Ah, the great debate. Does 60 frames-per-second really make a difference? Well, yes, it objectively does, but do you personally care about having the option in current-gen games? That's what we're here to find out.
Frame rates have long been a talking point when it comes to console gaming, but every now and then, the conversation explodes — usually thanks to a new release that underperforms on a technical level. This year, we've witnessed several such games.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth launched with a 60fps performance mode, allowing for smoother overall action, but the extra frames come at the cost of significantly downgraded visuals — particularly on the resolution side of things. Meanwhile, both Rise of the Ronin and Dragon's Dogma 2 have been caught up in the debate because of their disappointingly shoddy frame rates.
Indeed, Capcom's open world RPG has stirred up the most fuss — largely because, at times, it can barely maintain a consistent 30fps, never mind a smooth 60. But for as underwhelming as that is, Dragon's Dogma 2 still feels like an outlier; there are plenty of games that run flawlessly on PS5 — although most of the big budget ones are from PlayStation Studios, and so you'd expect that level of polish.
The bigger picture here is that, over three years into its existence, people are starting to question the PS5's capabilities. This was a console that was partly sold on the back of much improved game performance over what we'd grown accustomed to on PS4, and yet here we are, still pointing fingers when titles struggle to reach 60fps. It's not a great look, especially with the PS5 Pro looming.