Star Wars Jedi: Survivor launched on last-gen hardware to mixed results, with issues like poor pop-in and low framerates, especially during cutscenes, plaguing the port. While dedicated Star Wars fans with older hardware will finally get a chance to play it, the PS4 and Xbox One port does bring into question the necessity of still catering to a console generation that started all the way back in 2013. This isn't the first time a current-gen game has been ported to last-gen hardware, but it does feel like the straw that broke the camel's back.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's messy launch on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC should have indicated that a last-gen port was pointless, and yet it is here in all of its middling glory. Unfortunately, this is a frustrating trend, with next-gen titles being ported to last-gen, such as God of War: Ragnarok and Hogwarts Legacy, with significant sacrifices being made in order to make it work. However, if Jedi: Survivor's less-than-stellar last-gen debut proves anything, it's that these ports need to stop, and developers should pour all of their focus into making games exclusively for next-gen consoles.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's Last-Gen Ports Are Not Great

They Suffer From Low Framerates & Resolutions

The last-gen ports of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, which were released on PS4, Xbox One, PS4 Pro, and Xbox One X, launched to mixed reviews thanks to their poor overall performance. Naturally, to get the next-gen title running on last-gen hardware, sacrifices had to be made, including dropping the resolution down to 1280 x 720 on PS4 and 1024 x 526 on Xbox One. This, among the many other changes made to this port, dramatically reduced the overall size from 150GB on the PS5 to 50GB on all last-gen consoles, a drop that is telling of the port's quality.

The last-gen ports struggle to render the in-engine cutscenes, frequently stuttering, failing to sync up animations, and even pausing, which makes enjoying the story impossible during certain sequences. The load times are increased between the PS4 and PS5 versions, for example, with loading into Koboh taking 10 seconds on PS5 but 2 minutes on PS4. This isn't even mentioning the distracting pop-in, reduced texture quality and overall amount of assets in the open world, and the fact that players will need to wait at doors while they load the interior, all of which is brilliantly documented in Digital Foundry's review.

While a lot of this fairs better on the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X models, it isn't a dramatic improvement. This isn't to say that Star Wars Jedi: Survivor looks bad on PS4 or Xbox One, as the title still looks incredible despite the setbacks, nor are the gameplay fundamentals impacted, as they remain just as impressive with all the physics and effects retained. However, this pared-back version does bring into question the point of it all, especially considering the amount of effort that must have gone into port and how badly Jedi: Survivor struggled at launch.

Last-Gen Ports Are Taking Up Too Much Development Time

They're Just Not Worthwhile Anymore

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor launched on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on April 28, 2023, but its last-gen port didn't launch until over a year later, on September 17, 2024. Getting Survivor to run on the PS4 and Xbox One would have taken a considerable amount of time, evident in all the cutbacks made, and yet it still doesn't run particularly well. Undoubtedly, EA will have to commit even more resources to updating the last-gen versions, much like it did with the original next-gen release, taking up even more development time that could be better spent elsewhere.

Considering Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's sequel is in the works, it's hard to imagine that creating a mediocre port for a console generation that ended in 2020 is a more worthwhile investment than allocating the resources spent on it on other projects. Jedi: Survivor isn't an isolated incident, as several next-gen titles also got a last-gen port, with notable examples being Horizon Forbidden West, God of War: Ragnarok, and Hogwarts Legacy. The latter was also released on the Nintendo Switch, although it had to drastically alter the fundamentals of its design, including removing the seamless aspect of its open world.

Most of these ports don't have too many significant alterations, with the differences between the PS5 and PS4 versions of God of War: Ragnarok, for example, not feeling too extreme outside lower resolutions and texture quality. However, in extreme cases, the last-gen versions have been disastrous. This was, of course, the case with Cyberpunk 2077's PS4 and Xbox One ports, with CD Projekt Red making the smart decision to make the DLC current-gen exclusive.

The sacrifices made to get next-gen games running on last-gen hardware don't benefit anyone - other than the publisher's coffers. Either the last-gen players have to experience a much worse and potentially broken version, or the next-gen players get a last-gen feeling experience so that it's less effort for the developers to port to PS4 and Xbox One. People have been complaining since the PS5 came out that there haven't been enough next-gen exclusive titles, or games that truly make the most of the next-gen hardware.

The Last-Gen Port Issue Is Obviously Quite Nuanced

Lots Of People Are Still Stuck On Last-Gen Consoles

Of course, the issue surrounding last-gen ports is extremely nuanced and complex, which makes it all the more frustrating. Last-gen ports are still happening because, until 2023, the active install base of both the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S had not sured the last-gen hardware, meaning it's only been recently that more people are playing on next-gen consoles than last-gen ones. Additionally, according to research conducted by Omdia, it predicts that by 2025 there will still be 25% of players using last-gen consoles.

There are several reasons for why this is the case, with the first being the post-COVID world that the next-gen consoles launched in, with consoles being initially incredibly difficult to buy. This led to more games being ported to last-gen consoles, such as God of War: Ragnarok, in an attempt to cater to the larger playerbase. Additionally, analyst James McWhirter explained to Game Developer that "in the first half of the PS5's cycle [...] the adoption of PS5 outpaced the decline of active PS4 systems," and that by the beginning of 2023, 30% of people on PS5 hadn't owned a PS4.

This indicates that, at least during the initial period of the PS5's release, a large portion of PS4 s were happy to stick with their last-gen hardware. This was likely due to the aforementioned post-COVID reasons, but also due to live-service games, such as Fortnite, GTA Online, Destiny 2, Apex Legends, and Genshin Impact, not necessitating a graphical upgrade on next-gen hardware. There simply wasn't a reason for players to invest in a several hundred dollar console just to continue playing the same games they were playing on last-gen hardware.

With no next-gen live service titles compelling players to move on from their aging hardware, and few next-gen single-player experiences that were exclusive to PS5 or Xbox Series X/S, it's no surprise that players stuck to their older consoles. It is not a surprise that developers continue to invest in last-gen ports, as that was, for a while, where a large chunk of its revenue would come from. However, the time and effort that has gone into producing ports for last-gen hardware has taken away from time that could be spent making compelling reasons to finally jump ship.

Last-Gen Ports Need To Stop So Current-Gen Consoles Can Flourish

We Need More Games Like Space Marine 2

It's hard not to feel like current-gen consoles are only beginning to start, with titles like Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 finally proving what a truly next-gen video game can look like. It's not that earlier PS5 and Xbox Series X/S titles didn't look good, as God of War: Ragnarok and Horizon Forbidden West both look incredible, but more that developers don't seem to be utilizing the hardware to its fullest potential. This could be due to the need to have games work on both last-gen and new-gen hardware to accommodate the existing audience and the growing one.

Fortunately, it does seem like this trend is dying out somewhat. In 2025 Assassin's Creed: Shadows will be the first Assassin's Creed game to release exclusively for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, rather than older consoles. Similarly, Star Wars: Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora were only released on next-gen consoles. Black Myth: Wukong was a triumphant display of the potential of next-generation graphics, and the fact that both Forbidden West and Cyberpunk 2077 opted to make their DLC next-gen exclusive so that they could fulfill their visions is great.

While it's a shame it has taken so long for this generation of games to start, it does finally feel like it's here, with Jedi: Survivor's last-gen port acting as the final nail in the coffin. It's understandable why the gaming industry has taken so long to get to this point, with the situation surrounding last-gen consoles being far more nuanced than many may know. However, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor should be the final attempt at catering to a dwindling playerbase, if only so that the games industry can finally start its journey into the potential of next-generation gaming unburdened.

Sources: Digital Foundry, Omdia, Game Developer