Elden Ring’s anticipated Closed Network Test is running this week, and you can find out more about access times and how to participate through here. Obviously, this is all based on unfinished code, and so FromSoftware will certainly optimise the RPG before its release in February. However, the framerate on the PlayStation 5 is not looking great so far.

The above analysis, which compares the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, clocks a pretty inconsistent framerate on Sony’s console. In Quality Mode – which outputs at native 4K – the framerate meanders between 40 to 45 frames-per-second. Performance Mode, which uses dynamic resolution and hovers around 1620p, sticks closer to its 60 frames-per-second target, but experiences frequent dips and stutters.

In fact, according to some early analysis from Digital Foundry’s Thomas Morgan, you may be better off playing the PS4 Pro version in backwards compatibility on a PS5. This obviously outputs at a slightly lower resolution than the native PS5 version’s Quality Mode – about 1800p – but it actually sticks to its 60 frames-per-second target with more consistency than either option:

There are differences between the native PS5 release and the PS4 Pro version, like more vegetation, but textures and draw distances are identical. As such, unless FromSoftware can clean up the code before release, this may be a rare example of a game that plays better in backwards compatibility than with its native new-gen code.

[source youtube.com, via twitter.com, youtube.com]