Update: There was a lot of talk on social this week that Ubisoft had effectively gimped the PlayStation 5 version of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, after Digital Foundry discovered the game performed best on Sony’s console. That’s not quite the case, however.
Performance Mode, which targets 60 frames-per-second on PS5, is largely unchanged with new patch – outside of a couple frames difference during an early cut-scene. However, the game now holds a minuscule framerate advantage on Xbox Series X because the French publisher has dropped the dynamic resolution scaler on that console, meaning it bottoms out at a lower resolution than on PS5.
All in all, we’re still talking about microscopic differences between the two machines.
Original Story: PlayStation 5 was expected to perform slightly worse than the Xbox Series X in early next-gen comparisons, as Microsoft’s machine is marginally more powerful on paper. However, the first Digital Foundry face-off for a major new title in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla puts Sony’s new console ahead – even if the differences are, at the end of the day, incredibly minor.
According to the tech analysts, both consoles output identical resolutions at the same graphical settings. They both also target 60 frames-per-second, but this is where PS5 pulls ahead. The site reports: “At its worst, we noted PS5 delivering a 15 per cent performance advantage over its Microsoft equivalent in identical scenarios.”
It’s worth mentioning that both systems experience obtrusive tearing, which is something we’ve noticed in DIRT 5 as well. The new Xbox supports VRR with compatible televisions, which can minimise any issues encountered on the Series X. Sony’s yet to incorporate this feature, as we mentioned in our 10 Things PS5 Needs to Improve.
The bottom-line, frankly, is that both consoles are performing well here. The outcome may be surprising – some are putting it down to PS5’s development tools being more mature – but it’s perhaps a reminder that this is the smallest gap between two pieces of hardware we’ve ever experienced before. It’s great to see such solid early results for Sony’s new system, though!
[source eurogamer.net]
Comments 101
Here’s hoping they can implement VRR on PS5. It’s the one major feature I do think the console is missing. Well, other than folders of course 😉
15% is neglectable, but of course people will use this to fuel the fires of the console wars.
Either way, I'm happy that both systems are performing ok. That way people can actually chose consoles based on stuff that matters like exclusives, where your friends are, where you have your BC library, etc
Don't underestimate the power of Playstation.
People tend to forget that we all need Xbox to do well too. This way it keeps sony on their toes and banging out good content instead of getting lazy and complacent. It happend this gen imo with the ps5 launch. No themes,no folders, issues with not knowing which version of a game your playing(ps4 or ps5) , trophey synching issues, ssd storage space and Sony were sucker punched with a couple of MS surprises when everyone expected them to fall right out of the gate such as superior bc, acquisition of a few major dev teams, amazing games pass etc.
I really like a lot of what DF do but videos like this is why lame fan boys still think there's a war going on
I'm sure this is mistake, but Currys is showing PS5 available but at £2449. If you can't beat the scalpers join them!
We’ll have to see if either console implements a DLSS equivalent, which would be a huge win.
@Kopite Imagine arguing over a few framerate differences, though.
Time will tell, launch ports mean nothing, but still good to hear, currently gonna be using an XSX though since I got 2 1/2 years of Gold and upgraded for $1 to ultimate, then I'll buy a ps5 1-2 years from now when games are cheaper
I think Black Ops Cold War is in a similar situation according to another youtube video. Only a few frames better than XBox Series X, but still...
Why say you're the best console in terms of performance, when your competitor is doing it even just slightly better?
I am looking forward to eventually upgrading to a PS5. There isn't a whole lot of games I'm interested in yet, but even playing PS4 games with better loading times sounds great. Im not as patient as I once was so faster load times is easily my favorite feature for PS5.
Screen tearing? Last time I saw that was on the early PS3 games like Lego Star Wars, which was terrible until you activated the V Sync option!
