While going though my collectors editions making sure I got everything and if there was any bonus DLC I noticed on God Wars: Future Past on the back there was an icon with the other icons which tell you how many players are supported, HDD Space, Remote Play being available. this icon said PS4 PRO ENHANCED
checking some of my other games Nier: Automata has this icon but Gravity Rush 2 doesn't and Nier: Automata was release just a bit over a month after Gravity Rush. (Nier = February 23, 2017, Gravity Rush 2 = January 18, 2017)
Now while I could assume this would mean that Nier: Automata needs the PS4 Pro Enhanced to play but I know this is wrong as my PS4 is the first generation model and Nier: Automata plays perfectly fine.
So what does it mean when a PS4 game says PS4 PRO ENHANCED on the cover?
Best Answer
"PS4 Pro Enhanced" simply means that the game makes use of the improved performance that the PS4 Pro offers. In other words: the game offers improvements when played on the Pro.
What those improvements are depends on the game. Most of the time, games will offer improved performance or graphical quality.
Horizon Zero Dawn for instance, lets players choose between either improved resolution or improved performance. Nier Automata on the other hand increases resolution to Full HD (1080p) and manages to keep framerates more consistent at the same time.
Games that are not "Pro Enhanced" do not offer any improvements when played on the Pro. Persona 5 for instance renders exactly the same on PS4 and PS4 Pro; same framerate, same resolution, same graphics quality. Please note that Pro Enhancement can be patched in (e.g. Uncharted 4 and Infamous), so even if it doesn't say "PS4 Pro Enhanced" on the cover, the game can still offer improvements after installing recent updates.
For games that are not "enhanced", the PS4 Pro also offers a "Boost Mode" which simply improves performance for games (if possible) in exchange for possibly causing issues.