Sony Brings AI Upscaling to the Standard PS5 With QSSR

Sony is bringing AI-powered upscaling to the standard PlayStation 5 through a new technology called Quick Spectral Super Resolution (QSSR).

The technology is a new performance tier of the PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) system already available on the PS5 Pro. Sony says QSSR is designed to bring the benefits of AI-guided upscaling to the standard PS5 while improving image detail and stability.

Players can already try it in two games. Marvel’s Wolverine and Ghost of Yōtei are the first titles to use QSSR, with both receiving patches that add it as an additional graphics option on PS5.

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TechloyEmmanuel Umahi

What Is QSSR on PS5?

QSSR, or Quick Spectral Super Resolution, is Sony’s new AI-upscaling technology for the standard PS5.

Sony says PSSR analyses game images pixel by pixel and uses AI to upscale them with more detail and stability than conventional approaches. But the computational demands of PSSR previously made it difficult to bring the same technology to the standard PS5.

QSSR is Sony’s response to that limitation. It was developed through Project Amethyst, Sony’s AI graphics collaboration with AMD, and uses two key changes: a streamlined neural network architecture and a hand-tuned implementation designed to maximise performance on PS5.

Sony describes QSSR as a new performance tier of AI upscaling rather than a replacement for PSSR. The company continues to position PSSR as its higher-end solution on PS5 Pro, while QSSR brings AI-guided upscaling to the standard PS5.

The practical difference is that the PS5 Pro has PSSR, while standard PS5 now has QSSR.

What Does QSSR Change?

QSSR is intended to improve two things: image detail and image stability.

That can mean clearer fine details and a more stable image during gameplay. Sony says QSSR provides these improvements while being designed specifically around the performance of the standard PS5.

The first games using the technology also give some indication of where those improvements can be seen.

Mike Fitzgerald, Head of Technology at Insomniac Games, said QSSR adds “more pixel-level clarity and stability” to the environments in Marvel’s Wolverine, including the busy streets of Madripoor and the dense alleyways of Shinjuku.

Meanwhile, Jasmin Patry, Lead Rendering Engineer at Sucker Punch Productions, said QSSR excels at resolving “the fine details” in characters and environments while providing a level of temporal stability that hadn't previously been possible on PS5.

So, while QSSR doesn't turn a standard PS5 into a PS5 Pro, Sony says it can improve how games reconstruct and present their images on the existing hardware.