Oh I didnt see that coming 🙄
So people saying PS5 is weak or 'lacks horse power' yadi yada were full of it and it was just console war cheap talk? What a surprise /S
@get2sammyb absolute madness, seen a few people arguing on twitter about the additional SSD space earlier today I really just don't understand it
FFS, they're both high-end machines with SSDs and double digit teraflops. No one's going to notice any meaningful performance differences except digital foundry.
It appears those higher clock speeds for the GPU are closing that tflop gap significantly or even surpassing the Xbox. Ultimately both are going to perform fantastically well but it seems we can put to bed this idea of the Series X having any kind of significant advantage and it'll be more down to the developers and this "full" RDNA2 business is a bit of a red herring
Correct one thing that the PS5 is missing is VRR.
If we are returning to the bad ole screen tearing days of the Xbox 360 and PS3 with third party games. VRR totally removes it.
I have ACV with VRR enabled, no screen tearing and very smooth.
I think Sony will add this feature but don’t hold your breath as none of their 2020 new OLED TV’s have this feature and the mess they made with TV and blu ray players with Dolby Vision who knows what might happen.
Such an amazing game studios and some amazing hardware console and TV wise etc and they fanny about with the simplest of things like VRR and a bespoke low latancy version of Dolby Vision.
@Mega-Gazz I don't think these GPU's are even capable of such a thing to any degree, even the PC equivalents don't have it and the Nvidia cards have dedicated hardware for this which these lack. Also explains why ray tracing is a pretty low level effort on consoles too but still welcome nonetheless
@get2sammyb some of us are nerds and are interested academically.
I mean, honestly, if I remember right MS is banking on more parallelism in processing, and cerny said they chose to go the other route because in practice it is hard to be efficient using more threads.
So I’m less arguing for one or the other but more curious if David or Goliath will win.
@carlos82 Microsoft has said they put some ML into their system, and AMD has said they are working on an equivalent. If all that pans out it could be really cool.
@Mpquikster its only really ray tracing that should bring framerates down to 30fps but this is entirely down to AMD's implementation as its built into the computer units where as Nvidia has dedicated hardware just for it. Even on the new PC cards they are well behind in ray tracing performance so I wouldn't expect to see any ray tracing at 60fps on either console. That said the likes of Spider-Man and Demon's Souls still look amazing at 60fps, so graphically they'll definitely do both
@K-Wud this is to allow people who have had issues with pre-orders etc re-buy their console. Currys send them a dedicated "£2000 off PS5" coupon to allow only them to purchase it at the normal price of £449, while the high price stops anyone else coming in to buy one when they are officially sold out bar the ones reserved for pre-orders
@Mega-Gazz it could be but without dedicated hardware we won't see anywhere near the performance advantages you get with the 30 series graphics cards
The spec gap between the two is smaller than the largely unnoticeable gap between the Xbone and PS4. So, not surprising the differences here are basically nothing.
@carlos82 Have you seen the 6800XT vs 3080 benchmarks today? The new AMD stuff is worthless. Worse in practically every game compared to a 3080. And since the RT is handled in CUs, the 3080 can deliver up to 500% more frames in certain games with raytracing on and without DLSS. Turning on DLSS upscaling widens the gap even more.
Such a shame. I was hoping they'd catch up like they did with intel. The 6900XT will be a good card, if you never want to use raytracing. Basically a dead card.
Supposedly a patch is already down on ps5 to help with V sync issues.
@Menchi yeah I was looking at them and sadly it seems ray tracing on these consoles will be pretty limited because of that. Over on PC I can't see why anyone would buy these AMD cards, especially the 6800 which is more than the 3070 for less performance. Just get the 3080 and you're going to destroy any of those AMD cards with RT and DLSS turned on
@Total_Weirdo
Sure it’s coming? I just got two emails from Game, one stating I get £30 off a very limited selection of games, the other blaming yodel for delivery delays. Looks like Friday for me and many in the U.K. now.
