We previously reviewed Returnal upon its initial release for the Playstation 5 over two years ago. This review will focus on the newly released PC version, analyzing its performance and features on the platform.
Having played games on console for over two decades, I recently acquired a high-performance computer primarily for film editing, 3D work, and visual effects. An advantageous consequence of this investment is its capability as a high-end gaming PC, providing the opportunity to evaluate modern PC games.
Returnal was designed to leverage the full potential of the Playstation 5, showcasing impressive details, ray-traced reflections, and shadows. While Returnal can achieve 60fps in 4K resolution on the Playstation 5, replicating this performance on PC requires a significantly powerful system.
Achieving a stable 60fps in 1080p on PC necessitates at least an Nvidia RTX 2070 Super or AMD RX 6700 XT graphics card, coupled with 16GB of RAM. Despite having 128GB of RAM and an Nvidia RTX 2080, I observed frame drops when attempting to play the game in 4K resolution.
The game incorporates preset graphics modes tailored to varying performance levels, allowing users to optimize the visual experience based on their specific hardware configuration. This customization is a notable advantage for PC players.
While Returnal is playable with a mouse and keyboard, a controller is arguably the more intuitive input method, given the game’s design. Preference for controller input is especially strong considering the game’s console origins.
In conclusion, Returnal on PC retains the core gameplay excellence of its Playstation counterpart, making it a worthwhile experience. However, achieving visual parity with the Playstation 5 requires a high-end PC configuration. Therefore, we offer a qualified recommendation for the PC version of Returnal, contingent on hardware capabilities.
Playstation sent a review code for this evaluation. Provision of review materials does not influence our editorial assessments.
