Sony has confirmed games on the PS5 Pro will look even better than before as a key new graphics upgrade rolls out globally and, if Resident Evil Requiem is anything to go by, it’s a literal game changer.
You’ll probably have seen the term ‘PSSR’ used a lot online – it stands for PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution and is an AI library that analyses game images pixel by pixel as it upscales them.
It’s already been used to boost the effective resolution of more than 50 games on PS5 Pro.
And the new advanced upscaler, which has been dubbed PSSR 2.0 online, has been featured for the very first time in Capcom’s Resident Evil Requiem – and it looks amazing.
PS5 Pro’s new PSSR upgrade in action / Capcom
Sony shared images of main protagonist Grace from the game – one with the newer PSSR (above) and one with the older (below).
The same image of Grace but with the older PSSR on PS5 Pro in acton / Capcom
In the image where new PSSR is used, Grace’s features are noticeably much sharper, especially in the details of her hair where more light is reflecting from it.
It’s much clearer with the new PSSR. Further screenshots posted online appear to show this too.
Mark Cerny, lead architect of the PS5 and PS5 Pro, said: “We’ve been hard at work on a new version of PSSR, which takes a very different approach to not only the neural network but also the overall algorithm.
“We are happy to share that Resident Evil Requiem is the first title to use this more advanced PSSR, which is helping to keep both frame rate and image quality high.”
The algorithm and neural network used in the new PSSR comes from Sony’s Project Amethyst partnership with AMD. PC gamers have already been able to experience this through AMD’s FSR 4 upscaling technology and this is now becoming available to PS5 Pro players.
Masaru Ijuin, senior manager engine development support section R&D foundational technology department at Capcom, said: “With Resident Evil Requiem, we focused on enhancing the presentation quality of the protagonist through an upgraded version of RE Engine to deepen the player’s immersion in horror.
“For example, each individual strand of hair and beard is rendered as a polygon, allowing it to move realistically in response to body motion and wind.
“The way light passes through his hair changes depending on how the strands of hair are overlapped as well. This detailed expression of texture is one of the many details that we would especially love for our fans to see.
“The upgraded PSSR has allowed us to elevate our expressiveness by successfully processing these details and textural particularities, which are traditionally difficult to upscale because of their intricacy.”
Sony confirmed more news will be shared in March, when multiple existing games will be upgraded to the new PSSR. There will be a new system software update then too, where players can select ‘enhance PSSR image quality’ in the settings to experience the new PSSR with any PS5 Pro games that support it.
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