The Xbox Series X can run backwards compatible games at double the performance when compared to their original platforms, previews show. One of the leading aspects of the Xbox Series X that continues to be heavily marketed is the focus on backwards compatible games. Microsoft's goal is to have an extensive library of playable games from the original Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Backwards compatibility was an important selling point for the Xbox One back in 2015, and it continues to be a focus for Microsoft and its next-gen console. Not every game is automatically backwards compatible, but Xbox has kept a large list of games that are playable on the Xbox Series X, and has promised that the list will continue to grow. Not only does Xbox have a huge backwards compatible library, but it also have the subscription-based Game Pass to add even more playable games. Xbox Game Pass features a mix of old games along with the new, and with the purchase of a company like ZeniMax, its library will contain some heavy hitters in the next few years.
How well the Xbox backwards compatibility feature works is just as important as having it in the first place, and the first previews suggest that the Xbox Series X really does deliver. In a video from Digital Foundry, the backwards compatibility feature of the Xbox Series X was put to the test against all kinds of previous generation games. Some of those games include Final Fantasy XV, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Monster Hunter World. As the video shows, players can expect every previous generation game to run twice as well, if not better, on the Xbox Series X.
Games that are locked at 30 frames per second on Xbox One are able to easily hold a locked 60 frames per second on the Xbox Series X, even with upgrades in resolution. According to Digital Foundry, it is difficult to tell on most games how much of a jump in performance there is because of the 60 frames per second lock on most games, and it is likely higher than double the performance in many cases. However, in games like Monster Hunter World, the Xbox Series X struggles to lock the game at 60 frames per second. The frame rate only falls from 60 frames to 50 frames at the worst, though.
The ability of the Xbox Series X to play older games may end up being a bigger deal now than Microsoft expected. The game industry has been hit with lots of delays this year, mostly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning both next-gen consoles will have lighter than expected launch lineups. This hit Xbox especially hard, with the news that Halo Infinite was being delayed into 2021.
Overall, this is great news for the Xbox Series X and any Xbox fans. The fact that the Xbox Series X will not only host the previous generation's games, but also improve them by a huge margin is impressive. Microsoft is doing a lot of work to make sure that the Xbox Games Pass will be worth the purchase, and the ability to keep old games alive that that enables is a great sign for the industry.
Source: Digital Foundry/YouTube
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