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Digital Foundry || God of War on PC - Digital Foundry Tech Review - PlayStation vs PC, Performance, Optimised Settings!

III-V

III-V

Member
Oct 25, 2017
18,827
Right PS5 is only running at back compatibility

God of War shipped with an unlocked frame rate, as in you could play at 4k 60fps, which developer Santa Monica Studio later changed in a patch to smooth out inconsistent performance on the PS4. Now there's no need for that workaround.

So really the ps5 patch was simply allowing the option to be enabled, no other optimizations were done.
 
WonderingRogue

WonderingRogue

Banned
Jul 7, 2021
3,082
So IQ is the number one improvement. Makes sense. DLSS vs checkerboarding + higher texture resolution + higher texture filtering = better IQ.
 
D O T

D O T

Member
Jan 1, 2021
4,178
Member' that thread the other day that used the gamespot video to compares ps5 vs pc GOW port, the OP said the differences ain't that much and PC port is unoptimized, that thread aged so well!

Always love the hot takes on Era.
 
Kaiserstarky

Kaiserstarky

Member
Oct 30, 2017
1,295
III-V said:
Right PS5 is only running at back compatibility

God of War shipped with an unlocked frame rate, as in you could play at 4k 60fps, which developer Santa Monica Studio later changed in a patch to smooth out inconsistent performance on the PS4. Now there's no need for that workaround.

So really the ps5 patch was simply allowing the option to be enabled, no other optimizations were done.
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It would be nice if Sony also started to bring some of the additional enhancements they made with the PC port into a true PS5 version of the game and it doesn't have to be a free patch but a paid DLC like what they do with their Director's Cut stuff.
 
PennyStonks

PennyStonks

Banned
May 17, 2018
4,401
D O T said:
Member' that thread the other day that used the gamespot video to compares ps5 vs pc GOW port, the OP said the differences ain't that much and PC port is unoptimized, that thread aged so well!

Always love the hot takes on Era.
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Conversationally unoptimized trash SMH šŸ˜‚

III-V said:
I love it every time I see DLSS outperform native just amazing
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It is absolute magic.

I feel like Intel having their own is why they said AMD isn't even competing with them in the GPU space when they haven't released a GPU
 
Kingdizzi

Kingdizzi

Banned
Aug 11, 2019
745
Looks like a really nice port, was down what Horizon launched when it did but looks like Sony have learnt a lot since then.

As someone that knows very little tech wise, how hard would it be for SSM to implement these changes and make a PS5 version? I'm not going to play the game again or anything like that, but it's fascinating if Days Gone, Horizon, GOW etc are getting improvements but none of these improvements have resulted in PS5 versions. I think I'm correct in saying these games patches for PS5 helped with the framerate but that's about it.

I assume Sony have the data to show it's just not worth making the changes on PS5 but still, maybe it takes more effort than what I'm thinking.
 
105-Shake

105-Shake

Member
Aug 13, 2020
1,947
Finale Fireworker said:
I recall in some report they mentioned how they look into PC ports when they feel sales saturation on PlayStation has been reached. So when they feel like the game has sold as much on PlayStation as it can, PC is on the table. I'm sure different games reach that point and different times and Sony has different expectations for each game on what total saturation means, though. So it's hard to guess.

I do wonder if we will ever reach a point where PC versions are just predictably released within a certain timeframe.
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Makes sense to not cannibalize PS4/PS5 sales, but seeing how these games sell a good amount even years after release, it would suck to wait 2+ years for a game sequel already released on the main platform(s).

It's a good time to be a PC gamer nonetheless with Sony coming into the fold.
 
EatChildren

EatChildren

Wonder from Down Under
Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,033
Raigor said:
DLSS offers better native IQ than native 1440p? woaw
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I only got on the DLSS bandwagon the other day when I replaced my 1080 Ti with a 3070, and yeah. When implemented properly the advantages of DLSS are basically black magic that are able to pull additional data and clarity for geometry and textures for a better quality image than native.

