Unmatched visual quality like you’ve never seen on console before.
Few could have predicted that we would be talking about the Horizon series as one of the best uses for the PlayStation 5 Pro console. The seemingly minor update turned out to be an absolute marvel that we’ve never seen before on consoles. In the following analysis, we’ll look at Horizon Forbidden West, as well as the recently released Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered.
What do the original PS5 versions look like?
Technically, the games are very similar, because the goal of the remaster was to raise the graphics to a similar level to Forbidden West. The original PS5 version includes three modes: Performance, Balanced and Resolution.
Performance mode offers 60 frames per second with a dynamic resolution of 1800p and uses checkerboard rendering. The resolution mode targets dynamic 4K (often truly native 2160p), but of course only at 30fps. The later added Balanced mode for 120Hz displays a target speed of 40fps with dynamic 4K, but using a checkerboard.
- Performance
- Entrance: Dynamic 1800s
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: Chessboard + TAA
- Maximum frame rate: 60 fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 60 frames per second
- Balanced
- Entrance: Dynamic 2160c
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: Chessboard + TAA
- Maximum frame rate: 40fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 40fps
- Permission
- Entrance: Dynamic 2160p
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: TAA
- Maximum frame rate: 30fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 30fps
Overall, both games look great already on the base PS5, and Forbidden West is still among the most technologically advanced games on the consoles, but the Performance mode in particular had significant shortcomings, especially in overall image quality.
What’s new on PS5 Pro
Improved versions retain all three original modes, but improve them, in particular by adding scaling. And no, this is not the PSSR, as you might think. Instead of the technology being the main attraction of the new console and being used by first-party and third-party developers, the creators at Guerrilla Games have created their own scaling technology. It was originally intended for future games, but they decided to retroactively implement it in both Horizons.
- Productivity Pro
- Entrance: Dynamic 1440p
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: Own technology
- Maximum frame rate: 60 fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 60 frames per second
- Balanced Pro
- Entrance: Dynamic 2160p
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: Own technology
- Maximum frame rate: 40fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 40fps
- Resolution Pro
- Entrance: Dynamic 2160p
- exit: 2160 RUR
- Upscaling + smoothing: Own technology
- Maximum frame rate: 30fps
- Actual frame rate: Stable 30fps
Vegetation and image sharpness
When I first turned on Horizon Forbidden West on PS5 Pro, I couldn’t believe my eyes. This is something you really need to experience for yourself and it’s hard to convey through a compressed video, but I’ll try to show it anyway. The image quality provided by Guerrila Games’ upscaling is probably the best we’ve ever seen on consoles.
The flickering and anti-aliasing are gone, but so is the blurring. This technology produces exceptionally crisp and clear images. This is best seen in the vegetation, of which there really is a lot in Horizons.
I note that this and all subsequent comparisons are made between the original and the new Performance mode, that is, modes that strive for (and consistently maintain) 60 FPS. The rest I’ll cover only minimally here, and the reason is simple – the PS5 Pro version makes Performance Mode the absolute obvious choice.
You can also see a big difference in the following video by looking at the grass and the nearby village. Not only is the vegetation more stable, but the halos of flying leaves have all but disappeared, and you’ll notice that people and buildings in the background are much more detailed and sharp, whereas in the original Performance mode it was lost due to the checkerboard pattern.
Performance Pro mode versus Performance Pro mode. Permission
As you can see, and perhaps most importantly, the new Performance mode easily competes with the original Resolution mode, which can rely on native 4K resolution. Image sharpness and clarity are very similar.
And this also applies in a broader sense.
Cutscenes
You will also feel the changes in the new modes in the cut scenes, although perhaps a little less than in the gameplay itself. Again, foliage and image sharpness play a major role here, but faces are also a bit more detailed, and thanks to better depth of field, the image is more stable around the edges of character models.
He can also be seen in this scene in the remaster of the first part.
Holograms
The developers also announced improved holograms, and indeed, the difference is very noticeable. In the original Performance mode they are very blurry and look more like moving images than holograms, unlike the Performance Pro mode where they are rendered much sharper.
Again, the new performance mode maintains the quality of the original resolution mode.
Effects
Changes to other effects such as fire were also promised. But as you can see, in real life the differences are minimal and you most likely won’t notice them. Either way, the effect seems a little cleaner, without any pixelation.
Nicknames
The last element I’d like to touch on is aliasing, or more specifically, the elimination of aliases. As you can see on this fence in the Zero Dawn remaster, we find quite a bit of flickering in the original Performance mode, while the enhanced version on PS5 Pro is significantly better.
Summary
Overall, the PS5 Pro versions of both Horizon games are fantastic upgrades. If you prefer frame rates and want to use the performance mode on the original console, the PS5 Pro has significant improvements in the form of cleaner foliage, sharper images, more detailed character models, more realistic holograms, better effects and fewer aliases.
Dutch developers Guerrilla Games must have really worked some magic, as their upscaling technology delivers absolutely incredible image quality that we’ve never seen before on consoles. And it could be compared to Nvidia’s DLSS.
It’s such a success that it makes little sense to recommend any other mode other than Performance Pro. The improved Balanced and Resolution modes offer slightly higher internal resolution, but given how good the new Performance mode looks, there’s no reason to sacrifice frame rates.
I really hope that we see Guerrilla Games’ own technology in more games, at least those that also use the Decima engine. What about Death Stranding 2?
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Source :Indian TV
