00:00Moon Studios' No Rest for the Wicked hits PS5, but Xbox Series S is causing delays.
00:09As revealed earlier this week during Sony's State of Play, Moon Studios' top-down action RPG No Rest for the
00:15Wicked is officially coming to PlayStation 5 following an extended early access period on PC.
00:21However, Xbox players hoping to jump into the latest project from the studio behind Ori and the Will of the
00:27Wisp may have to wait longer with optimization challenges, particularly on Xbox Series S holding back the port.
00:35On June 2nd, Moon Studios CEO Thomas Malus responded to a fan on social media asking why the game is
00:44not launching on Xbox at the same time as the PS5 version in October.
00:48In a candid reply, Mahler pointed to the technical constraints of Microsoft's lower-powered console.
00:54Series S is making that rough, Mahler said.
00:57We'll ship it after it in a good way once it's optimized like crazy for Switch 2 and Xbox.
01:04Microsoft's current policy requires all games released on Xbox Series X to also run on the Series S, with strict
01:11parity rules between the two systems.
01:13This has created friction for some developers in the past.
01:16One notable example is Baldur's Gate 3, where Larian Studios initially struggled with implementing features like split-screen co-op
01:24on Series S, before ultimately releasing the game with compromises after working with Xbox.
01:30Following increased attention around his comments, some of which spread from Discord discussions, Mahler later expanded on the situation in
01:38a separate post on Twitter, stressing that there's no exclusivity deal involved and reiterating that the delay is purely technical.
01:45There's no exclusivity deal.
01:47We just wanted to get wicked into the hands of console players as quickly as we possibly can, since the
01:53console crowd overwhelmingly got frustrated with us, only supporting Steam as Steam Deck so far, he said.
01:59He further explained that while Xbox Series X support itself is not the issue, the Series S hardware presents a
02:07significant bottleneck, particularly around memory limitations.
02:11Shipping on Xbox wouldn't have been a problem if we'd only be talking Xbox Series X, but Series S is
02:18a requirement to ship, and the biggest issue there is memory.
02:20On Series S, we only have 8GB, and since we're constantly streaming massive amounts of data in and out, we're
02:27not quite there yet to hit that spec, and we won't be until October.
02:31That pass to hit Switch 2 and Xbox Series S specs will have to come afterwards because it requires even
02:37more hardcore optimizations.
02:40And none of you would want a bad port.
02:42You'd want Wicked to feel awesome to play whenever you play it, and that just takes time.
02:48The ongoing debate around Xbox Series S.
02:51The situation has reignited discussion around Microsoft's requirement that games ship with parity across Series X and Series S.
02:59Critics argue that the lower spec console can create additional development overhead, while supporters say it ensures accessibility for players
03:06who opted for the cheaper hardware.
03:09Industry veterans have also weighed in on the issue.
03:12Former Valve writer and developer Chet Falizek previously suggested that Xbox should allow studios to opt out of Series S
03:19support in certain cases, saying his team had to do so much stupid stuff to get co-op shooter The
03:25Anacrusis running on the system.
03:28Similarly, developer Nick Wayan commented on Blue Sky that the parody issue between S and X sucks, echoing frustration shared
03:37by other teams working with the hardware.
03:39Reports from multiple studios, including those behind large-scale shooters such as Battlefield 6, have also pointed to difficulties optimizing
03:47performance for the lower-end console.
03:50What about Grand Theft Auto 6?
03:53The debate has also led to renewed speculation about how future high-end games will perform on the Series S.
03:59Most notably Rockstar Games, upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6, which is expected to release later this year.
04:05If the game arrives on Xbox platforms as planned, it will also need to run on Series S under current
04:11parity rules.
04:12That raises questions about what compromises, if any, will be required to make it function on the lower-spec system.
04:19Whether Microsoft maintains its current policy or considers exceptions for major releases remains to be seen.
04:27Now, there are comments on this one.
04:31Oprah Winfrey says,
04:36You can't tell 40% of console owners, oops, we lied about being able to play Xbox games on your
04:41Xbox.
04:42Microsoft wanted the increased sales that came from offering a cheaper entry-level option, and now it's dealing with the
04:48consequences of releasing a less powerful machine.
04:52Big Burrito says,
04:54What's worse is that Microsoft had simply kept the memory amounts the same between the Series X and Series S.