Maybe not the greatest example, but here's a pixel accurate crop I took of the distant imagery in Metro Exodus. Left is native 1440p, right is DLSS Quality (thus running at a lower resolution than native 1440p. As you can see on the left side infrastructure and the shoreline grass, the DLSS render increases the LOD range of assets. Grass is rendered further. More complex geometry appears over distance, where it's culled in the native 1440p image. There's marginally sharper clarity on the trees. It might seem superficial, but it's bonkers to see in motion.

1a5jj7.jpg
 
CHC

CHC

Member
Oct 27, 2017
10,247
DLSS is astonishing. Wasn't that convinced on PC vs PS5 until the in-motion shots were compared, really quite a nice difference.
 
Pheonix

Pheonix

Banned
Dec 14, 2018
5,990
St Kitts
Damn... DLSS.

looking better than native 4k at times and looking better than PS 2160pCB (1920 x 2160 native rez) while only running at 1080p internal rez..... this is a big deal.
 
Wollan

Wollan

Mostly Positive
Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,816
Norway but living in France
"faster loading, ~4s faster over PS5"

For context: The PS5 is running this game in PS4 BC mode which means it's a virtualized storage disc running at PS4 compatible speeds (which is usually 1.5x~2x). This is not a native PS5 game take use of the full speed of the system storage.
 
Atolm

Atolm

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,829
Sounds fantastic. We're in the weird spot of superior Sony PC ports compared to Microsoft.
 

Deleted member 25721

Banned
Oct 29, 2017
1,662
Thanks for the raffle! I already played through this on ps4 pro so I was planning on waiting for a sale but I'd love to give it go in glorious ultrawide. :-)
 
ShinUltramanJ

ShinUltramanJ

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,950
I'm so happy that Sony's putting the effort and care into their PC ports.

DLSS is also one of the best things to come about in gaming. Absolutely incredible what can be achieved with it.
 
elzeus

elzeus

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,887
Glad to see it's a decent port and that Sony is seeing the light in at the very least releasing their old games on PC.
 
SmartWaffles

SmartWaffles

Member
Nov 15, 2017
6,249
D O T said:
Member' that thread the other day that used the gamespot video to compares ps5 vs pc GOW port, the OP said the differences ain't that much and PC port is unoptimized, that thread aged so well!

Always love the hot takes on Era.
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Threw a fit when being called out for the lack of basic understanding of tech no less...
 
Micerider

Micerider

Member
Nov 11, 2017
1,182
Great port! A bit confusing OP to call it PS5 version, the game has no native PS5 version, I would stick to PS4/PS4 Pro (granted, the 60fps boost on PS5 in backward compat is a game changer on it's own, but it doesn't change anything else from the original game).
 
Ada

Ada

Member
Nov 28, 2017
3,737
Makes that other thread all the more hilarious, trying to argue a bad port or PS4/5 punching above.
 
yalk_dx

yalk_dx

Member
Nov 3, 2020
1,346
Kaiserstarky said:
It would be nice if Sony also started to bring some of the additional enhancements they made with the PC port into a true PS5 version of the game and it doesn't have to be a free patch but a paid DLC like what they do with their Director's Cut stuff.
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they did basically do this with death stranding: DC, which already had an amazing PC port prior to the PS5 release. death stranding is a shining example of that to me.
 

Raigor

Member
May 14, 2020
15,155
EatChildren said:
I only got on the DLSS bandwagon the other day when I replaced my 1080 Ti with a 3070, and yeah. When implemented properly the advantages of DLSS are basically black magic that are able to pull additional data and clarity for geometry and textures for a better quality image than native.

