Starfield on Xbox Series S can run at 60 fps thanks to mods

June 24, 2024

Bethesda recently added a 60 frames per second option to Starfield on Xbox Series X, but left out the Xbox Series S version. Thankfully, modders have stepped in to save the day, as they often do.

As confirmed by tech experts at Digital Foundry, Starfield can now be played at 30 frames per second on the less powerful Xbox Series S thanks to mods (search for “Series S” in the mods menu). Using mods, Digital Foundry found that Starfield on Xbox Series S hit a baseline of 60 frames per second even in demanding GPU-limited areas of the game, such as densely populated cities, with frames rising to as high as 90 frames per second in some less demanding areas.

It’s worth noting, however, that when playing Starfield on Xbox Series S this way, the resolution drops from 1600 x 900 to 1280 x 720. “We seem to be reaching the limits of FSR 2 upscaling quality, with some ugly artifacts,” Digital Foundry reports. “Still, you get a usable performance mode – it’s just that the compromises are much more obvious to the eye than on the Series X version.”

The inevitable next question is: if modders can make Starfield run at 60 frames per second, why hasn’t Bethesda managed to do the same? Digital Foundry said the reduced resolution that comes with such improved frame rate performance means “Starfield is simply not a particularly attractive game right now.” Bethesda, Digital Foundry said, may feel that this compromise doesn’t present Starfield in as good a light as it needs to.

Starfield’s performance on Xbox Series S may not be a priority for Bethesda anyway. Last week, Bethesda Game Studios boss Todd Howard responded to a backlash over paid mods for Starfield, confirming that the developer would be rethinking its pricing model for Creations content.

On Steam, Starfield’s rating dropped to “mostly negative” after angry players criticized Bethesda for charging $7 for a single Starfield mission. The second mission in the recently released Trackers Alliance is only available as Starfield Creation and costs $7 or 700 credits.

If we look further into the future, Howard has confirmed plans to release a second story expansion for Starfield after this year’s Shattered Space and commented the long development of The Elder Scrolls 6.

Wesley is IGN’s UK News Editor. You can find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can contact Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].