Merlin’s Beard! The Last-Gen Versions of Hogwarts Legacy Are Actually Surprisingly Good

Originally intended to launch alongside its next-gen brethren back in February, the last-gen ports of Hogwarts Legacy have had a bumpy road to launch. Having been delayed for a total of five times over the course of development, expectations weren’t especially high for the PS4 and Xbox One versions of Avalanche Software’s magical power fantasy. Now that the action-RPG has finally glided gracefully onto store shelves, the general scuttlebutt is… it’s actually pretty good!

Our intel comes by way of Youtube analyst ElAnalistaDeBits, who shared their graphics comparison of the games across PS5, PS4 Pro and PS4. You can check out the video for yourself down below:

Surprisingly, the PS4 Pro and PS4 ports of Hogwarts Legacy are quite visually impressive, especially considering the age of the hardware. Fidelity-wise, on PS4 you’re looking at a 1600×900 resolution. Meanwhile, over on the PS4 Pro, you’ll nab a slightly sharper resolution of 1080p. In comparison, the PS5 boasts a 3200×1800 image in Quality mode and a 2560×1440 in Performance mode.

Speaking of performance, the PS4 version manages 30fps (with a 30-50fps unlocked framerate). On the other hand, the PS4 Pro also targets 30fps (with a 30-60fps when its framerate has been unlocked). PS5, meanwhile, hits 35-45fps in Quality mode and 60-65fps in Performance mode.

Of course, the last-gen ports do somewhat falter when it comes to a few other aspects. Draw distances, for instance, have been reduced on both PS4 and PS4 Pro, which is understandable given that these pieces of hardware launched way back in 2013 and 2016, respectively. Additionally, the quality of the lighting has been pared back slightly and the sharpness of the shadows have taken a slight hit on the PS4 and PS4 Pro.

However, the biggest problem with the last-gen ports of Hogwarts Legacy is arguably the load times, which is to be expected. With PS5’s far superior SSD tech, the mechanical drives in both the PS4 and the PS4 Pro are exponentially slower by comparison. As a result, you’re looking at speeds around eight times slower than its next-gen brethren.

Unfortunately, the video doesn’t go into detail about the Xbox One version of the game, so right now, that specific port still remains a bit of a mystery. That said, by how well the PS4 and PS4 Pro ports have turned out, there’s a decent chance the Xbox One version of Hogwarts Legacy is pretty solid as well.

Hogwarts Legacy is out now on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC, with a Nintendo Switch version scheduled to arrive on 25 July, 2023.