Maybe not the greatest example, but here's a pixel accurate crop I took of the distant imagery in Metro Exodus. Left is native 1440p, right is DLSS Quality (thus running at a lower resolution than native 1440p. As you can see on the left side infrastructure and the shoreline grass, the DLSS render increases the LOD range of assets. Grass is rendered further. More complex geometry appears over distance, where it's culled in the native 1440p image. There's marginally sharper clarity on the trees. It might seem superficial, but it's bonkers to see in motion.

1a5jj7.jpg
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this is impressive, i managed to get an RTX GPU last month and i have yet to play a game with DLSS.

I should alway set DLSS on Quality with my 3070 right? playing at 1440p
 
Pheonix

Pheonix

Banned
Dec 14, 2018
5,990
St Kitts
105-Shake said:
It already looked incredible on the PS4 Pro and it looks like the PS5 helped push it to a solid 4k60fps.

I wonder what Sony's release strategy for GOW Ragnarok and Horizon Forbidden West on PC now that the first game's have been released.
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My money is on PC ports nothing less than 2 years after their PS releases. Gives sony time to milk the IPs to the Playsttaion's benefit the most.

See something like this; Initial release > price drops (6-18 months window) > services release (18 -24 month window) > PC port (24 months+).

I expect this to be the norm for most if not all of sony's PS studios releases.
 
Gestault

Gestault

Member
Oct 26, 2017
13,385
I'm probably gonna double-dip on this. Even though it barely makes sense (i.e., I can already play this with the controller), the proper PS5 controller implementation on PC makes it incredibly appealing.
 
dmr87

dmr87

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,194
Sweden
DLSS add so much value to your GPU, allows it to punch above its performance class so to speak.

Thanks for the video DF!
 
Kaiserstarky

Kaiserstarky

Member
Oct 30, 2017
1,295
ghostwerk said:
they did basically do this with death stranding: DC, which already had an amazing PC port prior to the PS5 release. death stranding is a shining example of that to me.
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Not really death stranding had new content but not Horizon, Days Gone or God of War. It's not the same thing with only putting the improved settings on PS5 but i would like if Sony started doing that.
 
Gnorman

Gnorman

Banned
Jan 14, 2018
2,945
Looks like a top quality port, excellent. I thought I'd missed an update with the comparisons to the "ps5" version.
 
Adamska

Adamska

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,042
Why are all native 4K comparisons in this video using TAA? Can't TAA be disabled? Wouldn't native 4K without TAA be clearer than DLSS? Would love if Dictator could explain this. The video is excellent, btw.
 
jett

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,663
I'm surprised it struggles so much to reach 60fps on the 580 and 1060.
 
Dr. Doom

Dr. Doom

Banned
Oct 29, 2017
1,509
If Nvidia Reflex reduces input lag by 11 msec, why isn't this enabled driver level or for every game?

What are the downsides to Nvidia Reflex?
 
Fawz

Fawz

Member
Oct 28, 2017
3,663
Montreal
So no Frame Pacing issues this time? Sounds like a solid port overall, though there's only basic enhancements over the PS4p version. Happy they offer 21:9 UltraWide at least, though a shame about the no FOV or 31:9 support

It sounded like TAA can't be disabled and there's no dedicated Fullscreen mode?
 
EatChildren

EatChildren

Wonder from Down Under
Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,033
Raigor said:
this is impressive, i managed to get an RTX GPU last month and i have yet to play a game with DLSS.

I should alway set DLSS on Quality with my 3070 right? playing at 1440p
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I honestly don't have enough personal experience with it until now to give you my own opinion, but generally I go off Digital Foundry's advice on any potential artefacts or issues with DLSS implementation (It's not perfect) relative to my own personal clarity and performance standards. Games might have three options, like Performance/Balanced/Quality, and what that appears to do is change the internal resolution the upscaler is working with.

Going forward my thumb rule is to start with Quality, as I'm playing on a 1440p monitor, and if for some reason the performance is too awful and I don't want to scale down another setting to reach a standard, then drop it back further to Balanced or whatever.
 
