Days Gone was previously available exclusively for the PlayStation 4, but after Horizon Zero Dawn, Sony has now brought the open-world zombie game to the PC. The technology test shows that it offers chic, if not groundbreaking, graphics. On the other hand, the performance is above average.
Table of contents
- 1 Despite the high FPS, the gaming PC is jerky < ol>
- Sony's PlayStation games also for the gaming PC
- With Unreal Engine 4 and only DX11
- Many standard graphics options
- Presets with visible Differences
- The test system and the benchmark scene
- Benchmarks in Full HD, WQHD and Ultra HD
- Frame times with jerks and jerks
- It doesn't need a lot of memory
- How good is Days Gone?
- Conclusion
Sony's PlayStation games also for the gaming PC
After Sony had treated its own games published exclusively for PlayStation in exactly the same way over the years, namely as titles only available on the PS, there was a small revolution last year: First Death Stranding (test) found its way to the PC and then also Horizon Zero Dawn (test). The last-mentioned work in particular was an extraordinary step, as it is one of the most important and best Sony games ever.
With the two-year-old Days Gone, the third game from Sony previously available exclusively for PlayStation is now available on the PC. Although it is neither playfully nor technically a top title of the caliber of Horizon Zero Dawn, it is definitely a fun adventure that relies on an open game world with zombies. The test clarifies how good the PC version has become and which hardware is required for it.
With Unreal Engine 4 and only DX11
Death Stranding and Horizon Zero Dawn use an engine specially developed by Sony and the DirectX 12 API on the PC. SIE Bend Studio, the development team of Days Gone, uses the Unreal Engine 4 on “standard goods” including DirectX 11. Graphically, the game will not astonish anyone, but the optically slightly improved PC version looks good overall.
Days Gone can score with a very chic, open game world including a high degree of foresight and a very detailed character representation. In addition, the artistic style is successful and creates an atmospheric atmosphere. In terms of lighting, detail density and animation quality, Days Gone is clearly behind the PC version of the actually two years older Horizon Zero Dawn.
AMD and Nvidia are not on board
Days Gone does not seem to participate in the AMD or Nvidia developer program; there are no graphics effects from either manufacturer in the game. Ray tracing (in the absence of DirectX 12) or Nvidia DLSS is also not supported.
Many standard graphics options
Days Gone's graphics menu offers four different presets and individually adjustable options on the PC. In addition, there is an in-game down- and up-sampling that can adjust the resolution in 1-percent steps between 10 and 200 percent. The latter is definitely to be welcomed, but there are no other comfort functions. Neither an FPS limiter nor more precise details about the individual graphics options can be found. On the positive side, any changes to the options are applied immediately and without delay in the game.
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Presets with visible differences
Days Gone offers four different graphic presets with “Very High”, “High”, “Medium” and “Low”, whereby “Very High” also represents the maximum possible graphic quality. There are clearly visible differences between all presets. Between “high” and “very high” this is obviously based on only one aspect: “very high” seems to use a completely different surrounding obscuration. This applies to significantly more objects than with the high preset. Furthermore, the high setting has the peculiarity of darkening some objects far too much, which appears unnatural. And the combination of the two properties then has a clear visual effect.
With the middle preset, too, the greatest differences can be seen in the area of coverage. Because at this level it is simply switched off completely, which looks strange, especially with the numerous vegetation. In addition, the LOD works much more aggressively. Apart from that, there are hardly any differences. With the low preset, the surrounding obscuration can no longer be switched off, but the shadows can still be. And that's the biggest difference. The high preset should therefore be used as a minimum, if possible. If the frame rate allows, “Very high” is preferable.
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AMD and Nvidia graphics cards lose or gain different amounts of performance with the different settings. Anyone who switches back from “Very High” to “High” gains 30 percent performance on a GeForce RTX 3080, and 39 percent on a Radeon RX 6800 XT. The medium preset brings a further boost of 12 percent each, the lower setting again 25 and 20 percent.
Comparison of graphics presets – 3,840 × 2,160 units: frames per second (FPS)
- AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT:
- low- Preset112,9
- Middle-Preset93,7
- High-Preset83,7
- Very -High-Preset60,4
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080:
- Low -Preset127,9
- Middle-Preset102,2
- High-Preset91,5
- Very high preset70.3
On the next page: Benchmarks (FHD, WQHD & amp; UHD), frame times & amp; VRAM allocation