The second tech test for Embark Studios’ upcoming extraction shooter, ARC Raiders, is now available on PS5, PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X, and PC, and if you’re curious to know which version looks and runs best, read ahead.
The game offers a single graphics mode across PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X. The PS5 Pro version of the ARC Raiders beta improves some graphic settings over base PS5 and Xbox Series X, such as foliage, draw distance, and global illumination, and comes quite close to high settings on PC. When maxed out, however, the PC version substantially improves global illumination over its console counterparts, thanks to NVIDIA’s RTGI. Both the PS5 and Xbox Series versions present some graphic bugs when rendering some reflections. Similarly, PS5 and PS5 Pro exhibit some graphical bugs during nighttime lighting, though this can be fixed by rebooting the game.
In terms of image quality, PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X run the ARC Raiders tech test at a dynamic resolution, commonly between 1080p to 1270p, which is then upscaled to 4k (2160p), The PS5 Pro version currently does not support image reconstruction via PSSR. On the other hand, the PC version can run at a native resolution of 4K on capable systems, and it also supports NVIDIA DLSS and AMD FSR for image reconstruction.
With regards to performance, the PS5, PS5 Pro, and Xbox Series X versions of the ARC Raiders beta target a frame rate of 60 fps, though they have problems maintaining it consistently. On capable systems, the PC version can deliver frame rates above 60 fps. However, the usual Unreal Engine 5 stutters are present on all platforms.
All in all, the PC version of the ARC Raiders tech test offers the best possible overall experience, though performance isn’t ideal on any platform.
