We’ve not seen Xbox Series X’s power ‘fully embraced’ yet — and that’s exciting

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Xbox Series X potential could deliver amazing games

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There's a lot more power to be squeezed out of the Xbox Series X once developers get to grips with Microsoft's new console, which means better perforing and gorgeous games are on the horizon.

According to Tor Frick, creative director of upcoming cyberpunk game The Ascent, developers need time to get familiar with the Xbox Series X’s hardware. But when they do, we can expect games from smaller developers to potentially rub shoulders with those from triple-A game makers. 

“I think it will take some time before it becomes apparent how big of a shift this will be,” Frick told GamingBolt. “It will take some time before the development community will have the possibility to fully embrace the new baseline of hardware.” 

Notably, Frick drew attention to the speedy solid state drive the Xbox Series X, and indeed the Xbox Series S, as a means for developers to get the best out of Microsoft's latest gaming console.

“The fast load times will allow developers to create experiences that are more seamless, richer, more detailed and more varied,” Frick explained. “It will help smaller developers bridge the gap between budget titles and what we would traditionally expect from AAA studios. I think we will just see even more variety of games being made from studios of all sizes, which is amazing.”

This might seem rather obvious to people who’ve been longtime console gamers. Consider the tail-end of the PS4's lifecycle and how good games like 2020's The Last of Us Part II looked on seven year-old hardware. But such hardware familiarity tends to be the domain of first-party or AAA developers, so Frick’s claim that smaller developers will benefit is promising. 

Furthermore, it's been six moths since the Xbox Series X launched, and we've not really seen many "halo" games, including Halo Infinite, that show off what the console can do. Typically, there would be more flagship games to spearhead the new generation of console. 

However, we do know there is a suite of exclusive Xbox Series X games coming, which should help bolster the rather slim best Xbox Series X games list. And as developers get ever more familiar with the new Xbox hardware, we can expect to see impressive titles from game makers large and small. 

The same is likely to apply to the PS5, as it’s only six months old as well. Though Sony's keen focus on PS5 exclusive games means we’ve already seen a few games really embrace the power and capabilities of the PS5, most recently with Returnal. 

With E3 2021 just around the corner, albeit in virtual form, we can expect to see a whole mix of Xbox Series X games that are likely to embrace the console’s features and twelve teraflops of graphics power. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the PS5, as Sony no longer attends E3. 

Roland Moore-Colyer
Roland Moore-Colyer

Roland Moore-Colyer a Managing Editor at Tom’s Guide with a focus on news, features and opinion articles. He often writes about gaming, phones, laptops and other bits of hardware; he’s also got an interest in cars. When not at his desk Roland can be found wandering around London, often with a look of curiosity on his face.