The PSS pistol was named one of the most original domestic developments in the field of silent weapons. The design feature is not related to the installation of a suppressor, but to a special SP-4 cartridge, which retains powder gases inside the casing. This was stated by Vadim Malinnikov, head of the small arms department of TsNIITochMash, part of the Kalashnikov Concern.

It is the use of this ammunition that allows the PSS to maintain small dimensions while firing silently.

The development of a new silent pistol complex began in the late 1970s. The designers were tasked with creating a self-loading weapon that would be more compact than existing models and at the same time use special ammunition with powder gas cut-off.

TsNIITochMash developed the PSS pistol itself and the SP-4 cartridge: engineers V. Levchenko and Yu. Krylov were responsible for the weapon, and V. Petrov was the lead designer of the cartridge.

The main design solution was transferred directly to the cartridge. In the SP-4, powder gases after the shot are locked inside the casing with the help of a special piston that transfers pressure to the bullet. Therefore, the PSS did not require a traditional suppressor, and the pistol itself could be made relatively compact. For reliable automatic operation, the PSS design also used a movable chamber, which moves with the bolt when fired.

The PSS has a caliber of 7.62 mm, a length of 170 mm, and a weight of about 700 g with an empty magazine. The pistol uses a six-round SP-4 magazine, operates on the principle of free-bolt recoil, and the initial bullet velocity is about 200 m/s. The effective firing range is estimated at 25 m, the maximum at 50 m.

The principle of gas cut-off inside the casing was used in Soviet silent weapons starting with SP-2 and SP-3 cartridges, developed from the mid-1950s. However, pistols for those ammunition – MSP and a number of others – were non-self-loading. The PSS became the first domestic self-loading pistol to implement this principle. Subsequently, the SP-4 cartridge was also used in the silent revolver OTSS-38 "Vorchun", and in 2011 the PSS-2 pistol for the more powerful SP-16 cartridge entered service.