04:59It likely would have added only a relatively small amount to the manufacturing costs when the consoles launched.
05:05According to this view, doing so would have eliminated many of the problems developers now face when porting games.
05:12Microsoft underestimated how much the reduced memory would affect third-party development, and it has come back to haunt them.
05:18Jarek says,
05:19Yeah, skimping on memory was an incredibly poor decision.
05:23Memory usage is one of those areas that isn't easy to scale down without creating major development headaches.
05:29Lloyd Johnston says,
05:31Microsoft has become pretty good at pulling the rug out from under its customers.
05:35At this point, the company could decide that Series S owners are simply out of luck.
05:39As evidence, I'd point to much of what Xbox has done over the last three years.
05:45Sinister Importance goes,
05:47As someone who purchased a Series S specifically because Microsoft promised parity with the Series X,
05:52I'd actually be okay with the company dropping that requirement for third-party developers.
05:56I'd still keep it in place for first-party Xbox releases, and perhaps for games launching through Game Pass as
06:02well.
06:03Zewin goes,
06:05Saw the tag for No Rest for the Wicked.
06:07Immediately thought of the Cage of the Elephant Song.
06:10Then realized it was actually a title video game, and that this article wasn't about the song at all.
06:16Okay, uh, thanks, uh, thanks to the, um, welcome to the party, pal.
06:21Um, yeah, so, I don't know, um, honestly, I didn't know there was, now, listen, when it comes to console
06:32specs,
06:32Um, it's, uh, it's, now, it's hard for me to understand, um, so, I, and I'm also saying this not
06:45knowing the console specs for either Series X or Series S.
06:49I thought Series S was exactly the same, just without a disk drive.
06:54That's, that's why the Series S was cheaper.
06:58Now, I could be wrong, I probably am, because apparently the Series S also doesn't have as much memory as
07:05the Series X does.
07:07Uh, with that being said, um, yeah, I think, uh, I don't know how you, how you go back on
07:16this,
07:16because they promised, and, you know, if you buy the cheaper console, you'll get all the games that, uh, this
07:23more expensive console gets,
07:25and now developers are having a hard time, uh, making that a reality.
07:32And it's mostly third-party. It's not first-party developers.
07:36Uh, well, it's not Xbox developer, um, studio struggling themselves.
07:41These are third-party developers.
07:44But, um, I don't know what, I don't know what can be done.
07:47You, they might, they might have to just say, yeah, uh, this game is not coming out, um, on Series
07:54S, or,
07:57or, I mean, because if you, even if you release, like, a, a stripped-down version, um,
08:02of not including everything, because that's the only way to, uh, that's the only way to, um,
08:11what's the word I'm looking for?
08:13That's the only way to, uh, get it to one at all.
08:17You know, that's, that, uh, that's still going back on what you promised.
08:24Um, so, what I'm gonna do, uh, No Rest for the Wicked, uh, trailer, uh, I'm gonna pull it up.
08:33And, uh, we're gonna, and we're gonna take a look, because I haven't seen, uh, the trailer.
08:40So, with many eyes, you see my future.
08:46With many hands, you protect my journey.
08:52With many eyes, you see my future.
08:57With many hands, you protect my journey.
09:04With many eyes.
09:07With many eyes, you.
09:12You're fighting for a dead man.
09:19Ellsworth can't protect Sacrament.
09:23He can't protect anyone.
09:35A lost daughter returns home.
09:42Faith in fame at her neck.
09:56You shouldn't be here, Serum.
10:01It's too late for fairy tales.
10:07It's too late for any of us.
10:18Uh, that was, that was pretty awesome, I have to admit.
10:25Um, unfortunately, I don't have any of the consoles that, um, I'll be able to try that out on.
10:30Um, referencing back to the first conversation, uh, the first, um, article of tonight.
10:38But, uh, yeah, that trailer looked pretty awesome, I have to admit.
10:42Um, so, you know, if you're gonna, uh, they, it did say October, so that's just, uh, four months away.
10:51Uh, and, yeah, um, if you have, um, I just hope that if you do have a Series S or
11:00Switch 2, if that's how you were planning to play this game, um, hopefully you get it without too many
11:06compromises, if any at all.
11:11Um, yeah, uh, so, uh, that was the trailer.
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