The latest games run faster, play better and load more quickly on the junior Xbox.
We examined their performance differential in a range of games two-and-a-half years ago with a somewhat mixed outcome.
And to cut to the chase, Series S is powering ahead.
Let’s start our cross-gen comparisons withDiablo 4.
This highly-anticipated action RPG shipped across both last-gen and current-gen platforms last year, with excellent graphics.
Even image quality is a basic match.
Performance-wise, the One X comes in with a respectable 30fps.
Outside of that minor blemish, it does land a stable 30 with only limited exceptions.
Next up isAssassin’s Creed Mirage, last year’s back-to-basics AC adventure.
However, the One X does fight back with higher shadow resolution and a much higher rendering resolution.
Performance-wise, we do manage to hit and hold 60fps on Series S the vast majority of the time.
Cutscenes also drop to 30fps, which again isn’t a big issue at all.
The One X, predictably, lands with a halved frame-rate target.
Persona 3 Reloadis our next title in the crosshairs.
Series S, predictably, doubles that frame-rate target, landing a solid 60fps.
Any frame-time woes are basically negligible.
Other visual parameters essentially prove a match as well.
Next up are a pair of Like A Dragon titles.
Like A Dragon: Ishin!
With Series S, 60fps is the target and that’s what is delivered.
However, in typical play, the game feels a world better than the One X version.
Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth does show a little more visual variance between the two machines.
The Series S does struggle to maintain that quality in movement, though.
Xbox One X at least manages to run here with a steady 30fps, unencumbered by frame-time wobbles.
Occasionally there’s a little hiccup here and there, but it’s largely a competent 30fps experience.
Series S - again - doubles the One X’s frame-rate target.
Finally, I wanted to take a look at Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty.
The difference in loading speeds can be quite stark.
Still, the loading differences can be quite dramatic, even in cross-gen software.
Of the games we’ve seen today, I think there are some clear patterns.
Besides, a huge proportion of recently released games are exclusive to current-gen machines.
That’s criteria that the ageing One X simply cannot meet.
So the Xbox Series S provides a categorically better experience than the One X in 2024.
