In battles with bosses, the game turns into a "slide show". New testing after the update recorded sharp FPS drops, especially in the Pailune region and during the siege in the seventh chapter.
Even the PlayStation 5 Pro does not provide stable performance. In quality mode, designed for 30 FPS, the base PS5 drops to 12 frames, while the Pro stays at 20–22 FPS.
Performance mode with a target of 60 FPS also does not help: in some scenes, both consoles produce only 15–23 FPS.
Technical analyses indicate a CPU bottleneck. A large number of NPCs and effects create a "bottleneck", so reducing the resolution does not help. Players are massively complaining about freezes and screen tearing, noting that the game runs worse after the patch than at release.
Developers from Pearl Abyss have serious work ahead. The problems seem to be related to the engine, not just the graphics settings.