Xbox Series S: Old games only have old improvements

Xbox Series S Old games

The Xbox Series S will play the old games without any improvements that Microsoft marks with the Xbox One X Enhanced "seal". There are two possible reasons for this: the weaker hardware, but also the generation of artificial added value for the premium consoles of the X series.

In direct comparison with the technical specifications of other Xbox consoles, the Xbox Series S can beat the One X with a stronger processor and a significantly faster hard drive, but has slightly less and slower memory. The clearest difference lies in the raw performance: Instead of 6 TFLOPs, the GPU achieves only 4 TFOPs and thus about one third less, although the difference in frame rate does not have to reach the same size due to the more modern RDNA2 architecture. Although the Series S beats the Xbox One by three, according to Microsoft, it still lacks a piece to the more expensive old model.

Microsoft remains vague

A company spokesman told Gamespew that the Series S would play old games like the Xbox One. This means that the frame rates become stable(er) due to the higher performance and no longer has to be recourse to the dynamic adjustment of the resolution, loading times are accelerated and the display benefits from better texture filters. However, more does not happen, resolution and co remain unchanged compared to the Xbox One version.

In the statement, Microsoft stated no reason for this restriction and merely pointed out that the console should play next-gen games in 1440p at 60 FPS. Backward compatible titles would be played in accordance with the developers' original intentions, that is, with the Xbox One variant of the title in question. It is also possible that the lower amount of RAM prevents the loading of the Xbox One-X version. Whether the specific performance is the reason for this decision remains open. By the way, it creates a useful criterion for differentiating from the more expensive model, which also offers better graphics in every area, both old and new.

For new games no matter

For more recent titles, however, this circumstance plays a subordinate role. Common offers receive an update, with which adjustments for the Series consoles are made. The area of "retro gaming" is therefore primarily affected.