PS5 Pro: Developers share how they’re using new tech to enhance their games

Earlier this month, we revealed the PlayStation 5 Pro console and how dozens of games will take advantage of its powerful hardware capabilities when it launches November 7. Today during State of Play, we added a few games to the growing list of titles that feature PlayStation 5 Pro enhanced features or modes.

Depending on the game, and the team, PS5 Pro’s hardware can be used to enhance games in a variety of ways.* Here’s what 14 developers have to say about their titles running on PS5 Pro:

Polyphony Digital

“While Gran Turismo 7 was already able to render in native 4K, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution on PS5 Pro is also effective on 4K sources, allowing for even more detail and higher image quality than ever before. Additionally, we are now able to support ray tracing during races, which was previously impossible. This allows not only for car surfaces to show full reflections of other cars, but also for a car to reflect its own parts, greatly enhancing realism and immersion throughout the whole game.

Furthermore, Gran Turismo 7 will feature experimental support for 8K/60fps output* . Players will be able to see the precisely modeled cars and tracks in unprecedented detail and clarity, with a breathtaking sense of presence. Thanks to these cutting edge developments, Gran Turismo 7 will be able to provide more exciting and visually stunning race experiences than was previously possible.”
– Shuichi Takano, Main Programmer / Polyphony

Guerrilla

“PlayStation 5 Pro brings a lot of extra horsepower that has allowed us to really push the graphical fidelity, while also maintaining the stable high framerates that we all enjoy so much. For Horizon Forbidden West, that means you can now enjoy a visual quality that matches or surpasses the Quality mode on the regular PlayStation 5, but now at 60 FPS – double the framerate.

It’s also good to point out that visual quality isn’t just about resolution, it’s about so much more. There are many improvements to the Decima engine that are now made possible because of the rendering power of PS5 Pro. You’ll see improvement to shadows, depth-of-field, skin and hair shaders, clouds, god rays and so much more. It’s pure eye candy at racecar levels of performance. We hope you enjoy it.

We’re also very happy to share that Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered comes with native support for PlayStation 5 Pro. This includes a range of graphical features that have been improved to make use of the power of the PS5 Pro, while also delivering ultra-high fidelity at blazing fast framerates.”
– Jan-Bart van Beek, Studio Director & Art Director Guerrilla

Naughty Dog

“We here at Naughty Dog are proud to offer PS5 Pro updates for both The Last of Us Part I and The Last of Us Part II Remastered, ensuring PS5 Pro players have the most optimized experience for both entries. Each game will offer a new PS5 Pro-specific enhanced rendering mode that takes advantage of improved graphics processing, rendering 1440p, then upscaling to 4K via PSSR super resolution*. This mode maintains the 60 fps target, offering an ideal balance of framerate and resolution.

Performance and Fidelity rendering modes are still available on PS5 Pro and will provide an even smoother experience than players would see on an original PS5, as well as a higher framerate if your display supports it. Whether it will be your first time experiencing these stories, or a chance to jump in again, we hope all fans of The Last of Us enjoy experiencing this amazing way to play.”
– Vincent Marxen, Lead Programmer / Naughty Dog

Insomniac Games

“At Insomniac Games, we’ve released four games for PlayStation 5, and we’re excited to be enhancing all four to take advantage of the new capabilities available to us on the PS5 Pro. Players of Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will find a new default Performance Pro mode, which marries the crisp 4K resolution and ray tracing features of Fidelity mode with the speedy 60 frames per second of Performance mode.

These are incredible no-compromises experiences we know fans will love, and we’re excited to spend even more time finding new ways we can leverage PS5 Pro on both these existing titles and future games like Marvel’s Wolverine.”
– Mike Fitzgerald, Core Technology Director / Insomniac Games

Avalanche Software

“We are so excited to finally share that we have upgraded Hogwarts Legacy for PS5 Pro. As soon as we had access to the new console, we decided to focus our efforts on the following hardware technology pillars:

