Bloodborne at 100+ FPS on Mid-Range PC: PS4 Emulation Reaches New Heights with shadPS4

Official Bloodborne key art showing the Hunter standing in the streets of Yharnam

The latest shadPS4 emulator update proves you don't need a supercomputer to experience Sony's classics at buttery-smooth frame rates

While PlayStation fans continue to hold out hope for an official Bloodborne PS5 remaster or a native PC port, the emulation community is already delivering the massive performance upgrade gamers have been waiting for. Playing Sony's elusive PS4 exclusives at high frame rates is no longer restricted to top-tier enthusiast hardware, with mid-range PC builds now capable of pushing past the original console's 30 FPS cap.

The popular PS4 emulator shadPS4 continues to improve at a rapid pace. Recently, the developers released shadPS4 v0.16.0, one of the emulator's biggest updates to date. The release brought notable improvements to PS4 emulation while also expanding compatibility, allowing more games to run on the emulator.

Now, we have a glimpse of what the upcoming shadPS4 v0.16.1 update may be capable of, thanks to a new video from the YouTube channel Mutant Benchmarks. Interestingly, the creator demonstrated several PS4 titles running smoothly not on a high-end gaming rig, but on a relatively modest system featuring an AMD Ryzen 5 7600 processor and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 graphics card with 8 GB of GDDR7 VRAM. The test system was also equipped with 32 GB DDR5-6000 memory.

Bloodborne Breaks Free from 30 FPS Prison

The first title tested was Bloodborne, which delivered average frame rates of between 75 and 100 FPS, with performance rising to around 100 to 120 FPS in some areas. For a game that has been locked to 30 frames per second since its 2015 release, this represents a transformative experience that many fans have been dreaming of for nearly a decade.

The on-screen metrics also showed the GeForce RTX 5060 operating at 95% to 99% utilisation, while CPU usage on the Ryzen 5 7600 remained at roughly 40%, indicating the absence of any major CPU bottlenecks. This suggests that the emulator is making efficient use of the available hardware, with the graphics card doing the heavy lifting.

Bloodborne running on the shadPS4 emulator at over 100 FPS on a GeForce RTX 5060 and Ryzen 5 7600 showcases just how far the emulation scene has come. The difference between the original console experience and what's now possible on PC is nothing short of remarkable.

For those wanting to see the performance for themselves, the complete emulation test can be viewed in the video.

The demonstration provides compelling evidence that the upcoming shadPS4 v0.16.1 update could make high-frame-rate PS4 emulation accessible to a much wider audience.

God of War III and The Last of Us Show Promise

Next, the YouTuber tested God of War III Remastered, which ran at a mostly stable 60 FPS. While performance occasionally dropped to as low as 10 FPS in certain areas, frame rates quickly recovered and returned to smooth gameplay. During the test, CPU utilisation on the Ryzen 5 7600 remained relatively low at around 15%, whereas GPU utilisation was consistently higher at roughly 20% to 25%.

Another popular title tested was The Last of Us Remastered. The game generally ran at 60 FPS, although it occasionally experienced frame rate dips that brought performance down to around 20 to 29 FPS before quickly recovering and returning to smooth gameplay.

In addition to the games mentioned above, the YouTuber tested several other popular PS4 titles, including Driveclub, Gravity Rush Remastered, InFamous Second Son, and Ratchet & Clank.

What This Means for PC Gamers

The implications of these performance benchmarks are significant. Previously, achieving playable frame rates in PS4 emulation required top-tier hardware that most gamers simply don't have access to. The fact that a mid-range system with a Ryzen 5 7600 and RTX 5060 can push Bloodborne past 100 FPS suggests that the emulator is maturing rapidly.

It's worth noting that the GeForce RTX 5060 hasn't even been officially released yet, with current speculation pointing to a potential launch alongside the RTX 50-series lineup. The fact that the emulator already runs so well on unreleased hardware bodes well for future performance on more accessible graphics cards.

The Future of PS4 Emulation

With shadPS4 v0.16.1 on the horizon, the emulation community is poised to deliver what Sony has so far refused to provide: a definitive way to experience PS4 classics at modern performance standards. While official remasters or PC ports would undoubtedly be welcome, the emulation scene continues to fill the gap for PC gamers who want to experience Sony's rich library of exclusives.

As development progresses and compatibility improves, we may soon see a day when playing PS4 games on PC becomes as seamless as playing native titles. For now, these performance benchmarks offer a tantalising glimpse of what's possible when dedicated developers take matters into their own hands.

Disclaimer: Emulation exists in a legal grey area. Users should only play games they legally own. This article is for informational purposes only and does not endorse piracy.

Source : Mutant Benchmarks via YouTube