GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition: Video analyzes the abysmal performance of the San Andreas remaster on PS5 and Nintendo Switch

It's been almost two weeks since Rockstar Games released the GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition (from US$59 on Amazon), but Grand Theft Auto fans are still angry at the poor quality of the remastered versions of GTA 3, Vice City and San Andreas. After Rockstar Games even decided to temporarily stop and then resume the sale of the PC version of the GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition, the console versions remain on sale but are also plagued by a poor technical implementation. Digital Foundry has now analyzed GTA San Andreas and Vice City on modern consoles, and showcases the trilogy's issues in a recently released tech review video on YouTube.

All three remastered GTA games have been ported to Unreal Engine 4, which enables many modern lighting and shadow effects like ambient occlusion that were not available in the original versions of GTA San Andreas and Vice City. While some of these visual changes are rather controversial because they do recreate the atmosphere found in the original Grand Theft Auto games, it's unlikely that any console gamer is pleased by the performance of these remasters. Even though GTA Vice City and San Andreas offer different graphics and performance modes on consoles, none of these modes appears to run smoothly.

The performance mode on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles for example does not even remotely manage to hold a steady 60 fps. The fidelity setting on the other hand runs at a stable 30 fps, but uneven frame pacing results in a stuttery gaming experience. To make things worse, the performance of the GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition is absolutely abysmal on Nintendo Switch. GTA San Andreas and Vice City usually run at less than 25 fps on Nintendo's handheld console and look quite blurry. The complete technical analysis can be watched in the video embedded below.