Increased Performance Capabilities

State-of-the art PSSR Upscale Image Resolution technology

New ray-tracing features

With the increased performance capabilities, we were able to raise the quality of our Performance and Fidelity visual modes without compromising player experience. Players will be able to experience crisper, richer, higher resolution graphics, leveraging PSSR on all visual modes. The additional GPU performance power allowed us to revamp our Fidelity Ray tracing visual mode to present the game in a new light. Players will notice new visual reflections and ray traced shadows in all environments. From the gorgeous indoor reflections around the Hogwarts Castle Great Hall and its classrooms, the detailed shadows around the Hogsmeade shops and the rich water reflections around the Black Lake, to the mysterious shadows around the Forbidden Forest, Hogwarts Legacy continues to show that magic is everywhere.”
– Jose Villeta, Director of Software Engineering / WB Games Avalanche Software

Capcom

“Greetings, Arisen on PlayStation! From all of us at Capcom, we are thrilled to welcome the PS5 Pro.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 will benefit from the power of the PS5 Pro, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) and new ray tracing technology, allowing improved framerates.

For those new to Dragon’s Dogma 2, prepare for a single player, narrative driven action-RPG that challenges players to choose their own experience – from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations, and more. Set forth on your grand adventure on PS5 Pro, Arisen.”
– Joseph Bustos, Social Media & Community Manager, Capcom USA

“For Resident Evil Village, we added 120fps gameplay to provide the best possible user experience on PS5 Pro. Thanks to this major performance boost, the unique and memorable cast of characters looks even more realistic, adding greatly to the scare factor, and the action scenes have more punch than ever before. The beautiful and haunting world of Resident Evil Village uses the power of PS5 Pro for ultra-high-resolution technology, painting a vividly realistic picture that allows for the highest sense of immersion.

Resident Evil 4 is a survival horror game with a ton of gameplay variety, built around the concept “Survival is just the beginning.” On PS5 Pro, the game runs at a higher framerate, making the dynamic action even more intense. Resident Evil 4 also uses the power of PS5 Pro for ultra-high-resolution technology, painting vividly realistic imagery brimming with detailed environments and more natural and beautiful visual effects than ever before.”
– Capcom

Electronic Arts

“We are excited to see how Dragon Age: The Veilguard will lean into the power that PS5 Pro unlocks for players. Whether you love deep progression, strategic combat, or diving into the lore of Dragon Age, you will immediately notice the improved experience with PS5 Pro. The game’s Fidelity and Performance modes will both see improvements on the hardware, including improved resolution in 30FPS Fidelity and 60FPS Performance modes. Additionally, there will be various improved visual settings across 30FPS Fidelity and 60FPS Performance mode.

The team at BioWare is proud of how immersed players will be when they enter the beautiful world of Thedas, with upgraded image quality thanks to Sony’s new AI-based upscalers, PSSR. We’ve enabled Raytraced Ambient Occlusion (RTAO) in the 60FPS Performance mode, which previously was only available on the base PlayStation 5 with 30FPS Fidelity mode.”
– Maciej Kurowski, BioWare Studio Technical Director

“Our engineers have been thrilled to push the boundaries of what’s possible with the new hardware and partnering with SIE has allowed us to deliver an even more enhanced version of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor for PlayStation 5 Pro.

In Quality Mode, we offer our highest-ever console resolution at 2160p. At the same time, Performance Mode continues to deliver a solid 60 fps—but now with higher resolutions and the added visual depth of ray tracing for reflections and ambient occlusion. The new PSSR upscaling ensures a sharper visual experience in both modes.

Performance Mode on PS5 Pro is my new favorite way to play Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. I can’t wait for you to play it!”
– Bobby Wilkinson, Technical Director at Respawn Entertainment

Koei Tecmo Games

“We are very happy to bring to you a new way to experience Rise of the Ronin with the PS5 Pro.

Not only is there responsive katana action at a high framerate, but you can also walk through beautiful renditions of the streets of Yokohama, Edo, and Kyoto, and meet heroes of the 19th century depicted in greater graphical detail.

