Xbox head wants to focus on better frame rates with next-gen games

One of the bigger disappointments back at the start of this console generation was the lack of support for 60 frames per second gameplay. The situation improved once the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X came out, but weak CPUs continued to hold frame rates back. While developers won't be under any restrictions, this is something that Xbox head, Phil Spencer, hopes to fix when next-gen lands.

In an interview with Stevivor, Spencer admitted that while “there's always work we can do to look more amazing”, he wants “games to feel as amazing as they look”, prioritising frame rate over higher fidelity.

Here is Spencer's full quote: “I think we’ve reached a point with Xbox One X in the generation where games look amazing, and there’s always work we can do to look more amazing. But I want games to feel as amazing as they look. We don’t have that in today’s generation, mainly because the CPU is underpowered relative to the GPU that’s in the box in order to reach a feel and frame rate and kind of consistency or variable refresh rate and other things that we want.”

60 frames per second gameplay has been more of a staple amongst Microsoft's first-party published games recently, with Halo now being under a 60fps mandate, Gears V launching with a 60fps mode and a few other titles. Other first-party games will likely include high-graphics or high-performance options going forward. Third-party developers aren't obligated to do the same, but it would be great if they did.

KitGuru Says: The Xbox One X in particular is pretty solid on the GPU front, but those ageing Jaguar CPU cores are certainly becoming a bit of a bottleneck. With next-gen, we'll be going all the way up to Zen 2 CPU cores, which will be a hefty upgrade. Do you guys think developers should focus more on pushing frame rates when next-gen lands? Or should we continue chasing higher quality graphics and resolutions?

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