The Witcher 3 Next-Gen - PS5 vs Xbox Series X - DF Tech Review - RT and Performance Modes Tested!

The verdict on this Complete Edition of The Witcher 3 - with a focus on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles. The ray tracing upgrades seriously impress here, as does the boosted foliage setting when compared to the last-gen PS4 Pro. And yet there are glaring issues with this release's frame-rate - which goes well under 30fps in the ray-tracing mode on PS5 especially. Add in the higher input latency and crashes on both premium consoles, and it's clearly a project with room to improve.

Note: input lag results include display latency at 22ms. Factor that out and you have 70ms in performance mode, 135ms in RT mode.

[orangorill]

Raytracing is nice I guess, but choosing between 30 and 60 fps is no choice at all.

[XiLock_Alotx]

There is no amount of graphical features and new technology that could make me play in 25 FPS. Not happening anymore.

[alanchampion]

I’m about 40 hours in on ps5.
Gotta say. It looks great. It’s one of my favourite ever games, so to finally replay it at 60fps, it is as good as I hoped it would be.

[KarlRock]

I’m half-way through it on Xbox Series X. RT mode is not smooth, but the graphics look far more realistic. I really like it, but it’s not smooth enough to play and enjoy. I wish I could play with RT… but performance mode will have to do. Incredible game though! I’m playing it for the first time 🥳

[daking]

I played the game years ago on PS4 and have started a new run since the patch released. I am loving the game yet again and it's impressive how the game is still so good

[digclo]

Prioritizing RT AO over RT reflections was the right call. Still it's a shame it can't even hit a consistent 30fps. Hopefully they can optimize it in a patch.

[cole]

Sadly I start to appreciate when devs give us a 60fps option (it should be a non negotiable industry standard by now)

[recordatron]

The more I've learned about bounce lighting and how it colours the environement, the more I appreciate how effective it is at conveying an extra layer of realism to my brain in games. I think even in the outdoor shots the RT adds a lot in that respect. I think it's worth having on in this game if they can patch in a smooth 30fps personally especially given the nature of the gameplay.

[TristanTheVRGamecat]

Playing in performance mode on ps5, runs beautifully, had no crashes only real problem I've had was after saving frame rate in performance mode went terrible but a reload fixed that and haven't had it since

[YouTubeCensors]

You can speed up loading as the game will load things slower IF you don't press a button to skip.
Press X and it loads much faster than what DF says here.

[tm]

After seeing the RT implementations in Witcher 3 and GTAV I'm blown away with what Insomniac was able to do with the RT Performance mode in Spiderman. All the games look amazing mind you but nailing RT reflections on full skyscrapers with 60fps is incredible. I wish all devs would have this mode at lower res.

[Aristowi]

I will always go for performance over RT in any game if I can't get both, but it's good to have the option for those who choose different. It's weird to me that the performance mode has a higher resolution, which is another plus for the better framerate option. I would like to see a comparison between consoles and PC, especially performance mode on consoles and no RT on PC to even the odds. I think it's a huge upgrade, the 60 fps mode alone makes it a better game and a very attractive option even over the PC version for those who don't have the hardware to run it properly.

[gatewayrealtor]

if Ray Tracing mode was a stable 30 at all times, that would be my easy go to. Too many dips right now but damn it looks so good on this mode. The grass generating their own RT shadows makes it looks so much more realistic! The shadows between the sword and the back in RT mode also just looks so much more natural in RT mode as well.

Update: much smoother on my series x than the ps5.

[KHII]

My Ps5 absolutely struggles in Ray Tracing mode, lack of vrr and other features on my tv might not help, but in locations like Novigrad it’s borderline unplayable with the drop in frame rate

[XGlite]

It would've been nice if Photo Mode automatically switches to Ray Tracing even if it is set to Performance mode. It's a hassle to go between menu just to toggle.

[asheleydavies]

In performance mode the next gen versions often have worse shadows for things like fire, and Geralts hair loses physics in the performance mode too, which is present on old gen.

[MrSancezzio]

Been playing this on Series X in mostly ray tracing mode. Switching between ray tracing and performance highlights just how bland the lighting was. It's an incredible difference to the experience in my opinion. Night time and Caves are actually dark. The torch is actually useful! The shadows the torch draws are very impressive also. Just a shame the performance is not quite there yet, and the latency issue....it's heavy to play for sure and has some weird camera stutter but it looks magnificent. It's just a shame that we get an amazing looking mode which just isn't where it should be.

[mattgreen]

I really appreciate the time you spent investigating the input lag. That kind of information is super useful. Thank you!

[ItsAkile]

Impressive to see them target the PS4/Xbox1 performance

[usafballer]

I would trade the SSR water reflections for a stable 30FPS RT mode with the RTGI and RTAO since they are the most impactful - water looks in some ways better on the performance mode. I think they should offer some RT toggles like this. The textures, and foliage density are significant, and seeing XSX having pathetic LOD is really strange...because the world fills very dense on PS5 even in performance mode with lots of grass, and vegetation, but the RTGI/AO is hard to give up since it makes everything feel so much more rich.