The Xbox Series X Will Unlock Automatic HDR and Better Framerates for 360 and OG Xbox Titles

We’ve been learning a lot about the Xbox Series X ever since Microsoft first revealed the next generation during last year’s Game Awards and now we’re learning even more, this time with a focus on the continuation of backwards compatibility. According to Microsoft, they are working on adding HDR support for all games, no matter the generation – including the original console – as well as unlocking better framerates for them as well. 

“In partnership with the Xbox Advanced Technology Group, Xbox Series X delivers a new, innovative HDR reconstruction technique which enables the platform to automatically add HDR support to games,” mentions Jason Ronald, a partner director of program management for the Xbox platform team, in a recent Microsoft blog post. “As this technique is handled by the platform itself, it allows us to enable HDR with zero impact to the game’s performance and we can also apply it to Xbox 360 and original Xbox titles developed almost 20 years ago, well before the existence of HDR.”

While Ronald didn’t go into too much detail about how they plan to HDR-ify older games, this definitely isn’t a move new to the Xbox brand. Most noticeably was the graphic improvements made to The Elder Scrolls Morrowind when it became backwards compatible for the Xbox One, as well as a few other titles including the beloved Mirror’s Edge parkour adventure. 

Regarding the framerate improvements, the team is looking into making sure that older games keep with the times a little bit better with better framerates, all the way up to 120fps for previously 30fps locks: “The compatibility team has invented brand new techniques that enable even more titles to run at higher resolutions and image quality while still respecting the artistic intent and vision of the original creators. We are also creating whole new classes of innovations including the ability to double the frame rate of a select set of titles from 30fps to 60fps or 60fps to 120fps.”

Related: How Xbox Series X Optimization Works

With over 15 studios now under the Xbox umbrella and a completely new take on gaming for the brand thanks to the leadership of Phil Spencer, it will be interesting to see what the next generation has to offer. From more JRPGS to a renewed focus on first-party exclusives; there is going to be a lot of changes from what we’ve seen in the 360 and Xbox One era that will be nothing but good news for Xbox fans. 

• The special edition Xbox for Cyberpunk 2077 actually glows in the dark
• So why does the Series X looks like a minifridge, anyway?
• Prep yourself for the console war with a comparison between the PS5 and Series X’s raw specs

What do you think about Microsoft’s continued dedication to backwards compatibility and their plans to improve that feature even more? Sound off with your thoughts over on Twitter by hitting us up @PrimaGames, we’d love to hear what you think!