The next version of the PlayStation 5 Pro AI-powered PSSR upscaler (which is soon getting implemented in Alan Wake 2 and CONTROL Ultimate Edition, but that won't be updated at a system level.) will come with some significant improvements (including impressive real-time AI precision adjustment to prevent frame rate drops with the upscaler enabled), according to rumors circulating online.
In a new video shared on YouTube, Moore's Law is Dead, who previously provided correct information regarding the PlayStation 5 Pro and the PSSR upscaler before the official announcement, revealed that Sony is training a new lightweight neural network requiring less frame time to upscale that will offer higher image quality, no matter the base resolution a game is upscaled from. Currently, PSSR requires a base resolution of 864p, which is pretty high compared to the Ultra Performance NVIDIA DLSS option, for example, but the next iteration of the upscaler should be able to deliver better image quality upscaling from lower base resolutions.
According to the leaker, one of the main reasons Sony is working on this new version of the PlayStation 5 Pro upscaler, which may not even be marketed as PSSR 2, because they want to get better at running 4K resolution at 120 FPS and offer 8K resolution output at 60 frames per second. While some games already offer 4K resolution at 120 FPS with the current version of PSSR, the new version of the upscaler will make it so that games that currently can't push past the 70, 80 FPS range can offer better performance besides the improved image quality, which will see improvements in line with the leap in quality from AMD FSR 2.0 to 3.1. Additionally, the new version of the upscaler will offer wider resolution offerings, supporting 1440p and 1080p resolutions at locked 120 FPS, which the current version of the upscaler doesn't, as it only used to offer 4K resolution output. Better image quality is reportedly also coming to PlayStation 5 Pro games that don't use PSSR to upscale with MFSR, which was the internal acronym for the upscaler. MFSR will be an alternative option to TAA to offer better image quality.
With the current implementation of the PlayStation 5 Pro upscaler having been hit-and-miss so far, it's not surprising that Sony is working on a new iteration that will likely benefit the future console generation, considering the PlayStation 6 will likely support PSSR as well. Hopefully, it won't take long to see this new version of the upscaler in action (which is reportedly also going to improve the resolution of classic games) and to know whether it will deliver all of these rumored promises in future games such as Marathon, which will use the upscaler to downscale from a 5K internal resolution.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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