‘Quantum Break’ Update Brings New Graphical And Exit Options, Improves Stability

Quantum Break released on April 5 on both Windows 10 PC and Xbox One, and while the game has been met with critical acclaim thanks to Remedy Entertainment’s penchant for stellar storytelling, the game had some issues on Windows 10. After a few days of silence, seemingly in response to a Digital Foundry analysis of the game, Remedy and Microsoft announced they would be actively fixing the issues that were plaguing Quantum Break, as well as addressing some concerns that the PC community had for the port. One of those concerns had to do with standard features seen on PC games, such as the ability to exit the game via an in-game menu option (something every PC game since Windows 95 has essentially done), as well as outcry by the community due to the temporal reconstruction seen on both Xbox One and PC.

Remedy over the weekend finally deployed an update to the game, and it addresses many of the concerns of the Windows 10 consumers, as well as applied some fixes to the performance issues that have plagued Quantum Break on PC. The patch is available now from the Windows 10 store, and according to the patch notes, it fixes some major issues with stability and saves. Crucially, however, the new patch gives players the ability to toggle the upscaling and film grain effects on and off, giving Windows 10 players the ability to choose how Quantum Break looks on their system.

Essentially, Quantum Break on PC was using the same rendering technique on the Xbox One, meaning if you were setting your resolution to 1080p on PC, you were actually rendering the game at 720p and upscaling to your full resolution. This results in a blurry picture by comparison, even though the reconstruction technique used in Quantum Break was meant to give the illusion of a higher pixel count. Other games on PC used this same technique, such as Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six: Siege. However, the game gave players the ability to turn it on or off, depending on their hardware. Essentially, these options should have been in the game at launch. However, it is nice to see Remedy listen to the consumers and add the options in there. So, fans playing on a 1440p monitor will actually be playing the game at 1440p. The patch notes mention frame pacing not matching refresh rate, which may be the issue where Quantum Break was capping your framerate at five-sixths your monitor’s refresh rate. Digital Foundry pointed this out in the below video. It’s hard to say whether this has been completely fixed at first glance, though, since the Windows Universal App doesn’t allow modern, standard benchmarking tools to be used, which would allow consumers to measure framerate in real time.

The exit option in the menu seemed like a no-brainer, especially given the outcry. Quantum Break initially did not allow you to exit from the menu, instead utilizing the Windows 10 App’s ability to simply mouse up to the top and click the “X” at the top of the screen. While this is ok for those who play Quantum Break at their desk right in front of the computer, it does nothing for those who have their rigs hooked up to their TVs and are playing Quantum Break with a controller on their couch. Adding this little convenience definitely helps those consumers and just gives players more choice in how to play their game.

Quantum Break has made headlines with its stellar story, as well as its inventive use of a live-action show to help facilitate the story. Microsoft has announced that Quantum Break has become the biggest-selling new Microsoft IP on the Xbox One, beating out Ryse: Son of Rome and Sunset Overdrive for the recognition. Additionally, Quantum Break became the No. 1 played game on the Xbox One worldwide, according to Xbox Wire.

Playing Quantum Break on Windows 10 and having an improvement thanks to the recent patch? Sound off with your experience below.

[Image via Microsoft]