Sony confirms AI frame generation coming to PlayStation, but upgraded PSSR arrives first

Sony confirms AI frame generation is coming to PlayStation, just not this year

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. Forward-looking: Sony has revealed that ML-based frame generation will be coming to "PlayStation platforms" in the future, though the exact timeframe remains unclear. The company also confirmed that, despite speculation surrounding a patent for ML-based upscaling, it will not be incorporated into the PSSR/FSR implementations anytime soon. Speaking to Digital Foundry about Project Amethyst, Mark Cerny confirmed that Sony is developing AI-powered frame generation for PlayStation, but noted that no new releases are planned this year. He also declined to reveal whether the feature will be rolled out to the PS5 and PS5 Pro or be exclusive to the PS6. Cerny further confirmed that, like PSSR, FSR frame generation is based on technology co-developed by Sony and AMD as part of Project Amethyst. He added that he is satisfied with the progress of the collaboration so far and looks forward to upgraded frame generation technology being rolled out to PlayStation consoles in the future. Machine learning - based frame generation uses AI to insert synthetically generated frames between natively rendered ones, boosting visual smoothness and enhancing the gameplay experience. The intermediate frames are created by analyzing motion vectors and pixel data from the native frames, effectively doubling or even tripling the FPS in supported titles. This allows demanding games with complex visual effects to run more smoothly at higher resolutions. Both Nvidia and AMD have recently updated their respective frame generation technologies for PC. Nvidia shipped DLSS 4.5 in January to a generally positive response from media and gamers alike, while AMD's FSR 4.1 received a more lukewarm reception following its rollout last week as part of the Radeon Adrenalin 26.3.1 WHQL driver update. It is worth noting that the PS5 already offers frame generation technology built on AMD's FSR 3, though it relies on interpolation between real frames rather than machine learning. While the new technology could enhance the gameplay experience in some titles, it is not a miracle fix for low native frame rates, as it still requires a decent input frame rate to generate new frames.

The Next PlayStation May Rely on AI More Than Any Console Before Before It

Get ready for "fake frames" on the PlayStation 6, or whatever Sony is cooking up next. The future of console gaming is going to be beholden to AI. Nowhere will that be more true than on the still-unannounced next-gen PlayStation. To boost graphics performance and frame rates, the supposed PS6 could make use of even more upscaling technology and the dreaded multi-frame generation, sometimes derisively called “fake frames.†Mark Cerny, PlayStation’s soft-spoken lead hardware architect, talked with Digital Foundry about the PS5 Pro’s latest upscaling update. The “Proâ€-level console’s new PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) incorporates some of the same capabilities of AMD’s latest FidelityFX Super Resolution, FSR Redstone. In Gizmodo's tests, Sony’s upscaler enhances image quality in dramatic fashion for several big games, but it won't have as big of an impact in titles that weren’t reconfigured for the updated PSSR. Either way, the PS5 Pro is a showcase of what to expect from a next-gen consoleâ€"whether it's a PS6, PlayStation handheld, or whatever Cerny and gang are cooking up. PlayStation partnered with AMD to “co-develop†FSR Redstone. In response to questions about frame generation, Cerny mentioned that Sony is “intimately familiar with it†since it also worked on the latest multi-frame generation model found on AMD’s PC-only technology. “An equivalent frame generation library should be seen at some point on PlayStation platforms," Cerny added, practically all but confirming we’ll see the tech on future hardware. “All I can say is that we have no more releases planned for this year. And that I look forward to discussing this more in the future.†Upscalers like PSSR enable higher resolutions and frame rates by taking a game rendered at a lower resolution and then filling in pixels to make it appear as if it were rendered at a higher resolution. While FSR Redstone (previously FSR 4) is tied to AMD’s latest PC graphics cards, PSSR is using “the same core co-developed algorithm." Sony had to do extra work to get the model running for PlayStation’s older CPU and GPU architecture. Frame generation is a whole different beast. This is software that also runs on modern GPUs. AMD’s latest machine learning-based frame generation technology takes AI-generated frames and inserts them between rendered frames. The latest technology can increase frame rates dramatically. For example, a 4x frame generation model can insert three frames in between two rendered frames. Frame generation, sometimes referred to as frame interpolation, may push your game's frame rates to match close to a monitor’s total refresh rate. It also results in more graphical artifacts and ghosting, where users see aspects of images that shouldn’t exist in the game rendered completely by the device. Frame generation also increases latency, potentially making games feel floatier. Games need to maintain a frame rate closer to 60 fps before any interpolation if you want smoother gameplay and less artifacting. Frame generation is not a panacea for the natural limitations of console hardware. However, console gamers may benefit more from frame generation than your ultra-expensive gaming PC. Developers can tune these models to limit the potential drawbacks as much as possible. Console gamers are also more willing to accept subtle graphical flaws for ease and playability, at least more than their PC counterparts. Like Xbox’s “Project Helix,†the PS6 will likely use AMD’s next-generation Zen 6 CPU and RDNA 5 GPU microarchitecture. Even if these consoles are powerful by themselves, they’ll still need the extra upscaling help. The PlayStation 5 originally promised we’d play games at 4K with support for 120Hz refresh rates. It never actually reached those heights. The PS5 Pro has come closest to offering a true high-end experience in games like Resident Evil Requiem. We’ll just have to see if a new console can make "fake frames" mainstream.

PS5 Pro architect Mark Cerny says Sony's updated PSSR tech is 'something like 100 microseconds faster than the original'

* PlayStation console architect Mark Cerny says new PSSR tech is much faster than the original * Cerny says the new PSSR "is something like 100 microseconds faster" * He adds that the update allowed Sony to implement "Enhance PSSR Image Quality" option and "force-upgrade all PSSR-supported games" PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro console architect Mark Cerny has revealed that Sony's updated PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution) AI upscaling technology is faster than its original incarnation. Earlier this month, Sony began rolling out the new version of PSSR for a wide range of PS5 Pro enhanced games, delivering "enhanced image stability, improved clarity in fine details, and more consistent performance across supported titles." Speaking in a recent interview with Digital Foundry, Cerny shared that the new tech is around "100 microseconds faster" than the original and allowed Sony to introduce an improved image quality option to "force-upgrade all PSSR-supported games." "I was a bit uncertain about whether there could be a user option to upgrade all PSSR-supported titles to the new PSSR the key issue being that for that option to make sense, the new PSSR would have to be faster than the original one," Cerny said. "We made that our target, and ultimately managed to achieve it - the new PSSR is something like 100 microseconds faster than the original. Which in turn allowed us to implement the 'Enhance PSSR Image Quality' option to force-upgrade all PSSR-supported games. If you use it, frame drops should become oh-so-slightly rarer." Sony released the upscaling tech first for the PS5 Pro version of Resident Evil Requiem, and the update is now available for other games like Silent Hill f, Monster Hunter Wilds, Dragon's Dogma 2, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Control, Alan Wake 2, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and more. "The upgraded PSSR represents another step in our commitment to evolving the PS5 Pro experience," Sony said at the time. "Moving forward, most new PS5 Pro titles will launch with support for this enhanced PSSR, ensuring players continue to see improvements in image quality and performance." Other games like Crimson Desert, Cyberpunk 2077, and Assassin's Creed Shadows are also expected to receive the same update soon. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.