PS5 Elden Ring's 60fps back-compat hack doesn't work on Xbox Series X

After the revelation that Elden Ring runs at its smoothest frame-rate on PlayStation 5 using the backwards compatible PlayStation 4 Pro version of the game, we were left with one question: could the same back-compat ‘hack’ work on Xbox Series X? Actually getting the last-gen rendition running on the latest and greatest Xbox machine is challenging to say the least – and the bad news is, performance barely improves over Xbox One X. However, in figuring 60fps is completely off the table and the experience is actually enhanced instead, we do learn some interesting new characteristics about the From Software engine.

So why pursue this line of testing in the first place? Well, it turns out that native code running on any PlayStation or Xbox console fails to consistently hit 60 frames per second. The base last-gen consoles are 30fps or under, with poorly implemented frame-pacing to boot. Xbox One X and PS4 Pro both run unlocked but can’t get close to hitting the magic 60fps, while both quality and performance modes on the current-gen machines also fall short. Running non-native PS4 code on PS5 does the trick, however, but it’s an option only available to those who own digital copies of the game – the physical disc is PS5 only.

Bizarrely, the situation is reversed on Xbox Series X. You own a physical copy of the game – digital downloads via Smart Delivery block out access to last-gen code. To make this work you need to take your Series X offline, disable auto-updating in the dash and then install the disc. After the installation finishes, go online again and try to run the Elden Ring from the Xbox front-end. Crucially, you must now hit cancel on the ‘Series X/S optimised’ update, then go offline again. Now you are ready to play Xbox One X code on Xbox Series X. It’s not a great solution clearly, for all manner of reasons, but most obviously because online elements of the game are closed off to you, along with any title updates for the game.