Diablo III Ultimate Evil Edition just launched on current-gen consoles, but not without controversy. So far the game has been well-received by audiences, but one Blizzard employee recently told Eurogamer that there were disagreements over the title’s visual fidelity on Xbox One. Initial builds of Diablo III set the Xbox version to a 900p resolution, and apparently Microsoft wasn’t too happy with those results.
Blizzard’s John Hight recalls that the E3 demo for Diablo III was indeed locked at a 900p resolution. For his team, this seemed like the perfect balance between gameplay and visual quality. With so many effects happening on screen at the same time, Hight admitted that coders wanted to make sure the experience played as fluidly as possible. Microsoft however, saw the situation differently. According to him “Microsoft was just like, ‘This is unacceptable. You need to figure out a way to get a better resolution.’ So we worked with them directly.” In a sense, Blizzard was not allowed to make any visual concessions to keep their game locked at a solid frame rate.
Unfortunately, Eurogamer also suggests that this change can impact the experience in busier parts of the game. While previous 900p builds stayed locked to 60fps at all times, more chaotic Diablo III moments now suffer from rate drops into the low fifties. In most cases this isn’t a scenario that casual gamers will care too much about, but PC gamers and hardcore enthusiasts might notice the lack of response.
Microsoft employees have previously heralded gameplay over resolution, but in the case of Diablo III, it seems the company had different priorities. Should hardware makers force developers to make these kinds of adjustments? Tell me your thoughts in the comments section below!
