Assassin's Creed Shadows — PS5 & PS5 Pro performance
Technical analysis last updated
Assassin's Creed Shadows delivers an ambitious open-world presentation across PS5 and PS5 Pro, targeting 4K output using Anvil TAAU upscaling rather than PSSR. On base PS5, Performance mode maintains 60fps using baked global illumination, whereas Quality and 40fps Balanced modes incorporate RTGI. PS5 Pro provides a major upgrade by bringing RTGI to Performance mode at 60fps, radically enhancing ambient lighting and shadow fidelity over the base console. PS5 Pro Quality mode further adds ray-traced reflections at 30fps. PS5 Pro's 60fps Performance mode is the recommended choice, offering the best blend of visual leap and high frame rates.
Graphics modes on PlayStation 5 Pro
PS5 Pro receives a major upgrade in Performance mode by implementing full RTGI at 60fps. Quality mode adds ray-traced reflections alongside RTGI at 30fps, while Balanced mode targets 40fps on 120Hz displays. TAAU is used for upscaling across all modes rather than PSSR.
Includes RTGI in Performance mode at 60fps, ray-traced reflections in Quality mode, and improved internal resolutions in Balanced mode.
Performance Mode
PS5 ProUnverifiedFeatures RTGI for realistic bounce lighting and improved foliage occlusion. Suffers from pixel crawl and edge artifacts similar to base PS5.
Balanced Mode
PS5 ProUnverifiedIncludes RTGI without RT reflections. Higher internal resolution and cleaner presentation than base PS5 balanced mode.
Quality Mode
PS5 ProUnverifiedAdds RT reflections on top of RTGI. Features enhanced shadow map resolution and strand hair. RT reflections exhibit pop-in and lack distant geometry.
Graphics modes on PlayStation 5
Base PS5 features three graphics modes: 60fps Performance, 30fps Quality, and 40fps Balanced. Performance mode relies on baked global illumination, resulting in flatter lighting compared to the RTGI featured in Quality and Balanced modes. Upscaling is handled by TAAU with internal resolutions ranging from 1008p up to 1584p.
Performance Mode
PS5UnverifiedUses baked global illumination. Shows noticeable pixel crawl, blocky patterns on moving edges, and low-res transparency upscaling.
Balanced Mode
PS5UnverifiedIncludes RTGI but lacks RT reflections. Shares shadowmap resolution with Performance mode but retains strand-based hair.
Quality Mode
PS5UnverifiedIncludes RTGI and strand-based hair rendering. Visuals are cleaner and sharper than Performance mode.
PS5 vs PS5 Pro
Side-by-side comparison of graphics modes, resolution and technical features.
PS5 Pro delivers a transformative upgrade in 60fps Performance mode by integrating ray-traced global illumination (RTGI), providing a major lighting improvement over base PS5. Quality and Balanced modes see moderate improvements in image clarity and internal resolution, with Quality mode adding RT reflections.
| Metric | PS5 | PS5 Pro |
|---|---|---|
| PSFoundry Score | 81Great | 74Good |
| Recommended mode | Performance Mode | Performance Mode |
| Modes available | 3 | 3 |
| Highest target FPS | 60 | 60 |
| Highest verified capability | 60 fps target | 60 fps target |
| PSSR | No | No |
| Ray tracing | Yes | Yes |
| VRR | Yes | Yes |
| 120 Hz support | Yes | Yes |
| PS5 Pro Enhanced | No | Yes |
- PSFoundry Score
- 81Great
- Recommended mode
- Performance Mode
- Modes available
- 3
- Highest target FPS
- 60
- Highest verified capability
- 60 fps target
- PSSR
- No
- Ray tracing
- Yes
- VRR
- Yes
- 120 Hz support
- Yes
- PS5 Pro Enhanced
- No
- PSFoundry Score
- 74Good
- Recommended mode
- Performance Mode
- Modes available
- 3
- Highest target FPS
- 60
- Highest verified capability
- 60 fps target
- PSSR
- No
- Ray tracing
- Yes
- VRR
- Yes
- 120 Hz support
- Yes
- PS5 Pro Enhanced
- Yes
Known issues
PS5 Pro Performance mode suffers severe dips in the introductory sequence and minor frame rate blips during open-world traversal.
RT reflections in PS5 Pro Quality mode lack foliage animations and distant geometry, exhibiting distracting pop-in artifacting.
Certain lighting elements exhibit colored halos resembling banding artifacts when PSSR is enabled in HDR.
Particle effects suffer from motion trails when using PSSR upscaling, particularly visible on fire particles.
