Gamers are mistaking PS5 motorcycle footage for real life, and it's easy to see why

Technology has now advanced to the point where it’s getting genuinely difficult to distinguish digital images from reality. While on one hand, that’s really cool, it’s also a little bit concerning. Who’s to say that I didn’t somehow get myself trapped in virtual reality, and the desk I’m sat at right now is just an illusion? Is anything real anymore? I’ll never know.

I jest, but there’s no denying that the photorealism of some graphics these days is absolutely wild. In the last year alone, we’ve seen clips of Unreal Engine 5 creations go viral since so many refused to believe that they weren’t looking at real footage. People are now having a similar reaction to footage from a PS5 racing game, which looks incredibly true to life.

Speaking of racing games, take a look at the trailer for Forza Motorsport, which is releasing later this year.

The game that’s been doing the rounds is Ride 4 which, funnily enough, isn’t a new game at all. It first released on previous-gen consoles in 2020, but later arrived on PS5 in 2021. Even so, many who didn’t see the title in action when it released have been left blown away by this short clip.

“I literally thought this was real motorcycle footage,” @BenjaminDEKR tweeted. “I had to watch it several times to figure out it was a PS5 footage, that’s incredible,” wrote @tarzanmauri.

Developers Milestone previously spoke about the game’s photorealism, with executive producer Michele Caletti telling GamesRadar, “It happened years ago with the first Ride, people were arguing if it was real. Now it's happening again with even some famous people from the industry commenting, praising it, and it's just beautiful.”

Caletti explained at the time how the game is able to pass a “'reality detection’ threshold”, which is the reason why it looks so realistic in its replay recordings (replays feature a ‘shakier’ view to replicate the effect of a camera actually being mounted on someone’s crash helmet).

“Add the lighting, with that beautifully rainy weather, add the realistic environment, and that's it.” Caletti said. “Remove one ingredient from the recipe and it wouldn't work.” Seriously impressive stuff.