We're on the verge of release for Saros, Housemarque's brilliant PS5 exclusive third-person shooter, and Digital Foundry has provided its usual technical breakdown.
The overall message seems to be that the studio has done a smashing job, finding a great balance between image quality, visual effects, and performance.
That's to be expected from a team that's always pushed for smooth frame rates and crazy particle effects, and it seems the latter is perhaps the most impressive aspect of Saros.
As Digital Foundry explains in the above video, at a base level the game runs on Unreal Engine 5, but Housemarque employs all sorts of proprietary tech on top of that to achieve its unique visual flair.
While some small details like shadows and screen-space reflections mean it's not a mind-blowing graphical showpiece, the variety of particle effects present onscreen at all times makes up for it, and the frame rate barely ever flinches.
PS5 Pro is where the game "truly excels" says DF, sporting the updated PSSR to boost the image quality with practically zero impact on frame rate.
The tech analysts say Saros is an "exceptional" case because, typically, AI upscaling tech similar to PSSR does not handle particles very well. However, this game keeps the image looking crisp despite all the sparks and projectiles flying around at any given time.
"On PS5 Pro, Saros truly excels, with a single 60fps mode that targets a 4K output with PSSR upscaling. This solution is exceptional because it handles the complex and demanding particle effects remarkably well, keeping them stable and acceptably sharp, a feat many temporal upscalers struggle with. The internal resolution of 1440p produces pristine image quality, and frame-rates are consistent with only minor drops during some sequences."
DF says the base PS5 version is "perfectly acceptable", though understandably isn't quite as clean as it is on PS5 Pro.
Its ballooning price tag makes it hard to justify getting a Pro for many, but Housemarque has given players one more reason to own one with its latest effort.