I spent a lot of money on TV. At the time I bought it, the LG C2 was considered one of the most advanced OLED displays in the world. I remember being so excited to go home and put it all together. The first thing I did out of the box was load up Spider-Man: Miles Morales on my PS5. We recently received a new Performance RT option that adds ray tracing in 4k/60fps mode. I was stunned by the incredibly smooth and vivid images. To see him swing New York at 60 fps on such a beautiful display was practically a religious experience for me. I happily spent the rest of the week with my partner watching his 4K Blu-ray. By contrast, it took my partner a week before he realized it was a different TV.
It’s incredibly frustrating to me that she can’t tell the difference between the broken 1080p Westinghouse TV I’ve had since college and the top-of-the-line 4K OLED. I wish she appreciated loyalty the way I do. Deep, inky blacks, incredible dynamic range, and a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. She can’t really appreciate a high-end display like the C2 unless it shows two images side-by-side. Still, many nuances are lost.
There is an eternal debate about the importance of tech specs in games. Whenever an upcoming triple-A game reveals graphics options, there’s always a group of people moaning about them and another group moaning about them. The debate was reignited this week when Bethesda revealed that Redfall will not support 60fps on Xbox at launch. Those who care about such things are upset, and those who don’t think that those who care are overreacting. It seems like everyone should state their position on framerates, as if it’s a matter of opinion, but the reality is whether you can tell the difference between 30fps and his 60fps is up to you is right.
I oversimplify some complex neuroscience here for the sake of brevity, but there are biological and conditional factors in whether someone is sensitive to high frame rates. Many people are born with the ability to perceive different frame rates, but many more have adjusted themselves according to the games they play. Anyone experienced with competitive first-person shooters, where higher framerates make you react faster when you see your opponent, will immediately recognize the 30fps gameplay. If on Switch he’s only ever played Stardew Valley, his brain isn’t trained the same.
As a Counter-Strike kid grown up demon of Overwatch and Apex Legends, I’ve been playing games at the highest possible frame rates of my life. I can recognize anything below 80 fps on him and anything below 50 fps is hard to see. No fast action game of any kind, especially a shooter like Redfall, can be played at 30 fps. It gives me a headache and makes me nauseous within minutes.
It’s true for me, but it’s not true for everyone. If you can comfortably play Redfall at 30 fps and enjoy it, no judgment from me. I don’t think you’re unsophisticated, I don’t think you’re inferior to gamers, and I don’t pretend you can’t tell the difference. People who have looked to can see the difference and be affected differently than you.
Redfall’s criticism is fair. 60fps is the industry standard for triple-A games in the current console generation, and it’s unacceptable for a first-party Microsoft game to launch without it. , I’m not just stuck. I am lucky to have a powerful PC. Because if I was an Xbox player, I would have had to wait until Arkane worked before playing Redfall. This is an accessibility issue for me, declaring that he doesn’t need 60fps to enjoy the game is like declaring he doesn’t need colorblind mode. You may not care, but those who need it do. It’s time to put an end to this discussion. If frame rate matters, it matters, otherwise it doesn’t matter.