Crimson Desert Shines on PS5 Pro: Performance and Visuals Explored

Over 25 minutes of gameplay footage shows Crimson Desert running on a near-final PlayStation 5 Pro build. Pearl Abyss supplied the console version to reviewers, offering an early look at how the title translates from high-end PC hardware.

Engine and lighting advances

Pearl Abyss uses its in-house BlackSpace Engine rather than Unreal Engine 5. The studio highlights a ray-traced diffuse global illumination system. Sunlight bounces indoors, and local lights cast convincing real-time shadows.

Ray tracing is enabled across all three graphics modes on PS5 Pro. A denoiser handles noisy frames, though it sometimes creates streaking in high-contrast scenes. The team also applies heavy displacement mapping to give textures extreme surface depth.

Graphics modes, resolutions and upscaling

The game offers three graphics presets: optimal, balanced and quality. These modes target 60fps, 40fps and 30fps respectively.

Before upscaling, Pearl Abyss targets 1080p for optimal, 1440p for balanced and native 4K for quality. Optimal and balanced modes use PSSR upscaling to output 4K. Footage uses a first-generation PSSR implementation, with an upgraded version expected later.

Ray tracing and visual consistency

RT lighting maintains consistent core quality across modes. Minor artefacts appear, but upgraded upscaling should reduce them. Overall, the PS5 Pro build preserves much of the PC visual fidelity.

Performance behaviour and VRR

Variable refresh rate support is present in the public specs sheet. Balanced mode is described as operating at 48Hz and above. However, low frame-rate compensation is not currently supported.

Without LFC, the game can fall outside the VRR window, sometimes causing visible tearing. The PS5 SDK includes full LFC tools, so this issue is fixable in future patches. Reviewers also showed VRR can unlock framerates above 60fps in some scenes.

CPU limits and scalability

The 30fps (quality) and 40fps (balanced) modes remained stable in hands-on tests. Hitting a steady 60fps in optimal mode proved more difficult. Performance often depends on the number of active entities, suggesting a CPU bottleneck.

GPU scalability appears strong. The base resolutions are high enough that even first-gen PSSR looks acceptable. Mid-range PC CPUs remain more capable than console CPUs, so some limits are expected on consoles.

Conclusions and next steps

Filmogaz.com found the early PS5 Pro build promising. The title balances ambitious visuals with playable framerates on pro hardware. Players should expect improvements as Pearl Abyss ships the upgraded PSSR and addresses VRR/LFC behaviour.

For now, balanced mode is a safe choice for many players. PS5 Pro owners can expect a compelling mix of performance and visuals. Tests for the base PS5 and Xbox Series versions are still awaited.