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Does The Witcher 3 Support Ray Tracing on PS5 Pro? Modes, Features, and Settings Explained

By Freedom251 Team · · 7 min read

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Yes. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered, released on September 29, 2026, supports PS5 Pro ray tracing. Its Ray Tracing Mode adds enhanced lighting and targets 60 FPS. Performance Mode targets 60 FPS at higher resolution and can reach up to 90 FPS on a VRR-capable display. The PS5 Pro version also supports PSSR, VRR, and uncapped frame rates.

Those figures describe the 2026 Remastered release and its current official feature notes. Older articles referring to a 30-FPS ray-tracing mode describe the 2022 next-generation version, not the current PS5 Pro presentation.

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What the PS5 Pro version includes

CD PROJEKT RED’s September 2026 feature notes list PS5 Pro support for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered. The console-specific feature set includes two graphics modes, PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR), variable refresh rate (VRR) support, and uncapped frame rates.

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The two modes are built around different priorities rather than one being a universally better setting. Ray Tracing Mode emphasizes the publisher’s enhanced-lighting presentation while targeting 60 FPS. Performance Mode emphasizes higher resolution, also targets 60 FPS, and has a stated ceiling of up to 90 FPS when the game is connected to a VRR-capable display.

Ray Tracing Mode versus Performance Mode

Mode Primary emphasis Published frame-rate information What is not specified
Ray Tracing Mode Enhanced lighting Targets 60 FPS Numeric resolution and the exact list of ray-tracing techniques for this PS5 Pro mode
Performance Mode Higher resolution Targets 60 FPS; up to 90 FPS on VRR-capable displays Numeric resolution and a guarantee that every scene reaches the stated ceiling

“Target” and “up to” are important qualifications. They are specifications published by the game’s developer, not independent measurements of every location, combat encounter, or visual effect. The official notes do not establish a fixed frame rate in every scene or a particular output resolution.

What Ray Tracing Mode changes

The current Remastered notes describe Ray Tracing Mode as bringing enhanced lighting while targeting 60 FPS. That wording confirms the visual goal and performance target, but it does not enumerate the implementation on PS5 Pro. Do not assume that every technique named in documentation for the older console version is confirmed unchanged here.

Ray tracing is not presented as a separate display requirement. The published PS5 Pro feature summary does not say that VRR is needed to use Ray Tracing Mode. A compatible television or monitor can make motion at variable frame rates more comfortable, but VRR is specifically tied to the Performance Mode statement about reaching up to 90 FPS.

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What Performance Mode changes

Performance Mode is the resolution-focused option. The developer says it targets 60 FPS at higher resolution and can reach up to 90 FPS on VRR-capable displays. The wording gives you a useful decision rule: choose this mode when resolution and very smooth motion matter more than the enhanced-lighting emphasis of Ray Tracing Mode.

The 90-FPS figure is a stated maximum, not a promise that the game will run at 90 FPS continuously. It also applies to the combination of Performance Mode and a VRR-capable display; it should not be read as a claim that Ray Tracing Mode runs at 90 FPS.

PSSR, VRR, and uncapped frame rates

PSSR

PS5 Pro support introduces PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, or PSSR. CD PROJEKT RED says it is intended to provide higher visual fidelity without compromising performance. The feature notes do not provide a numeric internal resolution, output-resolution comparison, or a scene-by-scene image-quality measurement, so those details cannot be inferred from the feature name.

VRR

Variable refresh rate support allows a compatible display to adjust its refresh timing to the console’s changing frame output. For this game, the official reason to pay particular attention to VRR is Performance Mode’s stated ability to reach up to 90 FPS on a VRR-capable screen. VRR is not listed as a prerequisite for enabling ray tracing.

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Uncapped frame rates

Uncapped frame rates are listed among the PS5-specific features. That label means the game is not restricted to a single hard cap in the way a fixed 30- or 60-FPS mode would be, but it does not establish a constant frame rate or a guaranteed 90-FPS result. Display capability, the selected mode, and the demands of a particular scene still matter.

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Additional graphics options in Patch 5.01

Patch 5.01, released on October 8, 2026, expanded the console graphics settings with separate options for Bloom, Light Shafts, and Depth of Field. The patch notes also describe optimizations and visual adjustments that include ray tracing.

These are individual effects controls, not replacements for the two primary graphics modes. Selecting or disabling Bloom, Light Shafts, or Depth of Field does not turn Ray Tracing Mode or Performance Mode on by itself. Treat the mode selector and the effect toggles as separate layers of configuration.

Bloom

Bloom controls the soft glow that can appear around very bright sources such as lamps, spells, or reflective highlights. The patch confirms that a console toggle exists; it does not publish a performance percentage or image-quality comparison for each setting.

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Light Shafts

Light Shafts controls visible beams or rays around strong light sources. Again, the official information confirms the option but does not quantify its effect on resolution or frame rate.

