We controlled Microsoft’s first wave of FPS Boost titles and were impressed, while our thoughts on Arkane’s Prey and Dishonored Definitive Edition were perhaps even more exciting. Our coverage continues with a look at the Bethesda Games Studio titles running on the Creation Engine and the impressions are a little more mixed this time around. Skyrim lands exactly where we expected and works perfectly in general, but the Fallout titles are a little more enigmatic. Despite a large gap in their respective graphics capabilities, the Xbox Series S and X consoles run these titles at 1080p to reach 60 frames per second, although the Xbox One X was aimed at native 4K.
The Fallout titles are somewhat controversial, but it was great to get back to Skyrim, at least. In this case, we have a true 4K60 and it is great to see that the mod user experience that we previously tested at Digital Foundry is now completely official with FPS Boost – although it is important to emphasize that they use two different techniques to achieve this goal. The mod essentially works by removing the 30fps frame-rate limit and disabling v-sync for good measure, allowing Skyrim to take advantage of the extra power of the Series S and X consoles (where back-compat forces back v-sync).
The end result is a very tight 60 fps block for the S Series with 1080p resolution, whether you’re using FPS Boost or the mod, while the X Series runs in native 4K and looks impressive – the price to pay is a drop in performance whenever volumetry or full resolution alpha effects are at stake. In general, it is 60fps on both and adds an extra layer of brilliance to what remains an excellent RPG. Yes, the look is dated, but the gameplay is golden. And, of course, PlayStation 5 users now have access to the same experience through their own mod.
Tom Morgan and Rich Leadbetter compare notes on their experiences with Skyrim, Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 running on Xbox Series X and Series S consoles via FPS Boost.
With the Fallout titles, the situation is a little more complicated. Beginning with Fallout 4, Microsoft apparently chose to push the X and S Series to the Xbox One S codepath, meaning the game runs at native 1080p, with the frame limit removed. Keep in mind that the game originally ran at 1080p dynamic on the Xbox One S, rising to 4K on the One X. The end result is an enjoyable experience that ensures consistent 60fps for the vast majority of the game.
Only the classic bottlenecks, like the Corvega factory, cause problems, with some performance drops in the X Series and a more noticeable drop in the S Series. In general, it’s a smooth ride, but you can’t help but think that the Series X should be doing more. Ultimately, fixing something like an optional 1800p alternative to 2160p mode seems like a good way to go.
However, there is an alternative if you want the best of both worlds in the X Series – with 4K and 60fps. Turn off FPS Boost and you’ll be back to 4K30, of course, although with a far better consistency in the game than the game running on Xbox One X. Next step, a ‘720p60’ user mod provides the unlocked frame rate required for the X Series as well as a push to 4K (search the game’s mod section, activate it and restart the game). And this is where you see why Microsoft opted for consistency – the frame rate is not 60fps blocked when delivering this high resolution. The Corvega acceleration point takes you to 40 years old and there is much more in the way of general instability. It is still a marked improvement over the standard Xbox Series X experience, mind you, and many may prefer it. All of this brings us to Fallout 76 focused on multiplayer, where the configuration is similar to Fallout 4 while running FPS Boost. This time, the 1080p60 output from the X Series is completely blocked, while the S Series has some small fluctuations in the target frame rate. It’s not perfect, but it’s a much improved way to play it – although again we have lost resolution in the X Series using this feature.
A while ago, we tested user mods to run Skyrim and Fallout 4 on Series consoles at 60fps. This is our report.
Interestingly, there is a way forward in using FPS Boost while retaining 4K in Fallout games running on Xbox Series X – but it is what you might call a loophole, and we hope that Microsoft will fix it at some point. Essentially, you load one of the Fallout games with FPS Boost Disabled, upload another title, reactivate FPS Boost in the Fallout game you were playing and get back to the action via Quick Resume. This basically enables the 60fps unlock benefits of FPS Boost while maintaining the resolution of the One X. It’s a trick, it works, but through it you can appreciate why Microsoft decided to download to 1080p in its solution. Simply put, 60fps is far from guaranteed to play this way.
In short, FPS Boost offers exactly what you want with Skyrim – turn off the feature and it’s a difference between day and night, much more than you would expect. You just can’t go back. With Fallout games, again, FPS Boost works as you would expect – especially if you own the Xbox Series S. You maintain the same resolution and performance is usually blocked at 60 frames per second. Fallout games can be limited by the CPU, GPU or even limited storage at any point – and the improvement delivered by the next generation hardware is revealing. However, the X Series forces you to make a choice – 4K or 60 fps, increased FPS enabled or off. The overall increase is still impressive – the games are much more fluid in gameplay – but at this point, it’s not quite the killer feature that we hoped it would be.