The PS5 could struggle to run games at 4K, according to a game developer and regular PS5 leaker who goes by the Twitter handle @AestheticGamer1.
Worse still, the leaker warns fans that the PS5 could be the more expensive and slower of the two big-brand consoles launching this year, with the Xbox Series X to be the cheaper, faster console.
Asked about the PS5's performance when running the Capcom games engine, which will power Resident Evil 8, the tipster claims to have "heard from other devs that PS5 struggles with 4K games in particular". He also states that players should get ready for a lot of "fake 4K" games on PS5.
In other words, the PS5 may not offer some 4K titles in native 4K at 60fps. Instead, gamers may have to make do with 'fake 4K' i.e. when the console renders a game below a 4K resolution, artificially 'filling in' the extra pixels to display a full 4K resolution (the current PS4 Pro performs a similar trick).
The rumours appear to have stemmed from Sony's decision to equip the PS5's architecture with AMD SmartShift technology. According to respected analyst Jeff Grubb, game developers are having a hard time wrapping their heads around the system, which diverts more power to the PS5's graphics engine during 4K gaming.
Conversely, AestheticGamer claims that the "Xbox [Series] X doesn't have the same problem", which suggests that the Xbox Series X could arrive with a far better selection of 4K games. He goes on to say: "I'm trying not to say much here as I was asked not to but prepare yourself, which does put Xbox X in a position it'll be the less expensive and more powerful console."
So is it game, set and match for the Xbox Series X? Far from it. At the moment, this is purely speculation. And as Grubb pointed out in his Basement Radio Arcade Podcast, "[It] will get cleared up over time, developers will figure it out, Sony will figure it out and explain to developers 'here's what to do.'"
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