I think VRR will be updated soon enough. But I think the GPU on the PS5 having a higher clock speed and that incredible SSD is performing better than expecting. The SSD can also be used to load textures and help take the load of the GPU. Interesting times PS5 also had an advantage with higher Framerate on DMC5. Both amazing consoles tbh.
@carlos82 Now if they'd just restock them lol
It is heartbreaking when you see that Unity is more "Assassin" than this...
@Mpquikster Simple people wont pay more the €600 PS3 was a issue already. The few people that will pay that wont make a profit.
That's the price you get as a pre order I think. They give you a voucher for a £2000 discount when you buy it. Don't quite know the reasoning behind this though
@thefourfoldroot @K-Wud i Just got watch dogs for £40 with that voucher. Not bad
@Shezza82
Strange, I only get the option if a few games. I wanted Sackboy, but can only get dirt 5, avengers, or control. If I must I’ll get dirt 5 I guess. Maybe they aren’t doing with Sony’s first party games...
@Kalvort indeed! AND the fact that UBIsoft with Valhalla have a partnership with microsoft is strange here. Well the game is not looking very optimized for consoles atm so I suggest the PS5 needs less of this optimization to run a bit better.
@get2sammyb Did we watch the same video? DF seemed pretty underwhelmed at the Series X performance, a lot of screen tearing and many dips below 60 compared to PS5.
Now I absolutely don't want to give any ammunition to sad console war fanboys - I abhor all that BS - but equally it's important to say it as it is and bring up when there is poor optimisation. It appears that is the case on the Series X version, and to a lesser extent the PS5 version with this game. Ultimately this leads to a poorer gameplay experience for us gamers and needs to be called out.
@Athrum it's closer to 30%. I think they meant 15 frames per second difference (45 to 60)
@God_of_Nowt
Good to hear. Hopefully I’ll get multiple and can redeem them all. Dirt 5 for a £5 won’t be too shabby.
Good to see the differences are minimal.
@AJDarkstar actually he's just clarified on Twitter that the gap is more than 15% and that the vsync is hiding much of it with screen tearing on the Xbox
You're right about GT7 and I believe Dirt 5 does as well and even COD but thats just for shadows. I was thinking more about these big open world and single player games which are targeting 60fps at the top end
@Kidfunkadelic83 WTF are you talking about? Are you really trying to say Sony was lazy during the PS4 era.... Uhhh news flash pal! PS4 was the best generation for Playstation Studios and their games were huge hits! Massive sales! PS4 also dominated in console sales. You clearly have no clue what you're talking about! Now speaking on PS5, their launch lineup was light years ahead of Xbox. Going forward you can count on Sony to to pump out excellent AAA games from their studios. Get real pal! You're either a troll or a MS fanboy!
@God_of_Nowt
Bugger, you’re right! The wife told me it was £30 off! Just checked and it’s for £30. Meaning you save bugger all really, but it’s Game so what do I expect? lol.
So both consoles work similarly as everybody expected. Good.
Only thing giving me shivers is that Xbox Series S performance. I was looking at that as my second gaming machine (game pass stick.. you know..) but if that is how launch titles are looking.. might be a hard pass.
PS5 wins! Game over!
Now I will safely return to my parent's basement for further hibernation.
MS, Mark Cerny sends you his warmest regards.
@Kidfunkadelic83 So what exactly happened? Sony was surprised by MS even though they released FFVIIR, TLOU2, and GoT within the span of 5 months? I fail to see how that may be construed as lazy...
Cerny is a genius. I'm not worried about PS5 performances even though on paper Microsoft has a small edge. Raw power isn't everything, just like that DF video showed.
@Kidfunkadelic83 that's a myth that has been been repeated to death but has no basis in reality. Sony absolutely dominated MS with ps4 and still delivered some of its best exclusives.
Whether they are on top (ps1, ps2, ps4) or struggling (ps3), they consistently make superb games. People can call them arrogant all they want, but they cannot deny the quality of their exclusives, even if they personally prefer Ninty's or MS' first party games.
