Sony’s newly unveiled PlayStation 5 Pro console features improved ray tracing performance, a key benefit that has long been rumored. Recent comments from PlayStation designer Mark Cerny have all but confirmed these theories, stating that the device’s ray tracing capabilities are built on an architecture not yet available in AMD’s PC graphics cards.
Cerny explained that the PS5 Pro leverages new ray tracing feature sets developed by hardware partner AMD for the next stage of its roadmap. The technology is believed to be based on AMD’s upcoming RDNA 4 GPU architecture, which is expected to significantly enhance ray tracing performance compared to RDNA 3 and RDNA 2 chips.
AMD’s current GPUs have kept pace with Nvidia’s RTX products in traditional rasterized lighting, but lag significantly behind in ray tracing performance. However, with the introduction of RDNA 4, AMD is expected to close this gap, allowing for more advanced ray tracing features and improved frame rates in games utilizing the technology.
The PS5 Pro may not entirely close the gap in ray tracing performance, but it will likely support more ray tracing features or improve frame rates in games utilizing the technology. A July leak suggested that RDNA 4 will feature a technique called Ray Tracing Tri Pair Optimization, which may either double the number of dedicated RT units or allow RT engines to process twice as many ray-triangle intersection calculations per clock cycle.
While the PS5 Pro’s improved ray tracing performance is a significant upgrade, it’s worth noting that AMD has confirmed that its next GPU generation will focus on affordable mid-range and mainstream cards, leaving Nvidia’s high-end segment unchallenged.