make use of). This explains why you can play plenty of 4k games without crashing.
Whatever the problem, it’s definitely hardware related – A patch isn’t going to fix it. I know no one wants to hear that their brand new console is defective, but if you are experiencing the same, it’s true. Early adopter problems I guess. The good news is you can test to see if yours is defective. Very simply, if you have Rise of the Tomb Raider, play it the second you get your Pro. If you experience crashes, congratulations you won the lottery (you should experience crashes within 15 minutes if it is). Take it back immediately and replace it. If you are outside of your return period, you can still warranty replace it with Sony. If you have to use Sony’s warranty repair, I will add they are excellent! It was very hassle free, and they straight-up sent me a new one.
For reference, below is my timeline for Playstation repair:
1/25/17: Requested Warranty Repair1/30/17: Received Return Box and shipped2/2/17: Delivered to Sony Repair in Laredo TX2/8/17: Received an email stating my product was shipped2/14/17: Received brand new PS4 Pro
After this experience, I’m definitely buying the PS4 Pro insurance if it becomes available (be aware the regular Playstation Protection Plan currently doesn’t cover the Pro). Good luck, I hope this helps!!
