Microsoft details upcoming free Xbox Series X upgrades for Forza Horizon 4, Sea of Thieves, and Gears Tactics

Microsoft shared new details today about upcoming free Xbox Series X upgrades for some of its existing Xbox Game Studio titles that shipped in the past two years. All these updates will be delivered through Microsoft’s Smart Delivery system, which some third-party developers such as Ubisoft (Assassin’s Creed Unity) and CD Proket Red (Cyberpunk 2077) have also embraced.

Sea of Thieves, Forza Horizon 4, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and Gears 5 will all be optimized for the new console this holiday season, which also see the release of the PC game Gears Tactics on Xbox One and Xbox Series X. “The critically-acclaimed, fast-paced, turn-based strategy game is coming to Xbox consoles later this year, running in 4K Ultra HD at 60 frames per second on Xbox Series X,” Microsoft said today. Gears Tactics was the first Gears of War game to launch first on PC this year, and it’s great to see it coming to Xbox consoles this holiday season.

As you may recall, Gears 5 was the first current-game that Microsoft said would be enhanced for the Xbox Series X, and the company previously mentioned in the spring that it was exploring 120FPS support for multiplayer. The software didn’t confirm that today, and today’s blog post only mentioned that the solo and multiplayer modes would benefit from “reduced load times, instant resume and 4K HDR visuals using Ultra settings.”

We’ve also heard about Xbox Series X enhancements for Forza Horizon 4 earlier this year, and Microsoft finally shared more details today. The open world racing game will be able to run at 4K/60FPS on Xbox Series X, with “dramatically improved load times” and support for Quick Resume. As a reminder, the game on Xbox One X can be currently played at either 4K/30FPS or 1080p/60FPS, so the new 4K/60FPS mode will be very welcome.

The Xbox Series X upgrade for Ori and the Will of the Wisps was detailed during the Xbox Games Showcase earlier today, and we learned that the platform game will be able to run at 4K/120FPS on the next-gen Xbox. “The silky-smooth feel, low input latency and crisp imagery come together to create an unprecedented precision platforming experience,” the Xbox team emphasized today.

Last but not least, Rare’s popular pirate game Sea of Thieves will also get an Xbox Series X upgrade later this year, though Microsoft didn’t go into specifics today. “Sea of Thieves will launch alongside Xbox Series X, taking advantage of its advanced hardware, supports Smart Delivery, and is available day-and-date with Xbox Game Pass,” the announcement reads. Sea of Thieves currently runs at 4K/30FPS on Xbox One X, and we hope that a 60FPS mode will be available on Xbox Series X.

If you haven’t done it yet, we invite you to check out our recap of today’s Xbox Game Showcase, which includes all video trailers seen today including a first look at the Halo: Infinite single player campaign. All games Microsoft showed today will be enhanced for the Xbox Series X, and Halo: Infinite was definitely one of the most impressive titles.