At launch, Assassin’s Creed Shadows offered ray tracing on both PS5 models, but the type and scope depended on the mode. Base PS5 Performance used selective ray-traced global illumination in the Hideout, while PS5 Pro Performance targeted 60 FPS with standard ray tracing. Ubisoft’s later updates added ray-traced reflections to PS5 Pro Balanced and upgraded PSSR support across Pro modes.
PS5 and PS5 Pro modes at launch
Ubisoft’s March 6, 2025 launch specifications list upscaled 2160p as the resolution target for the modes below. These are official targets, not independent measurements; 2160p is upscaled rather than a claim of native rendering at that resolution.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Assassin’s Creed Shadows - Limited Edition (Amazon Exclusive), PlayStation 5 | $61.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
![Assassin's Creed Shadows [PlayStation 5]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51cgBmgsqGL._SL160_.jpg)
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Assassin's Creed Shadows [PlayStation 5] | $34.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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The Art of Assassin's Creed Shadows | $29.69 | Buy on Amazon |
| Console and mode | Official target | Launch ray tracing and conditions |
|---|---|---|
| PS5 Performance | Upscaled 2160p, 60 FPS | Selective ray tracing for diffuse global illumination in the Hideout only. |
| PS5 Fidelity | Upscaled 2160p, 30 FPS | Standard ray tracing for diffuse global illumination throughout the game world. |
| PS5 Balanced | Upscaled 2160p, 40 FPS | Standard ray tracing. Requires a 120 Hz or 240 Hz display and HDMI 2.1. |
| PS5 Pro Performance | Upscaled 2160p, 60 FPS | Standard ray tracing at launch. |
| PS5 Pro Fidelity | Upscaled 2160p, 30 FPS | Extended ray tracing: diffuse global illumination and reflective surfaces throughout the game world. |
| PS5 Pro Balanced | Launch entry did not provide a frame-rate or resolution specification. | The launch entry was corrected and did not establish a ray-tracing label for this mode. Ubisoft later confirmed a 40 FPS target and added ray-traced reflections in Title Update 1.0.2. |
Ubisoft’s launch post corrected an earlier mistaken statement about Extended Ray Tracing in Pro Balanced. The corrected launch entry does not support assigning that label to the mode at launch. Ubisoft later described Pro Performance as using ray-traced global illumination at 60 FPS, and Pro Balanced as having reflections at 40 FPS following its update.
What the ray-tracing labels mean
Selective ray tracing on base PS5 Performance
In Performance mode on the standard PS5, ray tracing was limited to diffuse global illumination in the Hideout. It was not ray-traced lighting throughout the open world.
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Standard ray tracing on PS5 Fidelity and Balanced
Ubisoft described standard ray tracing in these modes as diffuse global illumination throughout the game world. Balanced targets 40 FPS, between Performance’s 60 FPS and Fidelity’s 30 FPS, but requires a compatible high-refresh-rate display and HDMI 2.1.
Extended ray tracing on PS5 Pro Fidelity
At launch, Ubisoft defined Extended ray tracing as diffuse global illumination plus reflective surfaces throughout the world. The Pro’s Fidelity mode targeted 30 FPS with this broader feature set.
Why Pro Performance was notable
PS5 Pro Performance paired a 60 FPS target with standard ray tracing at launch. Ubisoft Technology Director Pierre Fortin explained that the base PS5 could realistically target 30 and 40 FPS with native ray tracing, but not 60 FPS alongside the game’s other GPU demands, including simulations, geometry, shading, character deformation, and hair rendering. That is Ubisoft’s account of the development trade-off, not an independent performance test.
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How PS5 Pro features changed after launch
Title Update 1.0.2: reflections and PSSR
In its April 11, 2025 technical post, Ubisoft said Title Update 1.0.2 added ray-traced reflections to PS5 Pro Balanced, which targets 40 FPS. The post distinguishes Pro Performance, with ray-traced global illumination at 60 FPS, from Quality and Balanced, with ray-traced reflections at 30 and 40 FPS respectively. The update also introduced PSSR support. Ubisoft said existing PS5 Pro players might need to enable PSSR in the video options, while it was enabled by default for new players at that time.
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Ubisoft also reported that its implementation of BVH8 support on PS5 Pro sped up GPU tasks involving hardware ray tracing by “about 300%.” This is Ubisoft’s figure for those tasks, not a whole-game performance gain or an independent benchmark.
Upgraded PSSR announced for April 7, 2026
On March 31, 2026, PlayStation Blog reported that upgraded PSSR would arrive with Title Update 1.1.9 on April 7, 2026. Ubisoft Technical Architect Nicolas Lopez said the updated reconstruction applies across PS5 Pro Performance, Balanced, and Quality modes, which use dynamic resolution scaling and different internal resolutions. Ubisoft described the aim as sharper, more stable images; those are the publisher’s stated benefits, not independently verified results.
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Which mode should you choose?
The official targets make the main trade-off clear: choose Performance for the 60 FPS target, Balanced for 40 FPS where your display supports it, or Fidelity/Quality for the 30 FPS target and higher visual settings. On base PS5, the ray-tracing scope also changes between modes. On PS5 Pro, Performance combines 60 FPS with ray-traced global illumination, while slower modes offer reflections; Pro Fidelity’s launch specification additionally defined Extended ray tracing across the world.
- For a 60 FPS target: PS5 Performance has selective RT only in the Hideout; PS5 Pro Performance had standard RT at launch.
- For 40 FPS: Balanced requires a 120/240 Hz display and HDMI 2.1 on PS5. PS5 Pro Balanced later gained ray-traced reflections in Title Update 1.0.2.
- For a 30 FPS target: PS5 Fidelity uses standard ray-traced global illumination throughout the world; PS5 Pro Fidelity launched with Extended ray tracing.
Ubisoft’s console Q&A describes Performance as targeting 60 FPS with lower rendering resolution and adjusted settings for consistency, Quality as targeting 30 FPS with higher resolution and enhanced settings, and Balanced as targeting 40 FPS with a high-refresh-rate display. Targets do not guarantee identical frame pacing in every scene.
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Quick Recap
Sources
- PlayStation Blog: Assassin’s Creed Shadows launch modes and ray-tracing details, March 6, 2025
- PlayStation Blog: Ubisoft’s PS5 Pro technical deep dive and Title Update 1.0.2, April 11, 2025
- Ubisoft: Assassin’s Creed Shadows news and updates
- PlayStation Blog: Upgraded PSSR in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, March 31, 2026
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