‘Red Dead Redemption’ Hits Xbox One Via Backwards Compatibility, Performs Better Than On Xbox 360
Red Dead Redemption officially became available for Xbox One owners Friday. The Xbox 360 title was added to the backward compatible list of games for the console, bringing it to those who would like to play Rockstar Games’ Western opus again and to those who would like to play it for the first time.
All versions of Red Dead Redemption are compatible with the Xbox One. This includes the digital and physical versions of the base game, Undead Nightmare, and the Game of the Year Edition.
The base game is also on sale in the Xbox Store for $7.49 as part of Xbox Ultimate Game Sale, which runs through July 11, 2016. Additionally, many of the DLC add-ons – Myths and Mavericks, Legends and Killers, Liars and Cheats, Hunting and Trading, and Outlaws to the End – are all available to download for free. The exception is the Undead Nightmare Pack, which costs $9.99.
#RedDeadRedemption Now Playable on @Xbox One with Backwards Compatibility:https://t.co/bQZmwBWqq5 pic.twitter.com/Xd7KrOlnJA
— Rockstar Games (@RockstarGames) July 8, 2016
The good news is Red Dead Redemption performs exceptionally on the Xbox One, which is not always the case with backward compatible titles. Eurogamer‘s Digital Foundry experts executed a comparison analysis of the game running on the current-gen and last-gen consoles showing nicely improved performance.
Red Dead Redemption‘s framerate holds at a steady 30 frames per second (fps) on the Xbox One through the majority of the tests, even in areas where the performance tanked on the Xbox 360. Even screen tearing that frequently appeared on the last-gen console has disappeared on the Xbox One. The graphic quality remains the same, but the performance is definitely better.
This is actually the second time Red Dead Redemption appeared on the Xbox One. As previously covered by the Inquisitr, Xbox One owners were able to download and play several backward compatible titles prior to their release. Rockstar’s Western action-adventure title and other titles could all be found and downloaded via viewing Achievements for those who purchased the game digitally, allowing them to follow the games from there and access their pages in the Xbox Store. This allowed others to do the same by viewing those individuals’ profiles.
Microsoft eventually pulled the availability of Red Dead Redemption and disabled the games for those who downloaded them. It was all due to an error in how Microsoft was testing the titles prior to officially adding them to the backward compatibility list.
The early release did give VG Tech an opportunity to test the performance, however. The YouTube channel test showed the Red Dead Redemption frame rate dipping occasionally, but performing well overall. It appears the performance has only improved in the intervening months.
Following that, testing to make sure the game runs correctly on the Xbox One appears to be a time-consuming task. Microsoft has to test each game from beginning to end to ensure the emulator runs the title correctly. This can take hundreds of hours depending on the title.
Xbox 360 backward compatible titles can be purchased through the Xbox Marketplace website or through the Xbox Store on the Xbox One console. Note that the purchasing Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One is not the same as purchasing Xbox One titles, and store credit cannot be used to purchase last-gen titles.
Will you be playing Red Dead Redemption on the Xbox One? Sound off in the comments below.
[Image via Rockstar Games]
