The next generation of consoles is days away, and EA is revealing ahead of the launch how the new tech will boost its most popular games, including Apex Legends and Star Wars: Squadrons. Other titles will also be getting some performance enhancement through the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S via free next-gen upgrades or the consoles' backwards compatibility. How extreme the enhancements are will vary from title to title, but all of them will see a difference.
With more active gamers than ever, player concern remains focused on how current-gen titles will fare when the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X/S launch next week, especially considering backwards compatibility in previous consoles has never been particularly consistent. Publishers have been addressing concerns by releasing details on how its current games would hold up. EA is the latest publisher in a lineup of its peers to discuss how it plans to take its active library to the next generation.
EA revealed on its blog which titles will receive a full next-gen facelift and which will be taking advantage of the next-gen consoles' beefed-up technology. This year's EA Sports lineup, as well as The Sims 4 and its upcoming expansion Snowy Escape, will be available on the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X/S via backwards compatibility. They'll also see improved framerates and loading times. Players who have already purchased Madden NFL 21 or FIFA 21 will also get a free upgrade to the next-gen editions when they launch on December 4. Details on Apex Legends, beyond adding crossplay support, are a little more sparse, with EA promising a "performance boost up to 1440p, with more formal enhancements planned for next year." Apex Legends already ran at a dynamic 1440p, so this likely just means that, on the next-generation consoles, it'll stay at that level instead of dropping intermittently to 1080p.
Star Wars: Squadrons is getting the most extreme facelift of the lineup, especially for the Xbox Series X/S. Players can choose between a visual mode and a performance mode. The former will prioritize visual quality with higher resolution and improved lighting at dynamic 4K at 60fps on the Series X and dynamic 1440p at 60fps on the S. The latter will boost fps to 120 at the same 4k resolution on X and S, but sacrifices the new lighting model. Meanwhile, the PlayStation 5 update will run the game at 60fps with a resolution between 1440p and 4k with the new lighting model. Last but not least, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered will be available on next-gen consoles thanks to backwards compatibility, and will feature crossplay support. Though this isn't a major change, it's par for the course considering the original game is 10 years old.
These details from EA should be exciting for players who enjoy any of the games mentioned. Even the smallest upgrades will make a difference in everyday gameplay. Of course, the bigger adjustments, like in Star Wars: Squadrons, are especially interesting. At the very least, players now have more to look forward to with next-gen consoles.
Source: Electronic Arts