They simply don't need competition to do well.
@sprybry imo the ps5 is a rushed console. Its missing features such as folders, themes, trophey synching issues, lack of storage capacity and other features that was eventually present on the ps4. Dont get me wrong as im am exited for the next gen and sony is my console and always will be but i still feel the console could and should have been optimised better before launch. I feel this is down to sony complete white wash of the xbox one and the more powerful X. I think they got complacent with their success and as others have said, rested on their laurels. I didnt say the ps4 is lazy. Best console (for software) ive ever owned. My point was that without solid competition a company doesnt need a reason to strive and be better. It can be whatever it want as there is no one to tell it otherwise.
@K-Wud lol nah that's there preorder system to stop bots..if you have. Successful preorder you get a code that discounts the ps5 to retail price
@Mafia_Man19 he's clearly no troll or MS fanboy. This is a view that many share simply because so many others have expressed it.
It's how masses work. You repeat something enough times and people will start believing it, no matter what it is.
But I agree with you. Sony doesn't need competition to pump stellar exclusives. They do it regardless of their success.
@naruball im not denying they didnt dominate and i will reiterate that im am a sony fan boy who cant stand MS with a passion but i still think to do better and be better without being complacent that competition is needed. And your right, their exclusive are second to none. I appreciate you not being aggressive like the other fool.
Have been counting the days, just 1 more sleep now
As far as I'm concerned the console wars are over. Sony won the console wars, which is why Microsoft is focusing so heavily on backwards compatibility, cloud services, and subscription based gaming. I haven't purchased an MS game in 2 years because of Xbox Live Ultimate, and this month I'm seriously considering ending my service for the first time since I've jumped to PS5 this gen.
Buy PlayStation first. Looks like the rule this Gen also.
And basically you better just paying a bit more for the Digital only PS5 than getting an Xbox Series S.
I like seeing these videos. I wonder if the differences are because PS5 was the main focus and they ported to Xbox, so to speak. I fully expected Xbox to perform better, but not load quite as quick. These differences are pretty damn negligible though, but still curious as to the reason for the tearing issues.
@Kopite I agree. Just fuels the rantings of little boys who have nothing better to do.
You mean we now have to base which system is better solely on games??? That's crazy talk.
Microsoft's new slogan should be - PLAYS BETTER ON...PS5
I am getting really worried about all this screen tearing stuff on next-gen consoles with these multi-platform games.
I am really sensitive to screen tear and it sucks that it making a come back.
V-sync or nothing. If that means that compromises need to be made to hit target framerate, than so be it.
I find it funny after microsoft bragging about the most powerful console and terraflop and yet, it’s ps5 that has advantage on 3rd party games 😂
Could it be because Ubisoft pushed the graphics slightly more on XSX? You would probably no notice it with the human eye, so frame rate would be more noticeable I guess.
Also Ubisoft sucks at polishing games before day one and they obviously rushed it to fit new gen launch. I'll buy this one in 6-12 month, when it's cheaper, more polished and season pass is on sales... On stadia! xD JK, I'll wait for a ps5
Ultimately, it's not about the hardware; it's about the games. The console with the best exclusives will win the day.
Xbox Series X subreddit is on fire with this video lol they are so mad, it's kinda funny
@K-Wud it's their way of reserving stock for dedicated customers.
The ones eligible for it get a £2,000 discount applied at checkout, so in the end they pay the normal price.
Uneligible customers who try to buy it for the £2500 price have their order cancelled and refunded.
@Mpquikster If you had one with the power to do both, you would end up in exactly the same position. It would be pushed to make it better looking and you would lose the 60fps as a result.
Basically, whatever power you give a console, the result will always be the same.
@Athrum..... It is not negligible......
Remember this is a 10TF machine outperforming the 12TF machine.......
