Yesterday we ran a story that Shadow of the Tomb Raider would display at 4K and run at 60FPS on Xbox One X. Unfortunately, it turns out to not be accurate.
The information came from Eidos Montreal’s David Anfossi in an interview with EPTV. It seems that some of what was discussed may have been lost in translation as PowerUp! and many other outlets reported on the Shadow of the Tomb Raider 4K output and 60FPS.
Today, Square Enix has released a statement clarifying the display output of Shadow of the Tomb Raider.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 4K 30FPS, 1080p 60FPS
In the interview, Anfossi said;
I can’t reveal too much, but at some point, you will have 155 NPCs on screen at the same time with 4K and 60fps
This was what lead us to believe that Shadow of the Tomb Raider displays at 4K and runs in 60FPS. This is not the case. Instead, Square Enix has confirmed that Shadow of the Tomb Raider will feature two graphical options.
- 4K Resolution at 30FPS
- High Resolution, 1080p and targeting 60FPS
Rise of the Tomb Raider on Xbox One X has similar options, though the use of the word ‘targeting’ in Square Enix’s statement (in full below) is a little worrying.
This likely means that while it will display at 1080p, the framerate won’t be locked at 60FPS and instead will fluctuate. This is a sub-optimal way to play and is much less preferable to the higher resolution and solid 30FPS.
What do you prefer?
If a Shadow of the Tomb Raider 4K resolution means a rock-solid framerate, even at 30FPS, I would much prefer it. Everyone has experienced games with fluctuating framerates and it really damages the overall experience.
Square Enix has been prudent to refute these reports so early, so as to prevent fans from being disappointed when they get their hands on Shadow of the Tomb Raider later this year.
Square Enix’s statement regarding Shadow of the Tomb Raider reads;
Shadow of the Tomb Raider will not run 60 FPS while in 4K. To allow for a more customized gameplay experience, the game will include two visual modes: ‘4K Resolution’ which runs in 4K resolution at 30 FPS, and ‘High Resolution’ which is targeting 1080p at 60 FPS.
Both modes will feature a wide variety of additional enhancements such as HDR, improved physically-based rendering, hardware tessellation, anisotropic filtering, additional dynamic foliage, and more.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider launches for PC, PS4 and Xbox One on September 14, 2018.