Frame rates drop into the mid-50s in Kyoto and brief drops to 40fps occur during camera pans when dynamic resolution scaling adjusts.
Performance mode on both PS5 and PS5 Pro displays pixel crawl at rest, blocky edge artifacts on moving objects, and low-resolution transparency upscaling.
Video analysis
Independent technical videos referenced in our analysis.
Assassin's Creed Shadows - PS5 Pro PSSR Update Tested - Improved Image Quality But What About Perf? Digital Foundry · 123K views ; Assassin's ...
Digital Foundry is now fully independent ... technological upgrades we've seen, bringing all of the refinements seen in Assassin's Creed Shadows ...
Assassin's Creed Shadows already delivers one of the biggest PS5 to Pro upgrades - but now the enhanced version is even more enhanced, ...
Assassin's Creed Shadows - PS5 Pro vs PS5 Review - One Of The Best Upgrades For The System Digital Foundry
Assassin's Creed Shadows - PS5 Pro vs PS5 Review - One Of The Best Upgrades For The System Digital Foundry
Assassin's Creed Shadows - PS5 Pro VS RX 6800XT Midrange PC ... Digital Foundry•355K views.
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Sources and verification
Every technical claim on this page is attributed. Nothing is estimated.
PSFoundry is primarily a source-based database. A game is only marked as personally tested when PSFoundry has directly tested it. All other technical information is attributed to its original source.
- UnverifiedAnalysis of Assassin's Creed Shadows patch 1.02 on PS5 Pro, examining the new optional PSSR upscaler, RT reflections in Balanced Mode, and unlocked frame rates in hideout areas.Digital Foundry2025-04-15
Analysis of Assassin's Creed Shadows patch 1.02 on PS5 Pro, examining the new optional PSSR upscaler, RT reflections in Balanced Mode, and unlocked frame rates in hideout areas.
Open source - UnverifiedTechnical analysis of Assassin's Creed Shadows on PS5 and PS5 Pro, evaluating frame rates, visual settings, ray-traced global illumination and reflections, image quality, and TAAU upscaling performancDigital Foundry2025-03-19
Technical analysis of Assassin's Creed Shadows on PS5 and PS5 Pro, evaluating frame rates, visual settings, ray-traced global illumination and reflections, image quality, and TAAU upscaling performance.
Open source
Frequently asked
Answers built from the verified data on this page.
What frame rate does Assassin's Creed Shadows run at on PS5 Pro?
On PS5 Pro, Assassin's Creed Shadows offers 3 graphics modes: Balanced Mode targets 40 FPS at 4K; Performance Mode targets 60 FPS at 4K; Quality Mode targets 30 FPS at 4K.
What frame rate does Assassin's Creed Shadows run at on PS5?
On PS5, Assassin's Creed Shadows offers 3 graphics modes: Balanced Mode targets 40 FPS at 4K; Quality Mode targets 30 FPS at 4K; Performance Mode targets 60 FPS at 4K.
Does Assassin's Creed Shadows support 120 Hz on PlayStation?
Yes. Balanced Mode on PS5 Pro, Balanced Mode on PS5 run with 120 Hz output on a compatible display. That is a 120 Hz output container with a higher frame-rate range — no mode targets a locked 120 FPS.
Is Assassin's Creed Shadows worth playing on PS5 Pro?
PS5 Pro delivers a transformative upgrade in 60fps Performance mode by integrating ray-traced global illumination (RTGI), providing a major lighting improvement over base PS5. Quality and Balanced modes see moderate improvements in image clarity and internal resolution, with Quality mode adding RT reflections.
What is the best graphics mode for Assassin's Creed Shadows on PS5 Pro?
Best overall balance: Performance Mode — Performance Mode targets 60 FPS at 4K. Best ray-traced image quality: Quality Mode targets 30 FPS at 4K.
What is the PSFoundry Score of Assassin's Creed Shadows?
Assassin's Creed Shadows scores 81/100 on PS5. The PSFoundry Score measures technical performance only — frame rate, image quality, graphics modes, visual features, responsiveness, loading and stability — not how good the game is.
Patch history
Only updates that changed graphics modes, resolution, frame rate or visual features.
We only log updates with a documented effect on graphics modes, resolution, frame rate or visual features. None have been verified for this title yet.
The players' verdict
Recent player impressions of how the game runs on PS5 and PS5 Pro.
We publish player impressions from Reddit, ResetEra and specialist forums only when they discuss how the game actually runs. They never affect the PSFoundry Score.
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Browse the full PlayStation performance database or the PS5 Pro Enhanced games list.