The first major Xbox series X / S console, The Medium, arrives tomorrow, but how does the game measure up on a technical level? The game has an innovative mechanic on a split screen, with players exploring two worlds at once, but it’s also pretty old-school, with fixed camera angles and a fairly classic survival horror game, so it’s an interesting test case. Fortunately, the digital heads of Digital Foundry have continuously posted the game on Xbox Series X and S. You can watch their full video below, provided you have about 20 minutes left.
The Medium has a dynamic resolution on consoles, and the range is much wider than usual, given the unique gameplay on the dual screen. In single screen mode, the medium ranges from full 4K to around 1440p on Xbox Series X and between 1080p and 900p on Xbox Series S. Unfortunately, things really take a leap when a split screen comes into play – on Series X the resolution can drops as low as 900p and in the Series S it becomes less to a sub-HD 648p.
At least the game maintains a steady 30 fps on Xbox Series X and S, though DF did record very short dips up to 20 fps, probably due to the background loading. Unfortunately, the game seems to have pretty serious issues with the framework, with stuttering a constant companion. DF also confirmed the strange problem with pre-released tracks that set their gamma too high, which many noticed in the recording before the release, in the last game.
Need to know more? According to Wccftech’s Kai Powell, The Medium is a solid, if a little unpredictable experience in its complete overview …
The medium [tries] to evoke the split realities of Silent Hill and rely on the feelings of longing and desire for something new from Team Silent. […] Marianne may jump between two realities, but The Medium is caught somewhere between a worthy successor to Silent Hill and another mediocre horror.
The Medium arrives tomorrow (January 28) on PC and Xbox Series X / S. You can see the computer requirements of the game here.