Over the last year or so, Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) has been rolling out some significant graphical changes and improvements for players across all consoles. The latest of these will be coming with the game's Waking Flame update, releasing at the end of August. Here's what ESO players can expect when the DLC launches.
New-generation console s, such as those playing on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, have already gotten the opportunity to experience many of ESO's graphic improvements. Many were also available on PC prior to the Waking Flame update, having rolled out quietly over the last year, but others only went live following the release of the Blackwood chapter of Elder Scrolls Online. The new graphical settings are "opt-in" so as to not disrupt existing performance.
Also being introduced as an "opt-in" experience on PC is the console render multithreading setting that debuted in June on other platforms with the release of Elder Scrolls Online Console Enhanced. This feature aims to improve frame rates. On top of all this, some brand new improvements and additions will be added with late August's release of the Waking Flame DLC as well.
New Graphic Settings Coming To ESO's Waking Flame DLC
For new-generation console s, Elder Scrolls Online's Waking Flame update will enable dynamic resolution scaling for performance mode on Xbox Series X|S and PS5. This will scale the resolution up and down based on console performance, between 1080 and 2160 p on Xbox Series X and PS5 and between 1080 and 1440p on Xbox Series S. Developers still expect that new-generation players will still be running at or close to 60 fps at 4K while in performance mode, but allowing scaling to drop as low as 1080p should prevent significant framerate drops in high-intensity situations such as large Cyrodiil battles, dungeon boss fights, or other areas across the not-quite massively multiplayer online game where there may be many players engaging at once.
Another change is the introduction of a new HDR mode known as Default across all consoles save for the base PS4 and Xbox One. This setting aims to keep the intended look of Elder Scrolls Online's original artwork while still taking advantage of an increased graphical range. Of course, for players who prefer the way ESO looked in HDR before the Waking Flame update, the current default mode will remain an option named Vibrant after the DLC is released.
The Waking Flame DLC will launch on PC on August 23 and on other consoles such as Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5 on August 31. Many of these new introductions to Elder Scrolls Online may not work entirely as expected with all graphical settings and ranges, so players should opt-in to any experience they'd like to try out to provide once the update is released.
