Surprise! Hot on the heels of PlayStation's own upscaling tech announcements, Microsoft and AMD just revealed that the firm's flagship FSR 4.1 tech is coming to the Xbox platform.
FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution) is a technology from AMD that renders games at a lower resolution, and then uses machine learning to generate a sharper image. Since the hardware isn't working as hard, that overhead can be used for performance.
FSR 4.1 is a big leap over previous versions, and Microsoft has partnered with AMD to bring it not only to Xbox Series X, but also Xbox Ally X and Xbox Series S — the latter of which should benefit from very, very big performance boosts as a result.
"At Xbox, we're building a gaming platform designed to meet players where they are, and make it easier for creators to reach them," Xbox CTO Scott Van Vilet explained. "AMD has been an important partner in that journey for more than two decades. Together our teams have been pushing gaming forward, across Xbox and Windows. From the silicon at the heart of our consoles and handhelds, to technologies like DirectX, Advanced Shader Delivery, and AutoSR that helps developers get more from the hardware and deliver better experiences for our players."
"Today, we're excited to take another step forward together. With FSR 4.1 coming to Xbox. Now, we've worked very closely with AMD to optimize this technology, giving developers another powerful tool for great performance and visual quality for players. Now, whether you're playing on an Xbox Ally handheld, as well as coming soon to Xbox Series X and Series S consoles. And this is just the beginning. Our teams are continuing to work together across hardware and software, and there's even more ahead with Project Helix, leveraging FSR Diamond to power what comes next."
It's unclear exactly when these technologies will roll out to Xbox devices. It sounds as though FSR 4.1 will hit Xbox Ally X before the year end, but Xbox Series X|S are listed as "coming soon," with no exact window offered.
Sadly it seems the Xbox Ally base model is fully incompatible with FSR 4.1, which is a bit of a shame, but it should prove transformative for those with the Xbox Ally X and Xbox Ally X20, as well as the Xbox Series S.
The Xbox Series S has historically been difficult for developers owing to its irregular RAM allocation, but if FSR 4.1 can do some of the heavy lifting, it should ease the pressure on developers to deliver a native 1080p image.
We're reaching out to Microsoft for some clarification on timelines, and will get back to you if we hear from them.
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