Sony PlayStation 5 gets variable refresh rate support, but there's a catch

Sony is finally bringing variable refresh rate support to the PlayStation 5. The new feature will make its way to PS5 consoles through a software update this week.

Sony first announced variable refresh rate was coming to the PS5 (Review) back in November 2020. Sony has also announced a list of PS5 games that will receive VRR support.

The one drawback here is that VRR support for PS5 consoles will only be available on screens with HDMI 2.1. This comes as a disappointment as the Xbox Series X and Series S support VRR on HDMI 2.0 displays.

Also Read: Xbox Series X Review

PS5 games with VRR support

In the coming weeks PlayStation 5 versions of Astro’s Playroom, Call of Duty: Vanguard, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Deathloop, Destiny 2, Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition, DIRT 5, Godfall, Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Resident Evil Village, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, and Tribes of Midgard will receive support for the feature through in-game patches.

How to enable VRR on the PS5?

To enable VRR on the PS5, one will need to head to the Screen and Video option in the system settings. Users can also choose to apply VRR to PS5 titles that don’t support it. This feature may improve video quality for some games. However, if doing this results in any unexpected visual effects, then the feature can be turned off at any time.

What does VRR do?

VRR dynamically syncs the refresh rate of the display to the PS5 console’s graphical output. This enhances visual performance for PS5 games by minimizing or eliminating visual artefacts, such as frame pacing issues and screen tearing. Sony also says that “previously released PS5 games can be fully optimized for VRR through a game patch and future games may include VRR support at launch.”