YouTube Compression Blurs Ubisoft's 4K PS5 Pro Trailer as 1080p Uploads Get Just 12 Mbps
Updated
Updated · Polygon · Jun 29
YouTube Compression Blurs Ubisoft's 4K PS5 Pro Trailer as 1080p Uploads Get Just 12 Mbps
2 articles · Updated · Polygon · Jun 29
Summary
Ubisoft’s new Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced trailer for PS5 Pro shows visible blur and compression artifacts on YouTube, undercutting the point of a 4K visual showcase.
YouTube degrades the footage by compressing every upload to reduce file size and bandwidth demand, a trade-off meant to keep streams playable on weaker internet connections.
4K uploads get far more data headroom—about 53-68 Mbps at 48-60 fps versus 12 Mbps for 1080p—and YouTube’s VP9 handling for higher resolutions can preserve more detail, though not full native quality.
The report argues publishers could present cleaner footage by upscaling 1080p or 1440p video to 4K before upload, or by downscaling higher-resolution captures to 1080p, instead of posting compressed footage that misrepresents the game.