Sony’s console was released on November 19, 2020 but according to Sony Interactive Entertainment‘s platform business group CEO Hideaki Nishino, development on its mid-generation upgrade had already started before then.
“We have done Pro in the last generation,” Nishino told Variety. “We learned a lot from there. When we were selling PS4 Pro, in addition to the PS4, 20% of customers actually got the PS4 Pro.
“It was high end, it was premium tier. So there are potential users acquiring those kind of units. Interestingly enough, it was not just about highly engaged users – actually, new users came to PlayStation to get PS4 Pro, as well.
“So we started working on PS5 Pro even before PS5 launched — it was another five-year project for us. So there was a conversation around whether we wanted to do another Pro or not.
via VGC