PS4 Pro update improves 1080p graphics for screens below 4K

In Sony’s upcoming 5.5 firmware update on PlayStation 4, PS4 Pro owners who don’t have a 4K TV will get a significant graphics improvement: supersample anti-aliasing (SSAA). PS4 Pro systems will take advantage of its excess power on screens below 4K and apply SSAA when outputting 1080p resolution. This will be an option that players can manually turn on and it has received very positive results.

SSAA is a form of anti-aliasing that forces the game to process the image at a higher resolution, then downscale it to fit the screen’s resolution. The result is smoother images with less jaggies, simply because you’ve scaled down the sharp image. According to Euro Gamer’s Digital Foundry, the PS4 Pro will behave as if it were connected to a 4K monitor and work to bring the improved picture down to 1080p. While only a few games support 1080p screens, some games (like Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain) won’t let 1080p users enjoy the benefits of the PS4 Pro. This is an example of a non-uniform improvement from more powerful platforms. It won’t happen anymore, with the new anti-aliasing option.

Digital Foundry ran several tests and got some remarkable results. Take for example Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection, which now outputs supersample images in 4K at 1080p, instead of locking at 1080p. The game still runs at 30 FPS regardless of the resolution, so those using monitors that don’t support 4K will still benefit. The Last of Us Remastered gives 1080p users the option to enable supersampling instead of increasing it to 60 FPS (but cannot enable both at the same time).

However, this is not a perfect solution for every game. For example, The Last Guardian runs 30 FPS at 1080p, whereas, if 4K support is enabled, some frames will drop to about 20 FPS. Since PS4 Pro supersampling simply mimics the “enhanced resolution of PS4 Pro”, it also results in occasional FPS drops. The same goes for Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, which is a game where frame rate is more important than resolution. Choosing to enable 4K will not give a stable frame rate equal to 1080p.

Remember, games still apply the PS4 Pro’s resolution enhancement. Firmware 5.5 simply lets you get the same high quality picture as those with 4K TVs, but in the form of anti-aliasing at 1080p. Whether it runs smoothly or not depends on each game. But overall, PS4 Pro users now have more options, no matter what screen they use. The PlayStation 4’s 5.5 firmware is currently in beta, and there’s no official word on the release date of the final version.