Depth of Field

Depth of Field controls a camera effect that can blur foreground or background areas outside the focal plane. Patch 5.01 adds the option to console graphics settings, but no universal recommendation is documented. Choose according to whether you prefer a sharper, flatter image or a more cinematic focus effect.

How to select a mode on PS5 Pro

The September 2026 feature notes confirm the mode names but do not publish an exact button-by-button menu path. Menu wording can also change with patches. Use the following procedure as a safe way to locate the controls without assuming an undocumented label:

  1. Install The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered on the PS5 and allow the game to update through Patch 5.01 or a later release.
  2. Start the game on the PS5 Pro console and load any save or reach the main menu.
  3. Open the game’s Options or Settings screen and look for the graphics, display, or video section.
  4. Find the selector that names Ray Tracing Mode and Performance Mode. Choose the mode that matches your priority.
  5. In the same console graphics area, review the separate Bloom, Light Shafts, and Depth of Field controls added by Patch 5.01.
  6. If you want to evaluate the higher frame-rate behavior of Performance Mode, confirm that the television or monitor has VRR enabled and that the PS5’s display settings allow it.

If the named modes do not appear, first verify that you launched the Remastered edition rather than an older installation and that the latest available patch finished installing. The public feature notes do not document a different hidden switch or a special VRR prerequisite for Ray Tracing Mode.

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Which mode should you choose?

Choose Ray Tracing Mode when lighting is your priority

  • You want the enhanced-lighting presentation described by the developer.
  • You are satisfied with a 60-FPS target rather than prioritizing the highest possible frame rate.
  • Your display does not support VRR, or you are not specifically seeking the Performance Mode ceiling.

This is a preference-based recommendation, not a claim that the mode is faster or sharper. The official material does not provide independent image comparisons or measured frame-time data.

Choose Performance Mode when resolution and motion are your priorities

  • You prefer the higher-resolution emphasis stated in the feature notes.
  • You want a 60-FPS target with the possibility of reaching up to 90 FPS on a VRR-capable display.
  • You would rather trade the enhanced-lighting emphasis for the smoother presentation associated with the performance-focused option.

Because the published figures are targets and a maximum, neither mode should be treated as a guarantee for every scene. Your display’s capabilities determine whether the up-to-90-FPS behavior can be presented as intended.

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Why older articles say ray tracing targets 30 FPS

CD PROJEKT RED’s December 2022 next-generation update described the earlier PS5 Ray Tracing Mode as ray-traced global illumination and ambient occlusion with dynamic resolution targeting 30 FPS. Its Performance Mode targeted 60 FPS.

That description belongs to the earlier next-generation version. It should not be substituted for the Remastered PS5 Pro specifications introduced in September 2026. The current notes describe enhanced lighting at a 60-FPS target in Ray Tracing Mode and a higher-resolution Performance Mode with an up-to-90-FPS statement on VRR-capable displays.

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The distinction matters when comparing guides, screenshots, or settings advice published before the Remastered release. A 30-FPS figure can be historically accurate for the older version while being wrong for the current PS5 Pro mode.

Do existing owners need to buy the Remastered upgrade?

According to CD PROJEKT RED’s September 29, 2026 release announcement, eligible existing owners receive the Remastered upgrade free. That means the upgrade should not automatically be treated as a separate required purchase. Eligibility depends on the qualifying version you own, so check the entitlement shown on your PlayStation account and the edition installed on your console.

Readers buying the game for the first time should verify the exact PS5 edition and current listing before purchasing. The free-upgrade statement applies to qualifying existing owners, not to every possible copy or account situation.

What the official specifications do not tell you

The published material is enough to establish support and the broad purpose of each mode, but it leaves several technical questions open:

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  • There is no numeric resolution specified for either mode.
  • There is no guarantee of a constant 60 FPS or 90 FPS in every scene.
  • The PS5 Pro summary does not list every ray-tracing technique used by the current mode.
  • No independent benchmark or hands-on frame-time analysis accompanies the feature notes.
  • The exact in-game menu path for switching modes is not documented in the cited notes.

Those omissions are why claims about a precise resolution, a locked frame rate, or a detailed list of effects should be treated cautiously unless a later official update documents them.

Version and patch checklist

  • Game: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered.
  • Remastered release: September 29, 2026.
  • Feature notes: September 28, 2026.
  • Current patch covered here: Patch 5.01, released October 8, 2026.
  • Console support: PS5 Pro with PSSR, VRR, and uncapped frame-rate support listed by the publisher.
  • Mode targets: Ray Tracing Mode targets 60 FPS; Performance Mode targets 60 FPS at higher resolution and is stated to reach up to 90 FPS on VRR-capable displays.

Because graphics behavior can change in later patches, recheck the in-game notes and current patch information if a future update changes the available modes or labels.

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