Final Fantasy 15 is the latest in a growing list of titles that will support HDR on the Xbox One S console. Announced on Twitter by Microsoft’s Xbox chief, Phil Spencer, this has come as a surprise, considering that the game is not available yet. It was once thought that the title would get HDR post-release. However, this seems to have changed.
Out of the blue
As far as the timing of Spencer’s announcement, there was nothing significant about it, as far as we are aware. It just looks as though he took to Twitter last night and announced it. However, the surprise is solely aimed at the Xbox One S because HDR support for Final Fantasy 15 had already been guaranteed for PS4 and PS4 Pro.
Phil Spencer tweets via the name @XboxP3; this is the tweet that caused a stir:
Final Fantasy 15 release date
As games go, this Square Enix RPG has to be one of the longest ever waited for, meaning that it has been in production for 10 years and was previously called Final Fantasy Versus X111. Now following multiple delays and setbacks, the game is to release with full HDR support on November 29. It will be released for the PS4 and the Xbox One S.
HDR titles
If you’re an Xbox One S owner and you want to know what other games will support HDR, here they are. Right now the only information we have is about first-party Microsoft titles. The games are Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3, both of which support HDR on the Xbox One S. Concerning third-party support, Final Fantasy 15 is not the first, as NBA 2K17 also supports high dynamic range gaming.
Existing games
As soon as Phil Spencer took to Twitter and made his announcement, he was quickly overwhelmed with questions. However, they weren’t all about Final Fantasy 15, which isn’t surprising considering that there are many games on Xbox.
One user who goes by the name of @BestFireTindog tweeted: “@XboxP3 how hard is it to add HDR support to existing games? Any chance Ryse Sunset Overdrive gets this added?”
In response, Spencer tweeted: “@BestFireTimdog Best examples are when artists have been working in and reviewing scenes in HDR so usually not just something added post.”
He was also asked if the favorite game Halo 5 Guardians would get HDR support. However, in his response, he suggested that it probably would not happen.
HDR gaming requirements
If you want to be able to play Final Fantasy 15 and other HDR supporting titles in all their glory, you need to have the right equipment, starting with an HDR TV. The screens on these televisions can produce deeper colors and richer contrast. As a result, the images that appear on the screen are more realistic and also more vibrant than those on a standard TV.
When asked about adding HDR backwards compatibility, Spencer backtracked on earlier statements, suggesting that it is not something that can be added post-release.
Will you be upgrading to an HDR-compatible TV to take advantage of the great visuals in Final Fantasy 15?
