Black Myth Wukong PS5 performance and graphics modes explained

Black Myth Wukong's PS5 performance and graphics modes have intrigued many fans and for good reasons. The early reviews of the game came out mostly positive with reviewers stating the game's PC performance to be quite good, considering its Unreal Engine 5 base. However, the console versions were seldom discussed.

Even in Black Myth's marketing campaigns and trailers, developer GameScience mostly used PC footage. This did raise some red flags among fans who were looking forward to playing the game on PS5. However, now that the game has been released for both PC as well as PS5, we can finally take a look at how it performs on consoles.

Here's a breakdown of the different graphics modes and general performance metrics of Black Myth Wukong's PlayStation 5 version.

---

Black Myth Wukong PS5 graphics modes

Black Myth Wukong offers three graphics modes, akin to Stellar Blade. There's a Fidelity Mode which targets 4K resolution (checkerboard) with a 30fps lock, a Balanced Mode which aims for a 60fps gameplay experience without compromising too much on the visuals (1440p upscaled), and lastly, a Performance Mode which targets 1440p60fps.

Performance isn't all that good, especially after Chapter 2 (Image via GameScience)

There isn't any VRR (variable refresh rate)--specific mode, but it seems you can gain some benefits from playing the game on a VRR-capable display, albeit only on the Balanced Mode. The game also seems to take full advantage of the 1440p output mode of the PS5.

---

Black Myth Wukong PS5 performance

In the opening chapter of Black Myth Wukong, all these modes hold up quite well, especially the Balanced Mode, which rarely deviates from the 60fps target. However, this performance is short-lived as there are a plethora of framerate and stability issues in the second main story chapter.

There are also some traversal stuttering issues while moving between different Chapters (Image via GameScience)

In Chapter 2, I noticed the framerate drop as low as 27fps, which for a game as fast-paced as Black Myth, is not acceptable. Additionally, there are massive traversal stutters across the entire map. Even with VRR enabled, I wasn't able to remedy the stuttering issues. Thankfully, the game doesn't crash, at least in the first two chapters.

The Unreal Engine 5's performance on consoles has never been all that good. Titles like Remnant 2, Immortals of Aveum, and Lords of the Fallen are some examples that despite performing quite well on PC, never delivered that smooth and steady 60fps gameplay experience on current-generation consoles.

However, Black Myth Wukong isn't nearly as bad as Star Wars Jedi Survivor or Dragon's Dogma 2. And if you can look past the few frame drops and occasional stuttering, you should be doing just fine with the PS5 version. However, we still recommend picking up the game after a few more performance and stability-related patches.