PS5's Spider-Man: Remastered Upgrade Will Not Be Free For PS4 Owners

Sony recent held another big PlayStation 5 showcase, which offered a new look at Spider-Man: Miles Morales. After the event, Sony announced not only is the standalone adventure coming to PS4 and PS5, but that the original Spider-Man will be getting a PS5 remaster with a bunch on new graphical feature. The bad news? You'll have to buy the game again.

In a situation similar to Control and its next-gen Ultimate edition, Sony is not offering a way for existing Spider-Man owners on PS4 to upgrade their version to the new PS5 remaster outside of buying the game again. In a statement from Sony, the company says the remaster won't be sold as a standalone, meaning you'll have to buy the $70 Miles Morales Ultimate Edition to get access to the remaster on PS5.

"There are no plans currently to offer Marvel's-Spider-Man: Remastered as a standalone," the statement reads. "Players with a copy of Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 can purchase Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition to experience Marvel's Spider-Man: Remastered on PS5. Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 also will be backwards compatible on PS5."

To be clear, you will be able to play your Spider-Man PS4 copy on PS5, it just won't be the remastered version. That means you'll miss out on new features like ray tracing, enhanced textures, and more. You'll just be playing the same game on a console that is able to run it more stability, nothing more.

The situation gets a bit confusing when you take the original Spider-Man out of the equation. You can purchase Miles Morales separately on PS4, which will give you a free upgrade to the PS5 version--but only for the Miles Morales content. If you want the original remaster as part of your Miles Morales purchase, Sony is offering a $20 upgrade, which brings your total back up to the $70 of the Ultimate Edition.

In summary:

• Spider-Man: Miles Morales on PS4 grants you a free upgrade to Miles Morales on PS5 (no upgrade for physical to digital).
• The standard version of Spider-Man: Miles Morales can be upgraded for $20 to include Spider-Man: Remastered on PS5.
• The Ultimate edition of Spider-Man: Miles Morales includes Spider-Man: Remastered, retails for $70
• Spider-Man on PS4 can be played on PS5 via backwards compatibility with no visual enhancements. No way to upgrade this version to the remaster.

This flies against how Microsoft is handling cross-generation upgrades for its first-party titles, which will be free across the board. With Smart Delivery, Microsoft says that players will not have to worry about upgrading their games, with some third-party publishers also choosing not to charge for next-gen upgrades, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and Assassin's Creed Valhalla. Even The Witcher 3, from 2015, is getting a free next-gen upgrade next year.

That's not the case for all publishers though. 505 Games announced a few weeks ago that fans of Control will be faced with a similar situation to Spider-Man, requiring the purchase of the new Ultimate edition to get access to next-gen upgrades. Other publishers will charge a fee, such as Activision with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales launches with the PlayStation 5 on November 12. If you're still looking out for a way to preorder a PS5, check out our pre-order guide for updates.