‘Destiny’ Xbox One Already Running At 1080p, Just Not For Beta
The question over whether or not Destiny on the Xbox One will be able to run at 1080p and 30 frames per second like the PS4 was answered definitively Monday. Bungie showed off footage of the game running at the benchmark resolution and explained why the beta will be running at 900p in an interview with IGN.
While it was hard to tell the resolution in the video shown on IGN, Bungie graphics developer Chris Chu confirmed that the content was the Xbox One running Destiny at 1080p and 30 fps.
“It runs at the same resolution and same frame rate as the PS4,” Chu said. “We basically got together with Microsoft and got a bunch of engineers here to work on optimizing and taking advantage of the system reserve. Basically, the extra GPU time that Microsoft gave us.”
Meanwhile, the Destiny beta for the Xbox One will run at 900p and 30 frames per second when it launches this Wednesday, July 23. Microsoft released the Software Development Kit update for the console that freed up the graphics reserve used by Kinect in early June. That did not give Bungie enough time to do the upgrading and optimization work that needed to be done to get Destiny to 1080p on the console in time for the beta. Chu confirmed that it will be 1080p when the full game debuts on September 9.
So why does this all matter? The current console war between the PS4 and Xbox One shows that the resolution debate is a hot topic. Sony’s PS4 has gotten the better of Microsoft’s Xbox One because it has proven that it can reach 1080p more frequently with cross-platform games and, prior to the offering of a Kinect-less Xbox One, at a cheaper price.
Destiny is one the most anticipated multi-platform games scheduled to launch for the second half of 2014 and the PS4 already has a leg up over the Xbox One thanks to some timed exclusive arrangements with Activision such as the beta test and DLC content. Microsoft needed its console to perform at the same level as the competition with Destiny to ensure that the performance gap becomes less of a decision factor headed into the holiday shopping season.
The debate is not going to be limited to just Destiny, however. Pixel counters will be closely watching how upcoming AAA games like Dragon Age: Inquisition, Assassin’s Creed Unity, Battlefield Hardline, and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare perform on the Xbox One when compared to the PS4.
We are beginning the process of taking the Destiny Beta offline for maintenance. It shall return on 7/23 for all registered testers.
— Bungie (@Bungie) July 21, 2014
As the tweets above show, Bungie brought the Destiny beta down for maintenance on the PS4 and PS3. It will return Wednesday with the Xbox One and Xbox 360 participating in the action. Those who play on Saturday, July 26 after 2 pm PT will receive special in-game rewards that will be available at launch.
