A few weeks ago we brought you the news that Cyberpunk 2077 would officially be getting an update to give it enhanced features for the PS5 Pro, and now thanks to a post on the PlayStation Blog, we have a clear idea of what those enhancements will actually be when they drop later today.
Arriving April 8 (dependant on your time zone), the update will give PS5 Pro owners a souped-up console version of Cyberpunk 2077 that includes PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR), upgraded ray tracing technology, and three new visual performance modes to pick from.
Cyberpunk 2077 on PS5 Pro features PSSR 2*
We already know based on prior announcements that Cyberpunk 2077 is using the newly-launched version of PSSR, the upscaling tech exclusive to the PS5 Pro console that’s become significantly more impressive in its updated iteration. The blog post doesn’t go into a lot of detail here, but it shouldn’t be anything too surprising.
*It’s still just called PSSR but I feel better about this
Cyberpunk 2077 has advanced ray tracing PS5 Pro
PS5 Pro users also get an upgraded ray tracing implementation for Cyberpunk 2077, which includes BVH8 (8-way Bounding Volume Hierarchy). BVH8 is a technical advancement that the PS5 Pro is specifically capable of over the standard model, and allows for increased ray tracing performance and detail, resulting in a more realistic and coherent presentation of lighting, shadows and reflection without massively sacrificing framerates.
“Imagine the sunlight catching off the front fairing of your Yaiba Kusanagi CT-3X as you park up, depart down a mysterious dark alley, and uncover secrets glowing under neon light. Players’ overall immersion in the world of Cyberpunk 2077 gets a serious boost from PS5 Pro,” the post claims.
Cyberpunk 2077’s visual settings on PS5 Pro
To go with these new features, Cyberpunk 2077 will offer PS5 Pro players three distinct visual performance modes to choose from. These are:
- Ray Tracing Pro mode: All available ray tracing features at 40 frames per second (VRR) or 30 frames per second (non-VRR)
- Ray Tracing mode: Select ray-tracing features while maintaining 60 frames per second
- Performance mode: Fewer visual features, up to 90 frames per second on VRR-enabled displays
It looks like a decent spread of options depending on what you want out of the game. If you’re not using a VRR-enabled display, I’d say picking the Ray Tracing mode with its 60FPS target and modern lighting features should be a good sweet spot, but if you’re able to use VRR and don’t mind the slight hit to fluidity at 40FPS I’m hoping the new Ray Tracing Pro mode really does the strees of Night City justice.
Digital Foundry has already uploaded an analysis of the update, and all signs point to it being a massive boon for Pro users:
With the update dropping over the next day, and Cyberpunk 2077 available at no extra cost in the PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium/Deluxe subscriptions, this feels like something every PS5 Pro owner should get around!