Digital Foundry evaluated the graphics of GTA 6 on PS5 – 1440p and stable 30 FPS
Digital Foundry conducted a technical analysis of the 26-minute demonstration of Grand Theft Auto VI. Experts were impressed not only by the quality of individual effects but also by the fact that Rockstar managed to combine complex lighting, detailed characters, massive crowds of NPCs, and a rich open world on a standard PlayStation 5.
One of the most impressive projects of the generation
According to Digital Foundry, the main achievement of GTA 6 is not any single graphics technology. The game simultaneously demonstrates a high level of character detail, materials, lighting, reflections, animation, and open-world simulation.
Experts especially highlighted the characters. Compared to games of the previous generation, hair simulation has noticeably improved. Different hair types react realistically to movement and lighting, while individual strands continue to move due to inertia after a character stops.
Lucia is cited as an example. Her hair reacts realistically to head and body movements not only in scripted scenes but also directly during gameplay.
No less attention has been paid to the characters’ skin. Highlights change depending on the position of light sources, while sweat, makeup, and other fine details become visible. This looks especially impressive in the humid climate of Vice City.
Ray tracing plays a key role
GTA 6 makes extensive use of ray tracing, yet Rockstar does not attempt to apply it to absolutely every element of the image.
According to the analysis, most shadows from the sun and local light sources are still created using traditional shadow maps. At the same time, the quality of this technology has significantly improved: shadow edges become softer as they move farther away from the object casting them.
In some close-up shots, Digital Foundry suggests that RT shadows may be used, but the main focus is on other ray-tracing capabilities.
One of them is reflections. Characters and objects that cannot be captured using the standard Screen Space Reflections method are still visible in reflective surfaces because ray tracing can account for objects outside the current camera view.
Rockstar, in turn, combines different technologies. For example, some regular mirrors may use separate planar reflections if this method provides better image quality with a lower performance cost.
GTA 6 lighting uses RTGI
Ray tracing plays an even more important role in global illumination. Digital Foundry found signs of extensive use of RTGI – ray-traced global illumination.
Light can bounce off surrounding surfaces and affect other objects. Obstacles, room geometry, and surface colors are taken into account. For example, a colored object can cast part of its hue onto a nearby surface.
Such a system is especially important for GTA 6 because of its constantly changing open world. Using precomputed lighting in such a dynamic environment is significantly more difficult.
At the same time, the technology is not without drawbacks. In some scenes, characteristic ray-tracing noise is noticeable, while the quality of individual RT reflections degrades during camera movement.
A huge number of NPCs turned out to be no less important
Digital Foundry separately highlighted the scale of the world simulation. Large numbers of NPCs, cars, and other objects are present simultaneously on beaches, streets, and in clubs.
At the same time, Rockstar appears to be focusing not only on the number of characters. NPCs are expected to have more complex routes, reactions to events, and a certain degree of independent behavior.
The demonstration also features advanced object physics, destructible environmental elements, and a large number of interactive details.
However, it is not yet possible to fully assess the complexity of the simulation. The showcase consisted of pre-selected sequences, so testing the behavior of massive crowds in unpredictable situations will only be possible after the game’s release.
On a standard PS5, the game runs at 1440p
The entire 26-minute demonstration was recorded on a base PlayStation 5. According to Digital Foundry’s calculations, the internal resolution is approximately 2560 × 1440 pixels.
Experts found no signs of dynamic resolution changes in the scenes shown.
At the same time, the image is output at 4K, but relatively simple spatial upscaling is likely being used. Experts found no clear signs of modern temporal upscaling technologies such as FSR 2 or TAAU.
As a result, the image appears soft in some areas, while flickering and jagged object edges can be seen in fine details. Some RT reflections also have a relatively low internal resolution and may become blurred during camera movement.
Digital Foundry considers image quality to be one of the areas in GTA 6 where there is still room for improvement.
30 FPS with practically no frame-rate drops
The version of GTA 6 shown runs at 30 frames per second. The frame rate remains practically stable throughout the demonstration, and the specialists noticed only a few isolated frame drops.
This is noticeably different from the console versions of GTA IV and GTA V from the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 era, where frame rates could drop significantly in demanding scenes.
Digital Foundry believes that Rockstar is intentionally using almost all available CPU and GPU resources to increase world density and graphical quality.
That is why experts consider a 60 FPS mode on current consoles unlikely. To move from 30 to 60 FPS, the processing time per frame must be reduced from approximately 33.3 ms to 16.7 ms, while the load increases significantly not only on the GPU but also on the CPU.
There is an issue with animation smoothness
Even at a stable 30 FPS, experts noticed a familiar characteristic of the RAGE engine. Camera movement and some animations are not entirely smooth.
As a result, some movements may appear slightly jittery even though the actual frame rate does not drop at that moment.
This behavior has also been observed in previous Rockstar games. Digital Foundry suggests that the reason may lie in the synchronization of animation updates with frame output.
GTA 6 should look better on PS5 Pro
Since the demonstration was recorded on a standard PS5, the PlayStation 5 Pro still has additional performance headroom to improve image quality.
Digital Foundry expects higher-quality ray tracing and better overall image quality. Another advantage of the PS5 Pro is its PSSR upscaling technology.
However, experts do not claim that the more powerful console will be able to run GTA 6 at 60 FPS. The processor may be the limiting factor, since simulating a large number of NPCs and other world elements places a significant load specifically on the CPU.
The PC version could also be very demanding
A potential PC version of GTA 6 could offer higher resolution, improved ray tracing, increased draw distance, and modern upscaling technologies such as DLSS.
However, achieving a stable 60 FPS may require a very powerful processor. Digital Foundry suggests that modern Ryzen processors with additional 3D V-Cache could be particularly beneficial for achieving high frame rates.
Thus, even after its release on PC, GTA 6 could become one of the most CPU-intensive games of its generation.
Grand Theft Auto VI will be released on November 19, 2026 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Rockstar has not yet announced a PC version.