I hope you will all try and experience this Bakumatsu era world of Japan.”
– Fumihiko Yasuda, “Rise of the Ronin” Development Producer

Konami Digital Entertainment

“In Metal Gear Solid Delta, the innovative PSSR technology allows for the trees and the lush vegetation of the game’s iconic jungle terrain to become more vivid, and enhances the sense of realism of infiltrating through a natural environment. Additionally, we are able to deliver a smoother gameplay experience with better framerates throughout the entire game.”
– Yuji Korekado / Creative Producer / Konami Digital Entertainment

Nexon Games

“In The First Descendant, we put significant effort into expanding the ray tracing feature by leveraging PS5 Pro’s superior GPU performance and enhanced ray tracing architecture. As a result, we achieved more lifelike and natural lighting and shadow effects compared to the standard PlayStation 5.

Additionally, by utilizing PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, we were able to deliver higher resolution and better image quality. We are also currently working on enabling FSR 3.1 Frame Generation to provide improved framerate. We hope that players of The First Descendant will enjoy enhanced gameplay experience with superior image quality and frame rate through PS5 Pro.”
– Jun-hwan Kim, Lead Engine Programmer / Magnum Studio, Nexon Games

Remedy Games

“Our graphics engineers at Remedy have greatly enjoyed improving Alan Wake 2 for PS5 Pro together with the team at Sony Interactive. With a game like Alan Wake 2, where the mood and environmental story-telling are essential, bringing ray tracing to the game as a brand new feature adds another layer of immersion. We have also used the additional power of PS5 Pro to improve the visuals and effects in the 60fps Performance mode, where we have upped the output resolution to 4K, making the experience look even better than before.”
– Thomas Puha, Communications Director / Remedy Entertainment

Shift Up

“With PS5 Pro, players will be able to enjoy Stellar Blade in 4K resolution at 50fps or more, with smoother gameplay, and you’ll notice an improvement in grain and detail in the game in PSSR upscale mode.

Plus, the HFR (high framerate) option is supported, allowing you to enjoy a fluid gaming experience at 80 fps (120hz display support required).”
– Dongki Lee /Stellar Blade Technical Director, CTO / Shift Up

Square Enix

“Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is now able to evolve to the next level by utilizing the new architecture and superior hardware power of PS5 Pro. The new Enhanced Mode* developed especially for PS5 Pro combines the characteristics of the existing Performance Mode and Graphics Mode to offer players a new visual experience.

Specifically, Enhanced mode runs at a frame rate of 60 FPS and supports PSSR to achieve a resolution on par with that of Graphics Mode (mode names under development and subject to change).

These visual enhancements result in even richer rendering for all aspects of the game, including the world, the combat and the cut scenes, taking player immersion even further. We invite you to experience an even more thrilling, even more beautiful Final Fantasy VII Rebirth with PS5 Pro.”
– Naoki Hamaguchi, Director / Square Enix

Ubisoft

“Right from the start of The Crew Motorfest’s development, the teams at Ivory Tower have always been excited to experiment with the features and power offered by the PlayStation 5: the advanced haptic feedback of the DualSense controller, faster loading times, and more. We are always looking for new ways to make driving in our Hawaiian world more impactful, more immersive.

The PlayStation 5 already permitted The Crew Motorfest to get to a new level of visual fidelity and immersion, making the controller the perfect link between the player and the terrain. With the power and new features of PS5 Pro, we had the opportunity to push visual settings and details even further: sharper and cleaner image quality thanks to PSSR, with more objects on-screen – decals, vegetation, crowds – all running at 60fps. All combined, we think we’ve found the most intense way to experience the game.”
– Didier Blanché, Technical Director / Ubisoft Ivory Tower

“Assassin’s Creed Shadows is our upcoming open-world action-adventure RPG taking place in Feudal Japan. We’ve been working diligently to maximize the experience on PS5 Pro.

Leveraging the increased ray-tracing capabilities of PS5 Pro, Assassin’s Creed Shadows will exhibit an enhanced ray-traced global illumination technology. Thanks to PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR ) and combined with the more powerful GPU, players will see improved rendering systems and an increase in the photorealism and immersion of the game. As players explore Feudal Japan, they can expect improved environments, ambiance and atmosphere as well as more details, up close and at a distance.

With PS5 Pro, players will be able to experience a visually stunning game that fully immerses them in 16th century Japan.”
– Pierre Fortin, Technology Director

*Features only available on select PS5 games that have been enhanced for PS5 Pro when compared with PS5. PS5 Pro enhanced features will vary by game. Enhanced features require a compatible display.