Dark Souls 2 on PS4 is 'the best-looking incarnation of the game to date'

The PlayStation 4 version of Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin, the upcoming upgraded version of From Software’s brutal action role-playing game, is the best Dark Souls 2 has ever been, according to a painstaking analysis by Eurogamer’s Digital Foundry.

The publication looked at the gold master PS4 code, but was limited to the Forest of Fallen Giants area, which you can see in action in the recent trailer below.

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There, they discovered that Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin runs at "a perfect 1920x1080 resolution" and "holds at 60fps for a majority of the time on PS4," feats that were only possible on the original PC release. Its post-process anti-aliasing also resembles the FXAA technique from PC. The original console editions for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 ran at 720p and often at speeds of less than 20 fps.

"As a frame of reference, performance is in the same ballpark as The Last of Us remaster on PS4; a mostly 60fps affair with some rough spots," the analysis reads.

The quality of the map and its textures are improved in the PS4 port, but the game’s revamped lighting system could be its most significant feature, where "outdoors areas are re-lit, in places brighter as a result, and details now pop out more vividly."

The folks at Digital Foundry weren’t able to test the Xbox One version or the PS4’s performance when Scholar of the First Sin’s increased multiplayer count was engaged.

Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin is scheduled for an April 7 release on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Windows PC. For more on the changes coming in Scholar of the First Sin, be sure to read our analysis of the trailer below.