For over 22 months now we have been given the impression that 3rd party and cross-gen titles will natively perform better on the XSX because of its raw paper number but AC V is showing that perhaps the extra 2TF of the XSX is not for more power but it is for the XSX to keep up with new paradigm shift architecture of the Ps5
It's has been massively implied that only 1st party Sony games will perform better on the Ps5 but AC V totally debunks that narrative and actually agrees more with what most devs were saying in that TF is not and accurate indication of performance...
So this is a big deal because specs says AC V should run better on the apparently powerful 12TF machine and this is not the case........
@carlos82......... Performance Cap is determined by console as that's were games sell the most and not on PC,
So buying the 30 card is a total waste because withing 18months the 30s will probably be replaced by the 40 series and by the time we get the Ps5 pro the 30 will look last Gen, I mean we have CP2077 coming out next 2013 hardware and the current high end card is the 2080ti yet no one playing on PC will be getting CP2077 playing much more differently than the console releases
@Kidfunkadelic83 thanks for your great attitude. I think we can all try to be a bit nicer online. It only encourages others to do the same.
But back to the actual point I was trying to make, Sony have made many mistakes and many great moves (including releasing some superb games) whether or not there was competition.
I don't see how the argument that competition is good holds any water. This past generation, imo, has proven that Sony will make great games and great hardware, even if they don't face serious competition. And it makes sense. Even if Xbox and Ninty ceased to exist, it wouldn't mean that all those gamers would flock to Sony. They still have to give potential customers a reason to buy their console and their games.
@TimeDelayedGamer It's a combination of a lot of things, including games.
Games like Mario Kart didn't do all that well on wiiu and didn't help the console sell enough units, whereas the Switch is doing amazingly well (and so is Mario Kart Deluxe, i.e. the same game).
@naruball The Wii U was a bit of an unusual situation though in that it was generally badly marketed. What I'm talking about is that when choosing between two well-established giants of the industry, both launching consoles at the same time which have broadly similar capabilities, it's the games that will make the difference.
I gave the Xbone a skip because there just wasn't enough on it that really interested me. PS4 on the other hand has lots of fantastic exclusives. When it came to choosing between them, PS4 was a no-brainer to me because of these games.
@Kopite absolutely, totally agree with you 😉 it's just throwing petrol on a fire that shouldn't be there in the first place!
@dbunny the flames are definitely being fanned with that one, even worse over on Pure Xbox with there 10 reasons Series X is better than PS5 one of them being its smaller 🤣🤣
Its really no big surprise is it?
I've been saying it for many MANY years already
Microsoft makes SOFTWARE
Sony makes HARDWARE
ultimately I would like to live long enough to see a console designed by Sony and its UI aka software designed by Microsoft.
@Kidfunkadelic83 Xbox is undeniably still going to do well this generation.
@stormyuk and i hope it does do well. Despite what was said further up about sony will always do well, which i believe they most certainly will and hope they will, i still stand by what i said. Competition is not a bad thing and makes competition have to keep up the pace. Even PS reported today MC saying exactly the same.
So much for xboxs superiority on multiplatform games lolololol.
And here, we see the XBOX outperforming Sony in Res AND fps.
Seriously... it is too early to tell. Settle down. I have both consoles anyway, so I have no pony in this race, but I just hate fanboys jumping to conclusions to validate their purchases.
@Dragon804 Did you watch a diffrent vid dude. PS5 is still ahead as the Xbox version they had to drop resolutuon to try snd hit 60fps. Also still more tearing on Series X and at times the resolution dropped to 1080p where on PS5 the lowest was 1440p. So yh its facts that PS5 is still better.
@stormyuk We need them to competition is great for gamers.
@AFCC Its there own fault for all there trash talk and boasting before any game was even shown. Clear as day the PS5 is not as weak as evreone thought.
@Max2574
They removed the link...
