While many titles powered by Unreal Engine 5 showcase familiar strengths and weaknesses, Pearl Abyss deserves commendation for crafting a truly innovative and groundbreaking experience. Their custom BlackSpace Engine delivers visuals that are nothing short of spectacular, creating an open world unparalleled in its immense close-up detail and vast scale.
Most of the gameplay footage released to date has been from the PC version, prompting questions about console performance. However, Pearl Abyss confidently provided a PlayStation 5 Pro unit with a nearly final build of the game – and we found it thoroughly satisfying.
The sheer size and scope of the open world are impressive, but the dynamic, systems-driven action within it is genuinely astonishing. Rather than attempting to describe this immersive experience, it’s best to let the accompanying video speak for itself. From a rendering perspective, the ray-traced diffuse global illumination stands out. A key feature from the PC version remains intact on consoles, powering a reactive system where sunlight reflects off indoor surfaces, while localized light sources, such as your character’s lantern, cast dramatic real-time shadows.
Ray tracing is active across all three graphical settings on the PS5 Pro, ensuring consistent core lighting quality throughout the game. It’s not entirely flawless; the denoiser occasionally struggles with streaking in high-contrast scenes, though this is far less disruptive than the “boiling” artifacts observed in the recent Resident Evil Requiem. Pearl Abyss also layers on extensive detail through displacement mapping, implemented at an unprecedented scale to add depth to textures, making every stone and brick incredibly distinct.
As previously disclosed in Pearl Abyss’ recent technical specifications, the game offers three distinct modes: optimal (also known as performance), balanced, and quality. These target 60fps, 40fps, and 30fps respectively. While low base resolutions before upscaling have been a common concern this generation, Pearl Abyss aims for 1080p, 1440p, and 4K base resolutions for these modes.
Both the optimal and balanced modes utilize PSSR to upscale to a 4K output. Although you’ll see this in action in the video, it’s important to note that this is not the final build. We are currently observing the first-generation PSSR, not the significantly enhanced “upgraded” version. Should its quality match that seen in Resident Evil Requiem, the outcomes are expected to be impressive.
The game also includes VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) support, as indicated in the public spec sheet, which notes the balanced mode operates at 48Hz+. This presents a challenge due to the fundamental absence of low frame-rate compensation (LFC). The game can occasionally exit the VRR window, leading to noticeable screen tearing. This is one aspect of the game I hope to see addressed in future updates, as the PS5 SDK fully supports LFC, which would resolve this issue.
Fundamentally, many are likely wondering if the high-fidelity Crimson Desert experience translates effectively to consoles. In terms of GPU scalability, the game performs well. While the optimal and balanced modes utilize upscaling, the foundational resolution is robust enough that even the initial PSSR renders acceptably overall, with some minor artifacts expected to be eliminated with the upgraded PSSR.
Regarding CPU performance, this was a more significant concern, as modern mid-range PC CPUs considerably outperform console processors. Here, limitations are more noticeable but never to the extent that the game feels “poorly optimized.”
Naturally, further evaluation is needed. For the PS5 Pro, we eagerly await the enhancements provided by the upgraded PSSR. Currently, I favor playing in balanced mode, but if the new PSSR proves as effective as anticipated, the optimal mode’s 1080p base resolution could still deliver a compelling experience with higher frame rates. Beyond that, we’re yet to see detailed information on the base PS5 or Xbox Series consoles. Nevertheless, the outlook is positive, and for PS5 Pro owners especially, Crimson Desert promises an exceptional gaming experience.