Warhammer 40,000: Darktide looks and plays great on PS5 Pro

Already available on Xbox Series X/S and PC, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is finally making its way to PS5 on 3rd December. Spiritual successor to the Warhammer: Vermintide series, it invites players to team up with up to three others and embark on a number of action-packed missions, all with the aim of taking back the city of Tertium from a mysterious and sinister new force.

Anyone that has played Warhammer: Vermintide will perhaps find the gameplay on offer here somewhat familiar. Missions are structured, and require players to work together in order to succeed: it’ll be troublesome for just one player to complete the mission-critical objectives here, for example, especially with the arrival of frequent hordes upping the ante. But being set in the world of Warhammer 40,000, the locations are more modern, and so too are the weapons at your disposal.

Both melee and ranged weapons are available, and each have their uses. Melee weapons are particularly useful for crowd control, with your slices and stabs potentially able to take down multiple enemies at once while also boosting your toughness meter, preventing you from taking damage. A lot of the time, however, you’ll be wanting to make use of ranged weapons such as rifles to take down enemies from a distance.

While Warhammer 40,000: Darktide doesn’t officially launch until 3rd December on PS5, those who pre-order the Imperial Edition — which includes additional content and premium currency — can start playing six days early on 27th November. I’ve spent some time with the game on PS5 Pro before its early access launch, however, and have come away somewhat impressed. While on PS5 players will be able to choose between two graphical modes — 4K at 30fps and 1440p at 60fps — on PS5 Pro it runs at 4K 60fps by default. And thanks to the game’s intricately detailed environments, it’s very atmospheric.

What’s more impressive is how smooth the action remains even when the screen is awash with enemies. There will be times when you find yourself overrun, your only option being to hack and slash away while hoping for the best, and there’s not a bit of slowdown in sight. It makes Darktide more of a pleasure to play than ever, keeping you keen to jump back in time and time again in order to further develop your character and acquire new equipment.

I need to spend more time with Warhammer 40,000: Dartktide on PS5 before I pass final judgment on it — this is a game best played with others, after all, and the servers were very quiet before launch. You can play on your own, however, with bots filling in the empty spaces. Though one silly thing is that if solo is your preferred way to play, you can’t simply create a Private game: you have to join a public game and hope that no one else tries to join you. A Solo play mode was being worked on by the developer, but it unfortunately still hasn’t materialised..

Still, if you love co-op games where you need to work with others in order to survive, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is certainly something to look forward to. With its mix of both melee and ranged combat and its dark world full of intense encounters, there’s lots here to enjoy. And if you have a PS5 Pro, you get to do it with both stunning visuals and solid performance.

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is available now on PC and Xbox Series X/S and launches on PS5 on 3rd December.