It wasn't Assassins Creed, it was Call of Duty. It is confirmed accross many pages that series x outperforms ps5 in ray tracing modes, and ps5 outperforms in high fps modes
There are various combat scenarios in which the FPS on ps5 is lower than pre patch too.
Ultimately though this is lazy work from Ubisoft; the specs indicate the Series X should be able to match the PS5, but the only way they can match performance is to change the settings so Series X runs at a lower res. Barring Sony secrete sauce that surely can’t be right? MS even had their own engineers help and this is the best Ubi could do?
@Dragon804 the main reason seems to be a bug in those scenes where the PS5 drops, restarting those areas can result in a clean 60fps. These consoles are pretty evenly matched and it'll be first party efforts where any real differences may show
@get2sammyb
People would be idiots to argue over which box is best based on a few frames difference (or just generally as it’s not important) but being annoyed that a patch (slightly) worsens performance is a legitimate grievance in my book, irrespective of what is does or doesn’t do for other machines.
@Dragon804 Oh yh but also the frame drops are rare on 60fps mode. Also DF reported it as a bug as another restart showed locked 60fps but who knows. But to be honest both are very similar so that's good for all gamers. DF be loving all of this lol.
@Max2574
I think there are going to be big differences down the track, but all for the best reasons.
Series x will be able to make full use of the gpu and we will see some incredible looking games. At the same time, the ps5 ssd architecture will allow games to pull of new tricks that were previously unavailable, giving us some new gameplay mechanics. I have both so I am set for anything! I love the way the ps5 controller feels, and I hope they come out with an adult version of the controller, that allows for greater resistance on the adaptive triggers. When you are in a gunfight and squeezing RT like your life depends on it, you miss out on the adaptive trigger recoil action.
Hats off to both machines. The XBONE sucked at release and by the time the ONEX came out, people were too invested to get one (they were awesome). And it looks like they now have a few AAA developers on their bench so as you said...
Good times for gamers.
@Dragon804 Yh I agree with everything you said its a shame a small minority of gamers take the console wars to far. Both look and play amazing and are huge leaps from last gen. Xbox looking forward to Fable, PS5 can't wait for more HZD and GOW. Exciting times for us all.
Doesn't it drop to 1188p on series x though on a next gen machine thats ridiculous especially as it has no bells and whistles and just 60fps ,crappy optimisation
@nessisonett For me its Backup saves on a external harddisk or USB.
My game was running fine on PS5 until the update and now I’ve noticed more screen tearing. 🧐🧐
@Flaming_Kaiser Or just external hard drives that don’t mess up your system!
@Arckadius
It’s my second favorite thing about the console, other than the controller.
I’m still mesmerized by the load times, even though I’ve had the console for a week now. It’s not ROM cartridge fast (we will never experience that again) but it’s the closest we’ve gotten to those miracle days of games loading instantly.
@Max2574 As far as I understand Teraflops are not good indicator of a console power and now it's kinda showing
@nessisonett I just want too be able too save offline. We now have terrible internet so i rather have a failproof backup.
Game legit STILL looks and plays better on ps5. (I have it on the series x as well.)
@Waffles12415
"My game was running fine on PS5 until the update and now I’ve noticed more screen tearing. 🧐🧐"
My friend had the same issue. He solved it by uploading his save to the PS cloud (assuming you have PS Plus 😉) and he deleted and re-downloaded the game. Now he says it runs better than ever.
I started this game last night. First thing that happened was that I killed exactly one enemy and immediately got 2 totally unrelated trophies (that I definitely wasn't supposed to get until much later in the game) lol.
There was some very noticeable screen tearing in the first cutscene with adult Eivor (but only there) and I found a flight of stairs that had some collision issues (fell through a step and had to climb up). Some minor camera and HUD issues too and it's sometimes hard to hit things if you're too close. It's a bugfest but nothing game-breaking so far and I'm enjoying it.
Pretty embarrassing for the supposed most powerful console.
@Kopite they should hide the truth?
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