The argument about a video game’s frame rate is age-old. Gamers have been discussing and talking about how a game runs on a particular system for a long time now. Ever since the arrival of the new consoles, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X 30 FPS have become rarities. Yet the upcoming game Hellblade 2 would be stuck in 30 FPS mode.
The developers have talked in great detail about why this game would run like this. On the other hand, 2015’s hit open-world role-playing game Fallout 4 is soon getting a 60 FPS mode and a bunch of other next-gen exclusive features. This has raised a great question amongst gamers: what matters more, gameplay or cinematic visuals?
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 would be stuck at 30 FPS on Xbox consoles
Ninja Theory has been working on this game for a very long time. Ever since Hellblade 2’s first trailer until now, they have continuously given fans a detailed look at their efforts in this game. They have also made it clear that fans should stay aware of the kind of experience they will get.
The first Hellblade game was released back in 2017; it was a visual showcase. It represented beautifully how much of an experience Ninja Theory was able to dish out. They also made sure it remained immersive by delivering the game with some exciting surround sound.
Fallout 4, on the other hand, gave fans a very different kind of experience. In this game, they could explore a vast wasteland full of unusual creatures and dangers. It had cities, it had numerous enemy camps, and it all ran at 30 FPS, as did Hellblade 1.
But now, with the arrival of the much-celebrated Fallout Amazon series, Bethesda has finally announced the release date of their next-generation update for the game. It is April 25, 2024. This update would bring a bunch of next-gen features to this game, most importantly a 60 FPS mode, besides improved visuals and such.
Fans cannot help but wonder: how hard would it have been for Ninja Theory to release Hellblade 2 with a 60 FPS mode too? But they did not; they decided to release it with a locked 30 FPS cap and claimed it was done to give gamers a cinematic experience.
This is not an acceptable way for a developer to present their AAA-level game. Nowadays, most large-budget games have more than one graphical mode. One would be a performance mode with reduced visuals but a faster framerate.
Then there would be a graphics mode that would feature better visuals at the cost of framerate. In this mode, gamers had to compromise with just 30 FPS. Hence, it has been said that Ninja Theory could have done a similar thing; they could have given gamers a choice, but instead, they decided to just make a decision on their own.
This is not the first time this kind of thing has happened
Hellblade 2 being stuck at 30 FPS is not the first case gamers have had to deal with. Over the years, a number of other developers have used “cinematic experience” as an excuse to just give fans a constricted experience.
Ubisoft did this years ago when they launched Assassin’s Creed: Unity. They went a step ahead and locked that FPS for PC too. On the other hand, WB Montreal did something similar for the Gotham Knights. It was later revealed that both of these developers were doing this because their games lacked optimization and polish. One can only hope Ninja Theory is not doing it for the same reason.
