Will Xbox Series X games be held back by previous Xbox hardware?

Xbox Series X Source: Microsoft

Then this week I've seen YouTubers and commentators fall over themselves to pour fear all over the Xbox Series Ten for, in my view, something that should be seen as a pro-consumer move.

Xbox Studios head Matt Booty said in an interview that indeed, the Xbox Series X will be a cross-gen panel, with games striking Xbox One Ten and S, in addition to the Serial X.

The common narrative has been that this is somehow bad, because it somehow, checks notes , will restrict games to their base version, namely the Xbox One S. Expect, what? Actually?

Okay, so in that location were instances fifty-fifty this generation where games have only had Xbox One S scaling modes, skipping the extra power provided past the Xbox Ane Ten. Back in 2022. But in 2022, I had to search pretty difficult to observe examples. The vast majority, if not all, AAA games in 2022 do take an Xbox One X way, with upwards to 4K visuals, or sixty frames per 2d, or in some cases both.

Does that alter for the Xbox Serial Ten? The answer is quite literally no.

The Xbox Series X will launch with the same development environs as the Xbox One, Southward, and X, dubbed ERA. Developers can utilize Xbox'southward APIs to scale their games to meet the hardware of each Xbox SKU, far more hands than they could in the previous generational transition. Many games achieved obviously superior visuals on Xbox One and PS4 despite being cross-gen titles, such as Assassin's Creed Blackness Flag, Battlefield four, and Grand Theft Car Five. Some games like RYSE, widely regarded as the best-looking console game for quite literally years were originally being built for Xbox 360, too.

You might exist able to argue PowerPC and x86 compages simultaneously (along with Kinect, ahem) hurt the RYSE'south scope and gameplay, but we live in very different times now. The Xbox Series X shares a programmer surroundings, and a dev kit, with the Xbox One S and Ten. This is complete with modern software, improved programmer tools, and a common set of APIs. Although the Xbox 360 version never really launched, in today'south times, RYSE would've fared far better equally a cross-generational title, with improved tools to scale to unlike devices.

Now, you lot can argue that developers don't have the resources or dev hours to target each SKU with specific graphics settings. Typically those developers are on the indie side, which are less likely to exist pushing photorealistic visuals anyway. At that place'due south nothing wrong with that, of class, it just is what it is.

Hellblade II wallpaper 4 Source: Xbox Game StudiosHellblade II clearly isn't going to be held dorsum by the Xbox One Southward.

In that location could be some legit arguments here, though. The CPU boost and Xbox Series X "SSD as RAM" could provide actual gameplay benefits alongside prettier grass and higher-def puddles. For example, you lot could have tens of thousands of zombies on-screen instead of mere thousands. I'd argue that most game developers probably wouldn't be utilizing those unique features at the get-go of a generation anyhow, seeking to maximize turn a profit past putting their games beyond both generations. That has always been the case. Chiliad Theft Automobile 5 is one of the most successful examples of a cantankerous-gen game remaining relevant throughout two console generations. With digital gaming, games every bit a service, and the rise of cloud streaming — things are just different now.

Microsoft would also be cutting itself off at the knees to disconnect the tens of millions of Xbox I owners out there, many of whom may just exist picking up Xbox One X consoles for the start time as soon equally 2022. In a world where Project Xcloud streaming, like shooting fish in a barrel access via Xbox Game Pass and Xbox All Access are things, install base is god. Arbitrarily adhering to the "old-school rules" of a new console generation is simply a bad business decision in 2022.

Xbox Series X Reveal Source: Microsoft

It's on Microsoft to evidence why the Xbox Series X is a worthwhile purchase when information technology goes on sale in 2022, and I firmly believe they will do that with visuals designed specifically for the Series X. AAA 3rd-political party developers will too lend back up, because at the finish of the mean solar day, why wouldn't they? Why wouldn't they want their games to look as good as they possibly can when the option is there? Nobody is suggesting the prevalence of older GPUs prevents PC games from getting ray-tracing and 4K textures on the high-terminate. I wonder why. Oh, information technology's because they don't concord games back.

Related: Everything we know about the Xbox Series X

Xbox Series X/S

Main

Xbox Series Ten: Everything we know
Best games coming to Xbox Series 10/S
List of Xbox Serial X specs
What is the Xbox Series 10 release date?
How much does Xbox Serial X cost?
Why you tin can't preorder Xbox Series Ten notwithstanding
Best Xbox Series X Headsets

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