One of the main reasons that Cerny is being doubted so much is the way things were introduced, as I already mentioned. Microsoft has given very little leeway for speculation with the way they presented things. They presented the specs, the console, how the console fits together, faster loading with zero optimization, free HDR being added to older games... I mean, how much is there to doubt or criticize? Oh. They also presented the changes to the controller, how you can use it with your older system and how older controllers will also work with the newer box. The reveal was fantastic, and even if you're not an Xbox fan, if you're honest, you have to admit that it was a great reveal.
As already mentioned, the announcement of the PS5 was a mess. Not even an image of the console, what was shown until now is a picture of the controller, some Spider-Man tech demo, and a bunch of fancy talk that sounds amazing to the uninitiated. And more importantly, if not most importantly, the rumors of the 9.2TFLOPS PS5 are too close to be just rumors. This brings the inevitable speculation that the PS5 was actually slower but got boosted up at the last minute in order to be closer to the Xbox. I mean... Look at this, published on Dec 30th of last year;
According to the leaked specs, the PS5’s Oberon chip will offer up 36 Navi compute units running at 2.0GHz, which would amount to a 9.2 teraflop GPU. The processor will also use GDDR6 memory, with a bandwidth of 448GB/s to 512GB/s. As previously reported, the GPU will have three modes, allowing for baked-in hardware emulation of the PS4 and PS4 Pro.
Leaked information about the Xbox Series X GPU is much less comprehensive, but apparently the chip has 3584 shaders, which would require a whopping 56 Navi compute units. Given that number, DF estimates Microsoft may be targeting 12 teraflops with its Arden chip. It’s also confirmed that the Arden chip will have a memory bandwidth of 560GB/s.
Newly verified GPU spec leaks point to the Xbox Series X being more powerful than the PS5. Get all the current details!
wccftech.com
All this begs the question of whether Sony needed to boost their specs at the last minute to become a bit more competitive, to be at least be above 10TFLOPS. Imagine the PR disaster if the PS5 had NOTHING that is better than the XSX. Obviously they can't lie about the GPU or CPU. That's one of the hardest things to upgrade, so, why not up-talk the SSD instead? That's much easier to upgrade and you'd have a talking point as an advantage for the PS5. Obviously, if there is a change, no matter how slight, possibly the whole console needs to be redesigned... Faster SSDs require more cooling for one, and if you're going to boost your CPU and GPU as well, you'd have to adapt the cooling for that too... The fact that the PS5 has not been shown yet, is evidence to support this. Who unveils a console by showing the controller first...? And yes, hardware can be changed at the 'last minute'. Remember the PS3 banana boomerang controller that got ditched because of the bad PR it brought?
There are too many coincidences. And pretty much everything is pointing towards Sony being caught off-guard with the XSX and them needing to uplift their console. The idea that somehow people are being more critical of Cerny than Phil Spencer because of bias is a complete joke. Cerny has given everyone reasons for doubt. Phil Spencer has not. And I'm sorry if that's hard to hear, but that is simply how it is.