WonderingRogue

WonderingRogue

Banned
Jul 7, 2021
3,082
Adamska said:
Why are all native 4K comparisons in this video using TAA? Can't TAA be disabled? Wouldn't native 4K without TAA be clearer than DLSS? Would love if Dictator could explain this. The video is excellent, btw.
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I don't think it can. It usually can't in many modern titles. The games just rely on it. It's hard to see anything outside of a PC only title or indie title offering a non-temporal solution to anti-aliasing just because they tend to do a poor job at cleaning up subpixel aliasing, which is everywhere these days with modern effects and detailed objects.
 
Adamska

Adamska

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,042
WonderingRogue said:
I don't think it can. It usually can't in many modern titles. The games just rely on it. It's hard to see anything outside of a PC only title or indie title offering a non-temporal solution to anti-aliasing just because they tend to do a poor job at cleaning up subpixel aliasing, which is everywhere these days with modern effects and detailed objects.
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I see. I just thought that there'd be very little in the way of jagged edges when running the game at native 4K resolution.
 
Dangerman1337

Dangerman1337

Member
Jul 2, 2021
2,510
United Kingdom, The Wirral, Hoylake
RTX 20 series have aged way better than expected, if you got a RTX 20 card at launch or the Summer of 2019 with the Super Refresh that was an extremely wise buy.

Still salty on buying a 1080 Ti w/ 8700K system, if I waited an extra yeard... kind of the reason why I am not rushing to splash on a RTX 30 utilized system, not worth it
 
EatChildren

EatChildren

Wonder from Down Under
Member
Oct 27, 2017
7,033
Adamska said:
Why are all native 4K comparisons in this video using TAA? Can't TAA be disabled? Wouldn't native 4K without TAA be clearer than DLSS? Would love if Dictator could explain this. The video is excellent, btw.
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I can't answer for this game specifically, but some games actually rely on TAA as part of the rendering engine to accomplish some of the shaders and effects as part of the pipeline that become broken when TAA is turned off. Screen space reflections in Battlefield 1, for example, are a broken shimmery if TAA is turned off, and Red Dead Redemption 2's distant LOD scaling uses TAA in a very specific way to accomplish the illusion of detail that is instantly broken when turned off and replaced with MSAA.

Seems a lot of modern games have implemented very specifically tailored TAA as cornestone of reducing processing cost of certain shaders in an effort to accomplish and clean in specific effects.
 
Adamska

Adamska

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,042
EatChildren said:
I can't answer for this game specifically, but some games actually rely on TAA as part of the rendering engine to accomplish some of the shaders and effects as part of the pipeline that become broken when TAA is turned off. Screen space reflections in Battlefield 1, for example, are a broken shimmery if TAA is turned off, and Red Dead Redemption 2's distant LOD scaling uses TAA in a very specific way to accomplish the illusion of detail that is instantly broken when turned off and replaced with MSAA.

Seems a lot of modern games have implemented very specifically tailored TAA as cornestone of reducing processing cost of certain shaders in an effort to accomplish and clean in specific effects.
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Yeah, I do remember trying to run the Avengers beta test on PC and, when turning off the TAA settings (running the game on 1080p), the visuals just became a strange, shimmering mess. Which is strange for me because I usually only play PC games at 1080p with no AA enabled. Dead Space, for instance, looks excellent with these settings, as there's very few jaggies (for me). It does seem like TAA is being used sometimes as a way to have the image being filled out, but it's strange that disabling it doesn't produce a "purely" rendered scene sometimes.
 
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dynamitejim

dynamitejim

Member
Oct 25, 2017
886
DLSS (especially Quality mode) seems to have some very noticeable halo/ringing artifacts compared to PS CB4K or Native 4K. Looks over sharpened and unnatural.
 
gr8kamon

gr8kamon

Member
Oct 30, 2017
432
I can't watch the video right now, but does "proper DualSense support" mean they haptics/triggers are in there or that you can use the controller on it natively?
 
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