diff --git a/GPU/Common/SplineCommon.cpp b/GPU/Common/SplineCommon.cpp
index cbd13f0dc9..f66125bbdc 100644
--- a/GPU/Common/SplineCommon.cpp
+++ b/GPU/Common/SplineCommon.cpp
@@ -393,13 +393,16 @@ public:
 							const Vec3f derivV = tess_pos.SampleV(wv.deriv);
 
 							Vec3f nrm = Cross(derivU, derivV);
-							if (nrm.Length2() < 1e-20f) {
+							const float lenU2 = derivU.Length2();
+							const float lenV2 = derivV.Length2();
+							if (std::min(lenU2, lenV2) <= 1e-8f * std::max(lenU2, lenV2)) {
 								// A pole: a patch edge whose control points all meet at one point, like the top
-								// of a dome. One derivative vanishes there, so the cross product is zero and the
-								// normal would be NaN (dark spots on Pac-Man Arrangement's ghosts, #12354). Use
-								// the limit instead: next to an edge where dP/dv = 0, dP/dv ~ (u - u_edge) * d2P/dudv.
+								// of a dome. One derivative vanishes there, so the cross product is zero, or with
+								// animated control points just rounding noise, and the normal would be NaN or
+								// random (dark patches on Pac-Man Arrangement's ghosts, #12354). Use the limit
+								// instead: next to an edge where dP/dv = 0, dP/dv ~ (u - u_edge) * d2P/dudv.
 								const Vec3f derivUV = tess_nrm.SampleV(wv.deriv);
-								if (derivV.Length2() <= derivU.Length2()) {
+								if (lenV2 <= lenU2) {
 									nrm = Cross(derivU, derivUV);
 									if (tile_u * 2 > surface.tess_u) {
 										nrm = -nrm;
diff --git a/unittest/TestSplineTessellation.cpp b/unittest/TestSplineTessellation.cpp
index 6917d29583..91a6210d9f 100644
--- a/unittest/TestSplineTessellation.cpp
+++ b/unittest/TestSplineTessellation.cpp
@@ -193,6 +193,7 @@ struct TestCase {
 	u32 vertType = GE_VTYPE_POS_FLOAT | GE_VTYPE_NRM_FLOAT | GE_VTYPE_TC_FLOAT | GE_VTYPE_COL_8888;
 	bool patchFacing = false;
 	int poleEdge = -1;  // Collapse this edge to one point: 0 = first row (v = 0), 1 = first column (u = 0).
+	float poleNoise = 0.0f;  // ...but only nearly, the way animated control points come out.
 };
 
 // A bumpy, uneven grid of control points with varying UVs and colors, so that a mixed-up weight or
@@ -214,11 +215,11 @@ std::vector<SimpleVertex> MakeControlPoints(const TestCase &tc) {
 	}
 	if (tc.poleEdge == 0) {
 		for (int i = 1; i < tc.pointsU; i++) {
-			points[i].pos = points[0].pos;
+			points[i].pos = Vec3Packedf(points[0].pos.x + i * tc.poleNoise, points[0].pos.y - i * tc.poleNoise, points[0].pos.z);
 		}
 	} else if (tc.poleEdge == 1) {
 		for (int j = 1; j < tc.pointsV; j++) {
-			points[j * tc.pointsU].pos = points[0].pos;
+			points[j * tc.pointsU].pos = Vec3Packedf(points[0].pos.x, points[0].pos.y + j * tc.poleNoise, points[0].pos.z - j * tc.poleNoise);
 		}
 	}
 	return points;
@@ -439,6 +440,8 @@ bool TestSplineTessellation() {
 		{ "bezier, pole at v = 0", true, 4, 4, 8, 8, 0, 0, posNrm, false, 0 },
 		{ "bezier, pole at u = 0", true, 4, 4, 8, 8, 0, 0, posNrm, false, 1 },
 		{ "spline, pole at v = 0, open", false, 5, 6, 4, 4, 3, 3, posNrm, false, 0 },
+		{ "bezier, pole at u = 0 with rounding noise", true, 4, 4, 8, 8, 0, 0, posNrm, false, 1, 1e-7f },
+		{ "spline, pole at v = 0 with rounding noise", false, 5, 6, 4, 4, 3, 3, posNrm, false, 0, 1e-7f },
 	};
 	// Each edge type on each axis, one axis with three patches and the other with two.
 	cases.push_back({ "spline, closed/open", false, 6, 5, 4, 6, 0, 3 });